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Stakeholders Brainstorm on Success Strategies for Startups @2023 WorldStage Economic Summit
Pioneer and successful players in startup businesses have unanimously advised that success could only come in the way of upcoming entrepreneurs through passion and perseverance rather than the desire to get rich quick.
L-R Mrs. Adekunbi Ademiluyi, MD, HumanManager Limited representing Mr. John Tani Obaro, Group Managing Director, SystemSpecs Holdings, Nigeria; Mr. Tim Akano, CEO, New Horizons Nigeria; and Mr. Mayowa Oludare, Editor-in-Chief of Global Financial Digest during panel discussion at the breakout session on WES 2023 tagged The Game Changers on Thursday, November 16, 2023 at the event centre , Nigerian Exchange, Lagos.
They gave the advice on Thursday at the breakout session on the WorldStage Economic Summit 2023 held at the event centre of the Nigerian Exchange, Lagos themed “The Game Changer.”
Moderated by the Editor-in-Chief of Global Financial Digest, Mr. Mayowa Oludare, guest speakers that took turns to share their experiences and address issues that were critical factors in understanding and running startup businesses to succeed were Mr. Tim Akano, CEO, New Horizons Nigeria; and Mrs. Adekunbi Ademiluyi, Managing Director, HumanManager Limited who represented the Group Managing Director of SystemSpecs Holdings, Nigeria, Mr. John Tani Obaro.
Giving a presentation on startups as the game changer, Mr. Akano admitted that it was always tough at the beginning but that passion and perseverance would make starters to overcome any challenge that might come their way in the build-up stages.
Reliving personal experience, he said it took him over 12 months to convince Nigerians about his startup which he started about 20 years ago after resigning from lucrative jobs with Coca Cola and Dunlop.
According to Akano, it takes perseverance to overcome challenges and it’s not a bed of roses to scale various hurdles for anyone ambitious to venture into startups. But every startup entrepreneur must have it at the back of their minds that the reward for solving problems is money and therefore make problem solving their focus if they desire to make headway, he stated.
Sounding out would-be startup entrepreneurs against failure, he warned against partnering with wrong people and to cut off with negative individuals who were only good at seeing challenges but not solutions.
“Don’t make a company of negative people, particularly the learned and academic who are fond of analysis to paralysis, only rolling out problems rather than solutions,” he warned.
He also advised upcoming startups that there is nothing bad in sharing ideas with people who may not be experts to avoid discouragement by people of much knowledge.
Asked if it’s advisable to engage partners from the start, he replied that it might be difficult to build a company with just one brain.
“The fear is understandable, but there’s no straight answer to it,” he said.
He however reminded the audience that Google was a product of some students and professors and that therefore it might not be a bad idea to have partners who are like-minded from the beginning.
He advised the youth not to be dominated by fear of the risk of bringing in people to co-own startup businesses.
Speaking on the benefits of mentoring and mentorship, Akano argued that not everyone could be a mentor but real mentors were called to serve other people, with little concern for reward.
Describing how critical mentors are to the generation of upcoming entrepreneurs, he quoted a statement by Albert Eistein that ‘he sees far by standing on the shoulder of a giant’ to support his position on the significance of mentorship.
“One has to be very bold to seek help, and youths have to be disciplined, trust-worthy and have value to contribute,” he admonished.
Akano highlighted other challenges to upcoming startups as fear of the unknown, overconfidence about break-even which in most cases fail expectations, and cash flow, which according to him is about retaining cash coming in rather than just inflow of cash.
In her own presentation on ‘Journey from conception to launch, Mrs. Adekunbi Ademiluyi agreed with Akano that understanding and knowing one’s passion is key to upcoming entrepreneurs to achieving success.
“Focus on your goals even when your plan is cascading,” she counselled.
She outlined other factors for success in entrepreneurship as understanding and engaging with community; asking the right questions with ideation; challenging the status quo; listening to unmet needs and desires of the world; conceptualizing by shaping ideas into tangible, viable and scalable solution – determining solution that fits the problem; creating a value proposition; defining business model; and putting a legal structure in place.
Ademiluyi also recommended execution based on nurturing ideas, refining and bringing them to life, processing product development, building workable teams and planning resources.
