E-Business
Jumia Lays off 20% Staff as Part of Plans to Reduce Losses
Jumia, Africa’s leading e-tailer, has taken major steps to reduce losses and accelerating progress towards profitability, even if it means selling to fewer customers.
Francis Dufay
Jumia, which emphasises that cost reduction is a key priority of its strategy, undertook significant headcount reductions in the fourth quarter of 2022. This resulted in over 900 position terminations, the company says, corresponding to a 20 percent headcount reduction.
“We have streamlined our organizational structure, creating leaner, more effective teams, fully committed to the execution of our strategy,” Jumia explained in its latest results publication.
As part of the streamlining efforts, Jumia says it has also significantly reduced its presence in Dubai where certain management functions were located, reducing headcount by over 60 percent. It is understood that most of the remaining staff are being relocated to African offices, closer to consumers, sellers and operations.
“We expect these headcount reductions to allow us to save over 30 percent in monthly staff costs starting from March 2023, as compared to the October 2022 staff cost baseline,” the company estimates while also noting that an expense of USD 3.7 M was incurred in the restructuring process. Notwithstanding, Jumia insists it is working across the full cost structure to drive efficiencies.
These changes, coupled with efforts at prioritising fundamentals-led growth and gutting underperforming business units amongst other factors, did affect Jumia’s sales.
In the just-released fourth quarter and Full Year 2022 results, active customers amounted to 3.2 million for the three months ended December 31, down 15 percent year-over-year. The company says this was partly a reflection of a challenging macro environment across countries that is putting pressure on consumer spend while affecting sellers’ ability to secure supply.
Another factor cited as being responsible for the subdued showing is the deliberate action on Jumia’s side to reduce promotional/marketing intensity behind categories with more challenging unit economics, including a number of digital services on the JumiaPay app. “We remain disciplined around customer acquisition with a focus on profitability,” the e-tailer emphasised.
The combination of the above factors, macro environment and deliberate category rationalisation, also drove a decline in orders by 12 percent year-over-year, to 9.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2022, the company notes. Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) also slowed to USD 283.1 M, down 14 percent year-over-year and flat on a constant currency basis.
However, Francis Dufay (previously appointed Acting CEO and now appointed CEO of Jumia by the Supervisory Board) maintains it’s no cause for panic as one of Jumia’s immediate priorities is to significantly improve resource allocation, focusing on core areas with attractive returns on investments and clear ecosystem benefits.
“In the fourth quarter of 2022, we started implementing our strategy to accelerate our path to profitability and further strengthen our fundamentals. While the fourth quarter results only reflect a fraction of the actions we are taking, we are seeing early signs of success and remain focused on execution,” Dufay commented.
In its earlier Q3 2022 results released in the middle of November last year shortly after the exit of long-standing co-CEOs Sacha Poignonnec and Jeremy Hodara, Jumia announced its intention to cease a number of activities that do not yield attractive returns.
These business exits, the company now says, have largely been completed: Jumia Prime has been discontinued; the logistics-as-a-service offering is off in all but three countries; first-party grocery has been scaled back in four markets; food delivery discontinued in Egypt, Ghana, Senegal, and Tunisia.
Some of these changes appear to already be yielding fruit in some ways as operating loss in Q4 2022 was USD 49.8 M, down 41 percent year-over-year while gross profit accelerated to USD 41 M in the fourth quarter of 2022, up 22 percent year-over-year. Also, with its marketplace revenue hitting a record USD 41.2 M and fulfilment and other expenses continuing to fall, Jumia appears to be taking the slow and steady route; an increased focus on sustainability after years of unbridled growth-chasing spending.
Jumia, which has its African headquarters in Lagos, Nigeria, while serving 11 countries on the continent, has been the dominant e-tailer in these parts for more than a decade but continues to struggle to make the numbers work, failing to turn profitable and accumulating around USD 2 B in losses. Its share price has tumbled nearly 70 percent since its historic 2019 IPO as shareholders and analysts continue to express unease over the viability of its Amazon-style business model in challenging African markets.
The ongoing reset that is apparent at Jumia, thus, seems in order though it remains to be whether it would be enough to turn things around.
Nigeria has emerged as one of Africa’s most regulated online gambling markets, even as illegal operators continue to dominate the continent, according to a new report by Gaming Compliance International (GCI).
The report, the first comprehensive assessment of online gambling across all 54 African countries, showed that Africa’s online gambling Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) reached $23 billion in 2025.
However, only $5.2 billion (23 per cent) was generated by licensed operators, while $17.8 billion (77 per cent) remained in the unregulated market.
In West Africa, total online gambling revenue rose to $4.8 billion in 2025 from $4.3 billion in 2024. Of the 2025 figure, regulated operators accounted for $1.5 billion (31 per cent), while $3.3 billion (69 per cent) flowed to unlicensed platforms, highlighting the region’s persistent enforcement challenges.
Nigeria stood out as the region’s strongest performer, recording the lowest unregulated market share at 56 per cent, compared with the West African average of 69 per cent and the African average of 77 per cent.
The study also found that online gambling participation across Africa increased from 198 million people (13 per cent of the population) in 2024 to 215 million (14 per cent) in 2025.
