Olugbenga Agboola on Why Partnerships Are Vital to the Developing African Startup Landscape
“The key to bolstering startup development in Africa lies in partnerships with global firms,” according to Olugbenga “GB” Agboola, CEO of the highest-valued startup on the continent.
As the founder of Nigeria- and San Francisco-based payment service provider Flutterwave, Agboola knows firsthand the challenges and opportunities that African startups face on their home continent.
“Every startup requires a lot of grit and hard work to become successful. That’s true no matter where you are,” he told the digital media platform Kenyan Wall Street. “But in Africa, those challenges are often even greater and require a different level of commitment to overcome. It is not enough to have grit. You need to have a ton of grit. You have to be ready to do the hardest of hard work.”
All tech startups aim to redefine what’s possible for clients and consumers, but those in Africa must go above and beyond. In addition to providing newer, faster, or better services, African startup companies shoulder the responsibility for providing a new way for Africans to think about the future.
“In Nigeria, where Flutterwave is based, we are fortunate to have a sizable pool of incredible engineers. But even with our very high pool of talent, the country still needs more skilled workers. We need more training programs to meet the demand that is coming,” Agboola said. “All across the continent of Africa, there is an unmet demand for technical workers like programmers and developers.”
Estimates from Google and the International Finance Corporation put the number of professional developers in Africa at nearly 700,000. “More than half of those are concentrated within the countries of Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, and South Africa. For a continent of nearly 1.3 billion people, that’s simply not enough to meet future needs,” Olugbenga Agboola said.
“We are in the position where very few countries in Africa have enough professional talent on their own. Because of that, many companies build international partnerships to help fill out their teams,” he pointed out. “But bringing in foreign workers is not a long-term solution to this problem. If we want to create a successful startup ecosystem in Africa, we need more mentorship opportunities and greater access to educational programs.”
Programs like EduOne, Edves, and AltSchool Africa are stepping up to fill this void by offering training initiatives across the continent that help prepare workers for in-demand jobs in high-tech fields. But it’s not just technical workers who are missing from the startup scene in Africa.
Founders and company leaders would also benefit from increased mentorship opportunities, according to Olugbenga Agboola.
“International partnerships are invaluable to startup founders because it gives local leaders access to successful people who know the common pitfalls and mistakes that are likely to trip up first-time CEOs,” he said. “Some of the greatest benefits to African startups come from this kind of mentorship”.
“Leading a corporation is not a skill that really comes naturally to many people. Most of us benefit from solid guidance. There are so many things to think through in order to build the right kind of culture and vision for a new business in addition to the sort of more technical business decisions that need to be made.”
Access to startup coaching and accelerator programs could make a difference for the startup ecosystem, he added.
“The more of us [who] build successful startups here, the more we can pass that knowledge to the next generation of thought leaders,” Olugbenga Agboola said. “If we have more people in our countries who can meet with startup teams that are searching for early-stage funding and get a clear sense of where the teams need guidance, it can make a world of difference.
“Right now, African startups struggle to receive pre-seed funding. That happens because early startup companies have a hard time connecting with investors, and many investors do not know how to find viable startup opportunities in Africa. If we can create a pipeline that runs through established and successful startup leaders, we can overcome some of those barriers.”
The next piece of the puzzle concerns government policies and regulations. African startup development is at the mercy of long-standing policies that hamper rapid growth and investment. As governments see the positive effects of more enabling policies, better infrastructure investment, and business-friendly legislation, the startup ecosystem will become more welcoming.
“I believe that there is incredible potential for African startups and that the next decade will bring a tidal wave of beneficial growth,” said Olugbenga Agboola. “There is enormous opportunity here. If we can leverage our international relationships that can coach our government leaders, business leaders, and education leaders to reach greater heights, we will be poised to use our potential to its fullest extent.”
