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Inspiration for this piece was the tenacity of Uju when you hear her speak… and her life story… then add winning $500k to the mix from the most bodacious award name conceivable. Award name: Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC) Award winner: Uju Uzo-Ojinnaka (Regional Winner) Uju was in Hangzhou was for Jack Ma’s eFounder’s Fellowship program when we created this piece. I want every word printed so let’s read from the Winner herself. What is EWC: The Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC) is an international competition organized by the Misk World Forum in partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network. It is for entrepreneurs from all over the world with all kinds of start-ups, whether in the initial, idea, or growth stage. How did you come to enter this competition? What a journey this might have been! Yes, what a journey! We came across this competition online via social media. The journey so far has been both challenging and exciting. For us it was just a competition. It became real when we were contacted that we had been shortlisted for the final round. We didn’t expect to be selected. The preparation for the finals started immediately, we spent the following days practicing our pitch to get it right as we were told we would have only 3 minutes pitching. This was challenging. On the day of the finals we reminded ourselves that regardless of what happens we will keep pushing. This was the first we would be pitching to a panel, so everyone was nervous. After pitching we just kept our fingers crossed and hoped for the best, and we were announced the winner. It was a feeling of so much Joy, excitement, and we suddenly realized how much an impact we were making as Traders of Africa. What has been some highlights of the whole journey? The Highlight of this entire journey was the actual winning the Entrepreneurship World Cup! It was something we never expected. It has given us access to a lot of resources from around the world, and good exposure. A lot more people are aware of the work we do at Traders of Africa and the impact we are making in Trade in Africa. What is next for you after winning the award? I know you’ll be representing Nigeria in the global finals in Saudi Arabia. We have a shot at winning the Global Finals this November in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. We are working really hard to tell our story better and show the entire world how much impact we can make with what we do in TOFA. We need a lot more hands on deck; we need Strategic Partnerships. We will not be able to achieve all of this if we fail to tell our story the right way. However, I feel that we have won already; the opportunities for networking, trainings, mentorship opportunities, broaden our mindset to possibilities and opportunity to put TOFA on a global stage makes us winners already. Getting the prize is just an icing to the cake. At what exact point did you decide to leave the banking sector after 9 years? I became restless at a point in my career; I felt that I should be an employer of labour, so I left after 9 years to start a toilet tissue manufacturing company in 2006. In September 2007, we had to close the factory and I joined our family business – Beniz Electricals Limited which grew into Beniz Construction Depot – BCD. BCD is a one stop construction finishing shop, trading in various construction finishing products like tiles, sanitary ware, Electricals, switches and sockets, light fittings, doors, kitchens and wardrobes. Whilst with BCD, I conceptualized TOFA in 2017 and then the work started. To what do you attribute your success? GOD What are your thoughts on Women in Entrepreneurship? I think women have an innate strength that propels us to excel in any given task; we are able to multi-task, put people first, and are patient and tenacious. You will agree with me that these are some of the qualities you need to make your business work. Tell us about TOFA. In 2016, I needed a broadening of mindset to better tackle the challenges we were facing in our family business as we try to scale hence, I enrolled for the Global Executive MBA – GEMBA from the China Europe International Business School – CEIBS; I am the class president of the Zurich GEMBA 2016. In Nigeria at that time, the government placed foreign exchange controls so as to prevent the collapse of our Naira. Our family business being import dependent had bills to settle in China and we needed USD. I was also seeking for a Chinese company importing from Nigeria – The idea was that we could settle their Nigerian bills while they settle ours in China. In my search, one of my cohort in CEIBS introduced me to a Ghanaian Agropreneur – Elorm, who was looking for a partner in Nigeria. Elorm had an Indian customer who required 20 containers of groundnuts. She wants to buy from Nigeria, the buyer would pay in USD. I was elated, sent samples, buyer approved and asked that I assemble the products to a warehouse in Lagos and they would pay cash after inspection at the warehouse. Groundnut is grown in the Northern part of Nigeria, therefore, I asked one of my cohorts who is from the North to work with me on the order. We looked for suppliers who had that quantity of groundnut at the price the buyer was willing to pay, searched online, asked around but found no-one. Though we found a few sellers on Alibaba platform, but their details were incorrect or stale. We even tried buying from Benin but the pricing was high when we added the logistics cost. I became quite frustrated and saw my dream of getting USD and some profit go into thin air. Even when the buyer reduced the quantity to 1 container,

