E-Business
Micro Businesses Overcoming the Challenges of Doing Business in Rural Areas

Contrary to the erroneous belief in some quarters that doing business in rural areas is immune from the common challenges that businesses generally face, reality is that micro business owners in underserved areas also have peculiar challenges they go through.
Some of these challenges include difficulty in accessing goods on time.

Dearth of infrastructure such as good road network, long distance to the market and lack of adequate transportation system to move purchased goods are among the factors that constitute access barriers to goods and commodities.
As a result, many micro business owners spend longer time or wait for days and weeks to receive inventory or restock, while oftentimes they experience supply shortages. The delay or disruption in supply also affects the end-users/consumers, who are unable to purchase things they need as at when due.
Painfully, micro retailers lose sales, and ultimately money whenever they have stocks-out due to inefficient supply cycles.
However, the increasing impact of digital technology that is rapidly transforming every segment of our socio-economic ecosystem is also changing the narrative positively for businesses including retail trade.
The digitalisation of the economy, which is enabling e-commerce platforms in the B2C segment and lately the B2B segment, has had and continues to have great impact on the manufacturing, distribution and retail value chains.
With B2B e-commerce, tech-driven digital solutions including warehousing and logistics infrastructure and fulfilment solutions are making micro businesses more efficient and better organised in their day-to-day operations, especially those in the underserved remote or rural areas.
So, unlike the past years when micro business owners in underserved areas faced supply hurdles, most of them today can testify of better and faster access to goods and commodities due to B2B e-commerce revolution.
This positive development is not without the efforts of B2B e-commerce platforms like Alerzo whose strong presence in rural areas and commitment to the underserved micro businesses is boosting access to extensive catalogue of products and logistics.
Through SMS, WhatsApp, phone calls or log-in onto its site where applicable, customers now easily place orders and get the goods delivered swiftly without being charged for delivery.
Alerzo’s CEO, Adewale Opaleye stated, “Our strong presence in the South-West, and continued expansion to the North-West and Central consolidate our desire to grow in a sustainable manner and continue to serve those that are underserved.
“On our Alerzoshop retail app, we have a vast assortment available to our customers to choose from, and we offer free delivery in all the over 13 cities we’re currently operational. We change the landscape for them (retailers) through on time delivery.’’
Opaleye added that, ‘‘For the past two years, we have delivered to informal retailers at no cost. With our delivery services, retailers save time, energy, and resources that they would have otherwise expended in restocking. These benefits have resulted in 85% of our retailers reducing their two to four times a week restock trips to zero.”
As digital technology makes deeper impressions on more people, it is also anticipated that the rural communities would also open up. Hence, there is a bigger role e-commerce platforms will play in reaching the underserved in light of government’s focus on leveraging micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and digital economy as critical enablers of national economic growth.
As the engine of national economic growth, the MSMEs segment is reported to contribute 50 per cent to the Nigeria’s GDP and make up 80 per cent of the country’s total employment, while the informal retail segment is worth $100 billion. E-commerce platforms, in particular the B2B segment would ultimately be needed to bridge the potential supply-demand gap that could arise.
E-Business
Jumia Expands Nationwide Footprint, Deepens Reach Across Underserved Nigerian Cities

e-commerce company, Jumia Nigeria, has announced a significant expansion of its logistics and pickup network across Nigeria, extending its reach into underserved regions and strengthening access to e-commerce services for millions of consumers.

The expansion, executed during the first quarter of 2026, marks a deliberate shift toward upcountry growth, with new and expanded operations across Northern Nigeria, including Kebbi, Sokoto, and Kaduna, while also strengthening presence in strategic cities like Zaria. The move is designed to close long-standing coverage gaps in high-potential areas and bring its services closer to more customers.
According to the company, the expansion reflects a convergence of customer demand, infrastructure strategy, and long-term market development, as more Nigerians outside major urban centres seek reliable access to digital retail.
“We are seeing a structural shift in where demand is coming from. What this expansion does is align our infrastructure with that reality. By extending our network deeper into the country, we are not only improving service delivery, but we are also unlocking new demand, enabling more sellers to participate in the digital economy, and building a more inclusive retail ecosystem that reflects the true scale of the Nigerian market,” said Temidayo Ojo, CEO of Jumia Nigeria.
The rollout includes a significant increase in pickup stations and delivery touchpoints across both established and emerging cities. Existing urban centres such as Lagos, Ibadan, Abuja and Port Harcourt have seen network density increase, while new and previously underserved locations are being integrated into Jumia’s logistics grid. This broader footprint is supported by investments towards parcel distribution centres, designed to decentralise inventory flow, reduce delivery time, and optimise operating costs across regions.
As part of the expansion, Jumia has also strengthened its logistics partnerships and delivery capacity, enabling more efficient last-mile fulfilment while creating income opportunities for a growing network of logistics partners and JForce agents. The company notes that these investments are critical to sustaining scale as order volumes increase across a more geographically diverse customer base.
Looking ahead, Jumia plans to extend its expansion into the South-East and South-South regions ahead of the peak retail season, further increasing its national coverage and reinforcing its position as a leading e-commerce platform in Nigeria.
E-Business
RHUCE Taps Into Africa’s $3Bn Creator Economy with New Monetisation Platform

RHUCE, a new social platform designed for African creatives, has officially launched today, introducing a new model for how creators across the continent can turn their skills, learning, and content into income.

