Author: Broader
In Africa, the image of a startup with venture capital backing often dominates the imagination. Yet some of the most enduring businesses on the continent began with nothing more than savings, sweat, and strategic creativity. Bootstrapping, a word that conjures scrappy early mornings, careful spreadsheets, and endless ingenuity is not a limitation; it is a discipline that forces founders to focus on value, revenue, and sustainable growth from day one. Bootstrapping starts with mindset. African entrepreneurs who succeed without external funding learn early that every naira, shilling, or cedi counts. Decisions are guided by cash flow, customer retention, and the…
In cities across Africa, mobile banking has become the quiet engine of everyday life. Salaries arrive on apps, bills are settled through transfers, and small businesses depend on digital wallets to stay afloat. What was once a convenience has become the backbone of personal finance for millions. Yet behind this growing dependence lies a truth many users underestimate: the mobile banking app is far more exposed than it appears. The threat rarely comes from the app itself. Banks invest heavily in encryption, authentication layers and fraud monitoring. The real vulnerabilities sit outside their walls, in the habits and environments of…
The moment your side gig starts feeling like more than “just extra cash,” it’s time to think like a CEO. It often starts with a late-night idea or a weekend gig. Maybe it’s making wigs, designing logos, importing skincare, or fixing phones. Over time, it picks up steam. Word of mouth grows, referrals come in, and your side hustle slowly becomes a legitimate income stream. The money starts making sense but the structure doesn’t. For many entrepreneurs, the leap from informal to formal is fogged with uncertainty. When should you register the business? Should you open a corporate bank account?…
As global commerce fractures along geopolitical lines, Nigerian exporters are recalibrating their strategy. Recent policy shifts in the United States have introduced tariff uncertainty, prompting exporters particularly in the non‑oil sector to look eastward toward China’s expanding market access. Beginning May 1, 2026, Beijing will implement zero tariffs on imports from 53 African nations, including Nigeria, across a broad range of commodities spanning minerals, agricultural produce and processed goods. The shift reflects both push factors from Washington’s evolving trade stance and pull factors from Beijing’s tariff reduction, a combination that could reshape Nigeria’s export orientation. US Tariff Pressure and Export…
The government has declined to renew the mining lease for the Damang mine operated by Gold Fields, allowing the asset to revert to state ownership in accordance with national mining law. The decision marks the first high-profile instance in recent years of a major foreign miner relinquishing a producing Ghanaian asset following lease expiry and signals a broader recalibration in how Africa’s top gold producer intends to govern its natural resources. A Strategic Asset Changes Hands Located in Ghana’s Western Region, the Damang mine has long been a pillar of the country’s gold industry. Operated by Gold Fields since the…
Nigeria has taken a decisive step toward defence self-sufficiency. The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) has signed a landmark joint-venture agreement with Terra Industries aimed at accelerating local defence manufacturing and reducing reliance on imported military technology. The agreement formalises collaboration across manufacturing, technology transfer and supply-chain integration — positioning Nigeria to develop sovereign defence capabilities ranging from assembly lines to advanced systems designed and deployed domestically. For Africa’s largest economy, the move signals more than industrial ambition. It reflects a strategic recalibration in a region where defence procurement has historically depended on foreign suppliers. From Import Dependence to…
In many African households, the television has quietly evolved from a simple display box into one of the most sophisticated computers in the home. Smart TVs now stream global content, mirror smartphones, listen for voice commands, and connect to every device on the WiFi network. But as the screens have grown sharper and the apps more intuitive, a deeper shift has taken place behind the scenes. These devices are no longer passive entertainment hubs. They have become powerful data-collecting machines often gathering more information than most families realise. Across Lagos, Accra, Nairobi, Johannesburg, and other cities where smart TV adoption…
The International Monetary Fund has approved a new Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) worth approximately US $124.3 million for Burkina Faso, targeting climate adaptation, agricultural stability and fiscal resilience through September 2027. This decision accompanies the completion of the fourth review of the country’s ongoing 48‑month Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement. Under the review, IMF Executive Directors cleared an immediate disbursement of about US $33.2 million, bringing total funds released under the ECF to roughly US $165.8 million since the programme’s approval in September 2023. IMF officials cited a notably improved economic picture for Burkina Faso, anchored by a sharp rise in gold production and global prices. Reforms…
Aliko Dangote, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote Group, has announced plans to open up equity in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to Nigerian investors within the next four to five months. Dangote made the disclosure while addressing journalists during a facility tour led by Bayo Ojulari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), alongside members of the company’s executive management. According to Dangote, NNPC currently holds a 7.25 per cent equity stake in the refinery on behalf of Nigerians. Drawing a comparison to global corporate ownership structures, he noted that the stake…
Magda Wierzycka, founder and chief executive of Sygnia, is launching a dedicated venture capital fund aimed at backing South African startups developing artificial intelligence technologies. The move marks a strategic expansion beyond Sygnia’s traditional asset management operations and signals a deliberate attempt to position South Africa more competitively in the global AI economy. Wierzycka, widely regarded as one of South Africa’s most prominent business leaders and among the country’s wealthiest self-made women, founded Sygnia in 2006. Over two decades, she has overseen the growth of the firm’s assets under management from approximately R2 billion to around R461 billion, transforming it…