Despite this growth, GCI estimated that illegal operators deprived African governments of about $3.55 billion in tax revenue in 2025. The number of unlicensed gambling platforms targeting African consumers also rose to 4,129, up from 3,644 in 2024.
Commenting on the findings, Matt Holt, chief executive officer, GCI, said the report provides regulators with the first continent-wide benchmark for strengthening oversight and consumer protection.
Ismail Vali, president, GCI, urged governments to develop competitive and well-regulated markets that encourage consumers to patronise licensed operators, boost public revenue and attract greater investment.
Online gambling in Nigeria is regulated by the Nation Lottery Regulatory Commission.
At the height of the Northern Hemisphere tourist season, demand for communications and mobile Internet services rises sharply. Kaspersky’s security experts have uncovered scams that target anyone purchasing mobile connections or SIM cards worldwide.
Fraudsters create counterfeit websites that look like the portals of major regional and international telecom providers to trick users into revealing their phone numbers, personal details or banking information.
Kaspersky is sharing several examples of these fake login pages that mimic legitimate telecom operator sites and giving recommendations on how not to be deceived.
In the first case, scammers exploit the brand name of an international telecommunications company operating services in Asia, Africa and Europe. Fake authentication pages encourage users to put in their phone number and credentials.
While the first example shows the different design, the second scam site closely mimics the original log in page, making it hard for users to tell the difference and spot a fake. Entering authentication or payment data on fraudulent web sites may result in money or data loss and become a reason for more frequent spam and fraudulent calls.
Another example is a scam page which poses as another international communications company, working in North Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. In this scheme scammers encourage users to top up their mobile data/Internet plans by entering their personal information and bank cards details.
Kaspersky experts have also identified a scam when cyber criminals suggest users enter their personal data to check and pay a bill inquiry. Such scam schemes are usually aimed at gaining victims’ personal data for further fraud or account hacking and stealing money.
“Because of the active use of AI, scammers can now create fake pages with ever increasing accuracy and speed, targeting the most popular user interest areas. We constantly see scams revolving around sports events, music concerts, seasonal sales and holidays. Unfortunately, the telecoms industry is no exception.
To keep your data and money safe, be vigilant when purchasing mobile or Internet plans online. Using an eSIM – purchased through an official app – is one way to avoid fake telecom sites, as it eliminates the need to enter personal details on questionable web pages.
If you’re unsure about a site’s legitimacy, search for the brand name directly in a search engine and enable a security solution that blocks phishing links for you,” comments Tatyana Kulikova, cybersecurity expert at Kaspersky.
In a strategic push to bridge the gender digital divide, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has partnered with the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) to advance women’s digital inclusion and drive the nation’s transformation agenda.
Dr Aristotle Onumo and some NITDA staff, pose for a group photograph with the President of the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Comrade Aisha Ibrahim, and members of the delegation following a strategic engagement at the Agency’s Headquarters in Abuja.
The partnership was cemented during a courtesy visit to NITDA Director General, Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, by a NAWOJ delegation led by National President Comrade Aishatu Ibrahim, who introduced the agency to the forthcoming Women in Security (WINSEC) Summit & Awards 2026.
Inuwa, represented by Dr. Aristotle Onumo, the Director of the Stakeholders Management and Partnerships Department, assured the association that NITDA would not only participate in the conference, but also support the success of the conference.
Inuwa hailed the NAWOJ for creating a platform for peacebuilding, dialogue on security and women’s inclusion, which he described as one of the critical areas NITDA is focused on to ensure that more women obtain digital literacy and skills under the National Gender Inclusive Strategy.
Beyond NITDA’s plan to participate in the conference, the DG noted that a robust partnership between the organisations would engender meaningful opportunities and initiatives through which many more women can access digital literacy.
“Inclusivity is the key to everything we do at NITDA. We clearly defined that 40 per cent of our programmes must recognise the issue of gender. We ensure that women are adequately represented and positioned to benefit greatly from the programmes that we organise in the agency.
“We graciously accept to participate actively in that conference. Apart from acquiring skills among journalists themselves, partnership with NAWOJ will also serve as a platform through which we can also reach out to various women’s groups across the federation,” Inuwa said.
Earlier, Comrade Ibrahim commended the DG for his visionary and transformational leadership which has continued to position NITDA as the catalyst for Nigeria’s digital economy through its various programmes.
She explained that the Women in Security (WINSEC) Summit and Awards 2026 is an initiative of NAWOJ designed to promote collaboration among government institutions, security agencies, technology experts, the media, and other stakeholders to address contemporary security challenges.
According to Comrade Ibrahim, the association also aims to recognise outstanding individuals and institutions that have demonstrated excellence in security, governance, and innovation while fostering meaningful dialogue on the role of technology in building a safer and more resilient Nigeria.
“We deeply appreciate your exemplary leadership, passion for innovation, and unwavering commitment to building a digitally empowered Nigeria. We respectfully invite the agency to partner with NAWOJ in making this landmark initiative a success.
“We look forward to establishing a long-term partnership with NITDA that will empower women journalists with cutting-edge digital skills, support digital inclusion and contribute to innovation, digital literacy, and human capital development,” the NAWOJ president added.
Both organisations expressed optimism that the meeting would lay a solid foundation for a rewarding partnership agreement with specific and clearly defined objectives that will support digital inclusion and contribute to innovation, digital literacy, and human capital development.
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