Straight Talk with Chukwudi Obi

Mara One On One Business session in full swing No fewer than 40 young start-ups have been selected for six-month mentorship placements courtesy of Mara Mentor’s One-on-One session held at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja recently. The Mara Mentor One-on-One event, a session organized for ambitious entrepreneurs to engage experienced business leaders, provided over 60 budding entrepreneurs (mentees) with the opportunity to pitch their business ideas to 25 industry experts (mentors) and a compete for a six-month mentorship period during which the experts would act as mentors, providing guidance and direction as they venture into the entrepreneurship space. One of the Business Pitch sessions  According to a statement by Mara Foundation’s Media officer, Douglas Imaralu, the selected entrepreneurs will now proceed for the mentorship period under the tutelage of a cross section of business leaders including: General Manager, Regional Operations MTN Nigeria, Adek...

Mara Foundation has said plans are underway to ensure a hassle free successful One-on-One Business Pitch in Abuja come October 14. This is coming as former military president Ibrahim Babangida’s daughter  and  chairperson, Better Life Program for Rural Woman Africa, Aisha Babangida  and Country representative, Bill and Mellinda Gates Foundation, Dr. Mairo Mandara have joined over  25 business leaders who confirmed  their attendance of the A list Mentor program. According to Mara Foundation’s media officer, Douglas Imaralu, Mara Mentor program, an initiative of Mara Foundation, will offer a lifetime opportunity for young entrepreneurs to access expert business mentorship from top Nigerian business leaders and a platform to win six-month business mentorship program under the business leaders. “The Mara Mentor  One-on-One  business pitch session has seen over 26 top business leaders in Abuja including: Dr. Mairo Mandara (Country Repres...

Zimbabwean startup Informstion Technology (IT) company Saisai was awarded the SWELL Innovation award at the just concluded DEMO Africa 2014 conference held in Lagos.  The prize for Saisai is an all-expense paid trip to Silicon Valley, USA as part of the SWELL Innovation Tour, which includes the exclusive participation in SWELL’s intensive soft landing programme in Silicon Valley. A t the Microsoft sponsored exhibition, Irofit and VOTO took the first and second runners up positions respectively. SWELL’s Founder Mike Chen, expressed his excitement to be holding the inaugural SWELL Innovation awards in Africa and partnering with DEMO Africa adding that the SWELL Awards in Africa will represent an important element of the Global Startup Engagement platform to accelerate disruption and invoke corporate participation. Executive Producer DEMO Africa, Harry Hare, commended participants for showing such great enthusiasm towards finding much needed solutions for Africa...

United States Secretary of state, Senator John Kerry has said that the 40 new start-ups who participated in the 2014 edition of the Microsoft sponsored Demo Africa exhibition were developing real world solutions worthy of real investment and global attention. This is coming as he stressed that both research and evidence support the case for Africa’s emergence into the global economic landscape. Senator Kerry who spoke through a recorded video message  at the 2014 edition of Demo Africa exhibition in Lagos recently said the US Department of State supports inspiring and challenging African innovators and entrepreneurs through various initiatives, including Demo Africa, observed that a great number f African countries are demonstrating real promise toward a market led economic system. “By promoting entrepreneurship, especially among students and young professionals – in other words, the next generation of innovators and inventors – and harnessing their energy and cre...

The dawn of the internet age opened up many more opportunities across the globe. The impact it has had on the country in the last decade is not only resounding but significant. Nigeria is among the top ten countries using mobile devices and internet. According to Professor Cleopas Angaye, DG NITDA and guest speaker at the 2014 edition of Nigeria Internet Governance Forum, Nigeria ranks seventh in the world with 167,371,945 mobile devices in use in the country. It might be even more since it is estimated that one in every three Nigerians uses two mobile phones. The Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) in its official publication, The Communicator had said the country’s mobile subscriber database had hit, 167,371,945 with GSM technology contributing 7.76 per cent to the nation’s GDP. The Commission said subscriber’s teledensity rose from 86.62 per cent in September, 2012 to 92.14 per cent in February, 2014. As at February 2014, the commission said the total number of interne...

The deadly Ebola Virus Disease, EVD, has claimed its first victim in Lagos, Nigeria in the early hours of today. Mr. Patrick Sawyer, a WASH consultant at the Ministry of Finance in Monrovia, Liberia was confirmed dead by a Liberian embassy official who pleaded anonymity owing to the sensitivity of the issue. According to the official, Mr Sawyerr’s death was confirmed to him by Nigerian embassy officials, who were monitoring the case. Recall that yesterday Sawyerr, 40, Liberia, who arrived Lagos recently, suspected to have the Ebola Virus Disease EVD, was quarantined in an undisclosed private hospital in Obalende, Lagos. Special Adviser to the Governor of Lagos, Dr. Yewande Adeshina, told newsmen that the hospital housing the Liberian has been cordoned off and the victim isolated. According to her, “On account of (the victim) working and living in an endemic region for EVD, and the presentation of non-specific constitutional symptoms and signs (fever, malaise, bod...

Microsoft' Gear  Up devices recently launched in Lagos.  L-R Paul Okeugo Senior Business Manager, a senior executive, and Mario Okonya,  Business Manager, Gear, Nokia West and Central Africa  at the launch of Microsoft Gear Up devices in Lagos  More devices on display  L-R Nick Imudia MD, a senior executive and Mario Okonya  Business Manager, Gear, Nokia West and Central Africa @ the launch of Microsoft Gear Up devices in Lagos recently  A cross section of  the devices on display  L-R Paul ,Mario and David Akindele of Ematic Mobil Solutions EMS the official  distributor of the devices at the launch  info@sucoconsulting.com, 08030902410, www.facebook.com/chukwudi obi.33, @sonsnid741,