“A successful launch isn’t where the story ends, going live aims at monetization, customers’ satisfaction and creating new markets,” she elaborated.
Asked how idea could be translated to reality, she recommended that a plan should be created, concerns should be shared, structure should be put in place, ideas should be shared, strategic partnership should be initiated, and knowledge of what moving from point A to B in the growth process meant and entailed must be established.
She mentioned the contributions of the government at encouraging startup businesses as instituting the Bank of Industry (BoI), Micro finance banks etc to ensure easy access to funding for financially deprived individuals that sought to go into startups.
Responding to the question about the fintech sector being dominated by technical people, she said it was because investors and venture capitalists always looked for technologists and that those that applied for their jobs were people with a background in financial technology.
To halt or curb the “japa” syndrome currently depriving Nigeria the services of her bulk of professionals, Ademiluyi submitted that it’s a global challenge that’s not limited to Nigeria alone. However, she saw an opportunity in the challenge
“In every problem there is an opportunity. It’s a global issue. There’s even domestic japa where people resign their jobs and prefer to work on their own. There are opportunities in Nigeria, we only need to adjust ourselves to curb the lure of japa,” she reasoned.
To further curb the phenomenon of ‘japa’ she called on the government at all levels to improve on infrastructures for people to be interested in the country. She equally advocated improvement of the educational system as well as the social factors.
In his opening remark, the President/CEO of WorldStage, Mr. Segun Adeleye said WES 2023 was accommodating a special breakout session tagged Startups on WorldStage with the Theme: ‘The Game Changers’ for founders, startup enthusiasts, corporates, angel investors, and media to network and chart the way forward.
He said, WorldStage, a globally focused media group with strong business/economic contents, is leveraging its capacity to engage the emerging startups and project them for global visibility.
“Data from the National Bureau of Statistics indicated that unemployment and underemployment rates increased to an all-time high of 56.1 percent in 2020, pushing 133 million Nigerians into multidimensional poverty with economic growth not inclusive as it faced key challenges of lower productivity and weak expansion of sectors with high employment elasticity,” he said.
“Getting the youths to work must be an immediate task for the government and will be driven by fixing productivity through combinations of policies that cut across some strategic sectors of the economy.
“Many startups that need to be encouraged are developing technology to solve identified problems in payment systems, insurance, agribusiness, e-commerce among others. The beauty of their emergence is that their concepts are globally acceptable, making them eligible to expand to other countries while attracting foreign exchange and creating new jobs.”
The Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT) has unveiled Accelerator Cohort 3.0 as part of efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s space technology ecosystem and support the growth of local startups.
The initiative will be a major highlight of the 2026 Nigerian Satellite Week scheduled to hold on March 30 and 31 in Abuja, where key players in the satellite and digital infrastructure sectors are expected to converge.
In a statement signed by Stephen Kwande, the Head of Corporate Communications, the company described the new accelerator as its most direct investment in building long-term competitiveness within Nigeria’s space economy.
According to NIGCOMSAT, the programme is designed to support early-stage ventures working across satellite applications, last-mile connectivity, agriculture, logistics and other areas where space-based technology can drive impact.
The company said previous cohorts of the accelerator had already contributed to developing innovative solutions and building the human capacity needed to position Nigeria for the next phase of the global space industry.
“With Cohort 3.0, we are making it clear that the accelerator is not a pilot project but a permanent feature of how Nigeria develops its space-tech companies,” the statement said.
NIGCOMSAT noted that the Nigerian Satellite Week has grown into a major platform for policy discussions, partnerships and investment in the sector.
The 2026 edition is expected to attract top government officials, defence leaders, development finance institutions and technology entrepreneurs from across Africa.
Jane Egerton-Idehen, managing director of NIGCOMSAT, said the event also marks two decades of Nigeria’s journey in the space economy.
“Twenty years ago, Nigeria took a bold step to secure its place in space. What we are seeing today is the result of consistent effort and vision,” she said.
She added that the company is focused on shaping the next phase of growth through innovation, partnerships and investment in local talent.
NIGCOMSAT also highlighted recent milestones, including a Low Earth Orbit connectivity partnership with Eutelsat, improved revenue performance and increased global recognition in satellite operations.