RHUCE
As Africa’s creator economy, estimated at over $3 billion, continues to grow, millions of young people are building digital skills but struggle to convert them into sustainable opportunities. RHUCE aims to bridge this gap by combining professional identity, creator monetisation, and opportunity discovery in a single ecosystem.
“Across Africa, talent is everywhere, but opportunity is fragmented,” said Simeon Ifeoluwa Adeyanju, CEO of RHUCE Limited. “Creators are learning, building, and sharing their work, but they lack a structured way to turn that into visibility, credibility, and income.”
Unlike traditional platforms that prioritise virality or finished work, RHUCE enables users to document their growth in real time, transforming their learning journey into a living portfolio.
“We believe your journey is your greatest asset,” Adeyanju said. “On RHUCE, your growth becomes your portfolio, your consistency builds your credibility, and opportunities can discover you based on what you’re becoming, not just what you’ve done.”
The platform introduces a shift from application-based hiring to discovery-driven opportunities, where creators are matched with jobs, gigs, and collaborations based on their evolving skills and documented progress.
“Instead of chasing opportunities across WhatsApp groups, DMs, and multiple platforms, we’ve built a system where you can post once and be discovered continuously,” he added.
RHUCE also provides monetisation tools that allow creators to earn through digital products, paid learning content, and brand-sponsored campaigns, unlocking new income streams within Africa’s fast-growing digital economy.
With over 60% of Africa’s population under 25, the platform positions itself as infrastructure for the continent’s next generation of talent.
“RHUCE is not just a platform for finished professionals,” Adeyanju said. “It is for people becoming something. Our goal is simple: help Africans turn learning into opportunity, and opportunity into income.”
E-Business
Kaspersky Warns of Digital Medicine Risks on the Occasion of World Health Day

On World Health Day, Kaspersky warns of risks tied to the digitisation of healthcare and use of telemedicine. Recent incidents show that medical services can be breached, and as a result, medical records may be leaked and then traded on the dark web.

The operations of healthcare services can get disrupted. Another aspect is that healthcare platforms may share user data with third parties that handle it irresponsibly.
Telemedicine has moved from a convenience to a core part of healthcare delivery, but its security model has not kept pace with its adoption, and the risks are not theoretical. Recent incidents highlight how real these risks have become.
In 2023, it was disclosed that Cerebral, a major telehealth provider focused on mental health services, had been sharing sensitive patient data – including mental health assessments, intake information, and personal identifiers – with third-party platforms such as social media and advertising networks. Millions of users were affected over several years.
More broadly, incidents in 2025 illustrate a different but equally critical risk – large-scale disruption of digital healthcare infrastructure. The breach of the ManageMyHealth patient portal exposed sensitive medical records of more than 120,000 patients, while the attack on SimonMed Imaging compromised over a million records and led to ransomware demands. These cases show that both telemedicine platforms and the broader digital healthcare ecosystems are increasingly targeted by attackers.
In parallel, scam campaigns focusing on medical topics are evolving, inviting patients for check-ups or follow-up consultations. Often the domains of the alleged “medical services” websites were created just a few weeks ago, links to the social media accounts on their pages are not working, and the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy pages are absent.
At the same time, these pages request users’ personal information, including photos of documents and even photos of parts of the body that need medical attention. Such websites often try to convince users with branding, fake doctor profiles, and urgent calls to action.
Users risk submitting sensitive personal data that can be either sold on the dark web, be used for identity theft, or subsequently used in more sophisticated attacks in the future that are targeted specifically at them for further data extortion.
To safeguard sensitive data, use a reliable security solution with an AI-powered anti-phishing component which prevents clicking on malicious links.
“The digital healthcare experience is transforming access to care, but it is also expanding the attack surface in ways many users underestimate. Medical data is highly valuable and actively traded on the dark web, making patients a prime target for fraud and targeted phishing.
“At the same time, health-related scams exploit urgency and trust, using fake consultations or discounted offers to trick users into sharing sensitive information. Patients should approach digital healthcare with the same caution as financial services – verifying providers, avoiding unsolicited links, and understanding how their data is used. Security and privacy must become a core part of the digital healthcare experience,” comments Anna Larkina, Web Content and Privacy Analysis Expert at Kaspersky.
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