Author: Samuel Suru

The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has partnered with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to launch a weekly MSME Business Clinic. This new initiative is specifically designed to provide practical support, personalized consultations, and essential tax guidance to small business owners across Nigeria. The collaboration is a strategic effort aimed at strengthening the nation’s vital micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) sector by enhancing compliance, boosting operational efficiency, and creating more opportunities for sustainable business growth. Clinic Structure and Focus Areas The business clinic is held every Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., offering…

The growth of Africa’s freelance economy, encompassing digital creators, independent contractors, and small businesses, is consistently constrained by the difficulties associated with cross-border payments. Many professionals struggle with complex processes for receiving dollar earnings, fragmented methods for financial reconciliation, and the sheer inefficiency of manual invoicing. This significant structural friction is precisely what BizFlex Africa, a newly launched fintech platform co-founded by Adetola Adele, aims to eliminate. BizFlex has been purpose-built to address this critical infrastructure gap, positioning itself as a comprehensive financial tool tailored for the African freelance and SME market. The platform offers a suite of integrated services…

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has reached a pivotal milestone in its regional digital transformation agenda by holding a key workshop in Abuja, Nigeria, to formally validate its regional e-government strategy. This critical step was undertaken in close partnership with the World Bank and the consulting firm Sense Strategy, operating under the framework of the West Africa Regional Digital Integration Program (WARDIP). The central objective of the gathering was to define the foundational elements necessary for successful region-wide digital public service delivery. This involved establishing a shared operational framework, designing robust governance mechanisms, and setting a clear…

Angola Cables has significantly expanded its digital infrastructure with the opening of its third cloud node in Angola, named Luanda-02. This new facility is fully integrated into the company’s regional platform, Clouds2Africa, and represents a major push to support local digital transformation and enhance regional cloud capacity. Enhanced Infrastructure and Service Continuity The new Luanda-02 node was built to international operational standards, offering several key technical benefits: Improved Network Redundancy: Increases the reliability of the network by providing backup paths. Reduced Latency: Speeds up data transfer for users accessing services, enhancing performance. Enhanced Service Continuity: Provides a robust platform for…

Investisseurs & Partenaires (I&P) has successfully completed the first close of its new fund, I&P Afrique Entrepreneurs 3 (IPAE 3), raising €41 million (equivalent to $47.7 million). This new fund is designed to finance and support the “missing middle” segment of African Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Key Financial Targets and Timeline Metric Target / Status Details First Close Amount €41 million ($47.7 million) Achieved on Tuesday. Final Target Size €70 million The total expected size of the fund. Second Close H2 2026 Expected timeline for the final close. Technical Assistance Facility €1.2 million Dedicated funds for operational, ESG, and…

The Judith Neilson Foundation, an Australia-based philanthropy, has teamed up with the Million Lives Collective (MLC), a global network that supports scaled social ventures, to launch a new funding initiative: the African Cities Innovation Fund. This fund is specifically designed to back tech-enabled urban solutions in African cities where infrastructure development is struggling to keep pace with rapid population growth. Unveiled in Nairobi on Wednesday, the fund will issue grants of up to $75,000 to joint teams creating digital and infrastructure tools focused on critical urban challenges, including transportation, climate stress resilience, and access to basic services. Addressing Africa’s Urbanization…

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has officially launched its 2025 Licensing Round Portal, a major initiative designed to attract $10 billion in new investments and add an estimated two billion barrels to the nation’s oil reserves over the next decade. Scope and Economic Impact Commission Chief Executive Engr. Gbenga Komolafe announced that a total of 50 oil and gas blocks are now available for bidding. These blocks cover a diverse range of operational areas, including onshore, shallow water, frontier, and deepwater terrains. When fully developed, this initiative is projected to yield up to 400,000 barrels per day (bpd)…

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has affirmed that Nigeria’s ambitious goal of becoming a trillion-dollar economy is fundamentally dependent upon the robust growth and empowerment of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).1 The Speaker made this declaration at the Enterprise Nexus Summit, emphasizing that the current administration’s economic blueprint places SMEs at the core of national development and wealth creation. The Economic Significance of SMEs The Speaker highlighted the massive role SMEs play globally and domestically: Global Context: SMEs account for over 90% of businesses worldwide and contribute nearly 70% of employment in many developing economies.2 …

South African biotech startup Immobazyme has significantly scaled its financial foundation by securing an additional R25 million ($1.45 million) in growth funding. This capital injection brings the company’s total funding raised to date to R50 million (approximately $2.9 million). The strategic investment is a vital step toward localizing supply chains within Africa’s pharmaceutical sector, which is currently vulnerable due to its heavy reliance on imported active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). The round was successfully led by the University Technology Fund (UTF II), with sustained participation from returning investor University of Stellenbosch Enterprises (USE), and the addition of new global strategic backer…

MTN Nigeria has demonstrated its commitment to strengthening the country’s innovation pipeline by releasing a total of ₦100 million in non-equity grant funding to 20 innovative entrepreneurs who successfully completed the first cohort of the MTN Cloud Accelerator program. Each of the 20 participating startups, which span critical sectors like fintech, healthtech, agritech, and edtech, received a ₦5 million non-equity cheque at the Demo Day event in Lagos.  Infrastructure and Ecosystem Support The MTN Cloud Accelerator provided a robust 12-week support system focused on equipping African entrepreneurs to scale globally. This support included: Financial and Infrastructure Access: The non-dilutive funding…