Other activities lined up for the event include a Startup Demo Day, where selected African startups will pitch their ideas to investors, and a stakeholders’ forum to discuss policies and infrastructure needed to scale Nigeria’s satellite economy.
The company said the initiative reflects the growing role of satellite technology in national development, particularly in areas such as communications, security and digital services.
NIGCOMSAT, established in 2006 and wholly owned by the Federal Government, provides satellite-based services including telecommunications, broadcasting and broadband across Nigeria and parts of Africa.
The Federal Government has unveiled a N12bn Digital Economy Research Fund aimed at strengthening evidence-based policymaking and supporting Nigeria’s long-term digital transformation agenda.
Dr. Bosun Tijani, the Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, disclosed this in a statement issued on Saturday, announcing the launch of an expression of interest for the National Digital Economy Research Clusters.
“Today my heart is filled with deep joy as we announce the Expression of Interest for the National Digital Economy Research Clusters, a N12bn research funding scheme designed to place ideas, evidence, and research at the centre of Nigeria’s digital transformation,” the minister said.
According to him, the programme is being funded under Project BRIDGE, a federal initiative to deploy 90,000 kilometres of fibre optic backbone infrastructure across Nigeria to expand connectivity and enable a modern digital economy.
“This programme is being funded under Project BRIDGE, our initiative to deploy 90,000km of fibre optic backbone infrastructure across Nigeria to expand connectivity and enable a modern digital economy,” he said.
The minister noted that as the government expands digital infrastructure nationwide, research-backed approaches are required to ensure inclusive benefits.
“As we deepen our digital infrastructure coverage, thoughtful, evidence-based approaches are required to be deployed in society to ensure everyone benefits from this significant investment,” he added.
He observed that digital policy decisions are often shaped by market forces and political cycles rather than rigorous research and long-term thinking. “Too often, the ideas shaping digital policy come predominantly from markets and political cycles rather than from research, evidence, and long-term thinking,” the statement said.
Under the initiative, six national research clusters will be established across key pillars of the digital economy, including connectivity and meaningful use; digital public infrastructure and government services; digital skills and human capital development; digital economy and jobs; online trust and consumer protection; as well as artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.
The clusters will be led by up to 36 professors drawn from Nigerian universities, working alongside international academic partners, with more than 200 researchers, including postdoctoral fellows and PhD candidates, expected to generate policy-relevant research.
“For me, the goal goes beyond research output. We are looking for better policies that lead to stronger institutions and a more prosperous society,” the minister said.
He described the initiative as one of the ministry’s most meaningful programmes, noting that it is intended to produce ideas that will outlast any single administration. “Because nations that lead the future are not simply those that deploy infrastructure; they are the ones that cultivate ideas,” he said.
The ministry invited academic and research institutions interested in participating to review the Terms of Reference released alongside the EOI and submit proposals to lead or collaborate within the national research clusters.
It added that a press conference would be held in the coming week to provide further details and engagement opportunities for vice-chancellors and research institutions across the country.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has directed Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to compensate subscribers experiencing poor network service across the country.
The Commission said the directive was part of efforts to ensure that consumers are not made to bear the burden of service failures when operators fall short of required standards.
Under the new regulation, telecom operators will be required to provide compensation directly to affected subscribers for breaches of Quality of Service (QoS) Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
According to the NCC, the compensation will be issued in the form of airtime credits, calculated based on subscribers’ average usage and their presence within specific Local Government Areas where service disruptions occur.
The Commission emphasised that telecommunications services remain critical to economic activities, social interactions, and access to digital opportunities, noting that poor service delivery negatively impacts productivity and public confidence.
It explained that while regulatory fines have traditionally been used to sanction operators, the new approach prioritises consumer protection and strengthens accountability within the telecommunications sector.
The NCC added that the measure would complement existing efforts to monitor service quality and enforce compliance with performance standards.
In addition, the Commission directed tower companies responsible for telecom infrastructure, such as network masts, to reinvest fines imposed on them into infrastructure upgrades with measurable outcomes.
The regulator reiterated its commitment to ensuring that operators invest in network resilience, expand capacity, and improve infrastructure to meet growing demand.
It also pledged to continue deploying regulatory mechanisms that promote fairness, transparency, and accountability across the industry, while ensuring that subscribers receive the quality of service they deserve.
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