What IS 5G? 5G is primarily a software-defined network. This means that while it won’t replace the use cables entirely, it could replace the need for them, by largely operating on a cloud instead. This will allow it to have 100 times the capacity of 4G, dramatically improving internet speeds. For example, to download a 2-hour film on 3G takes about 26 hours. With 4G technology it should takes about 6 minutes. With 5G the movie would be downloaded in about 3.6 seconds. If you lived through the period of LimeWire with all of the hustle and joy that accompanied downloading a 3MB song in 60 minutes, this is even more futuristic that you’d have envisioned. Response Times will be Much Faster. But it’s not just internet capacity that will be upgraded with the introduction of 5G. Response times will also be much faster. The 4G network responds to our commands in about 45 milliseconds (0.045sec). With 5G, it would take around 1 millisecond (0.001sec). That is 400 times faster than the blink of the eye. Smartphone users will enjoy a more streamlined experience. For a world that is increasingly dependent on the internet just to function, a reduction in time delay is critical. Almost everything is about the internet now. At first, the internet was confined to computers. Then the use of mobile phones became synonymous with using the internet. Now we have TV’s, fridges, even watches that have internet functionality. 5G will make Progressive Innovation functional. Self-driving cars, for instance, is a very tangible example of an innovation that clearly demonstrates why and how imperative the role of 5G is in innovation and global advancement in many fields. This is because some new technologies can only be properly introduced to the mainstream public when paired with 5G technology. Self-driving cars require a continuous stream of data. The quicker that information is delivered to vehicles that have no human being driving it, the better and safer they can run. Without that dependability of quick and smooth data flow, the car as a machine without timely instructions through data transfer will malfunction in many ways. It wouldn’t be much of a self-driving car. The above example is one instance of how 5G could become the connective tissue for the internet of things. Technological advancement will largely depend on the reliability that 5G will bring. 5G technology will spark an industry that will grow 3 folds by 2025, linking and controlling not just robots, but medical devices, industrial equipment, and agricultural machinery. 5G will provide Personalised Web Experience. 5G will also provide a much more personalised web experience using a technique called network slicing. Network slicing is a way of creating separate wireless networks on the cloud, allowing users to create their own bespoke network. You will be able to customise your own bandwidth requirements amongst others stuff too. Because, for example, an online gamer would need faster response times and greater data capacity than a user that just wants to check their social media. Personalising the internet will also benefit businesses. At big corporate events, like the ones that happen at Movenpick and Kempinski all the time, there is always a massive influx of people that congregate in one area using data-heavy applications. But with 5G, organisers could pay for an increased slice of that network, boosting the internet capacity, and thus improving the attendees’ overall online experience. This goes for government functions too. Think of the Independence Day celebrations and how much data is consumed at such events. Think of how many people look down on their phones at the concert shows of Shatta Wale and Sarkodie to upload concert snippets to social media. Think of the streaming of church services. Basically, wherever there’s huge gathering, massive data is consumed. With 4G, consumption is at the same rate as it would be anywhere else. With 5G, organisers could pay network providers for a bigger slice of bandwidth so that while you are attending the program, you will consume data and use the internet at a much faster rate. So, when can we start using 5G? Well, in Ghana, not yet. I’ve read some rumours but nothing conclusive. South Korea and the United States have already started the service. In the US, as the first half of the year came to a close, every major cellular network was officially offering 5G services to its subscribers. But the 5G coverage is not across the whole of the United States. Mobile giants like HUAWEI and ZTE have also been getting ready to launch big 5G trials. The fierce brouhaha between the US Government and Huawei concerning a trade ban from Washington that inadvertently hurt the HUAWEI’s 5G ambitions showcase just how pivotal the introduction of 5G is on a national scale. The race to effective rollout has been a hot one. 5G was created years ago. It has been talked up ever since because of all of its amazing applications. Yet it is estimated that even by 2025, the network will lag behind both 4G and 3G in terms of global mobile connections. Why? 5G requires higher costs to set up. 5G’s mainstream existence faces multiple hurdles. The most significant of these, of course, is cost. According to some experts, 5G could cause network operators to tear up their current business models, in order for the introduction of 5G to make business sense. I’m no expert, but 3G and 4G should have been relatively than 5G cheaper to set up. This is because they were able to roll out on existing frequencies on our country’s radio spectrum. However, for 5G to work properly, it would need a frequency with much bigger bandwidth. This would require brand new infrastructure and its accompanying costs. Some analysts believe that the extensive building and running costs will force operators to share the use and management of the 5G mobile network. It is already happening. This has been less of an obstacle for countries like China.

Let’s have one of my conversation pieces, shall we? Let’s just have a chat. You can talk back in your feedback and we will pick it up from there. Quite frankly, I’ve always seen the role of leader of a company as more of a highly sensitive responsibility that comes with high risks and exposure rather than a certified jolly fun-filled appointment. Yes, systems should be and usually are put in place to aid most CEO’s in navigating a company’s business activities. But it all depends on how you see it and how sensitive you are to the inherent roles the company plays in the daily lives of other people. From how I see it, leading a company means taking the baton from the non-humanoid “company” and YOU being in charge of finishing the race. I say “company” because I always count a company as a separate entity in any roll call. For instance, there’ll be a CEO, COO, CFO… et cetera et cetera… and then there’s “the company”, as another entity. The Company as A “Person” This mental adjustment allows me to properly evaluate how robust or imperfect my very young and promising company is. For instance, at work, if I fail to get timely reports from the ever “busy” Japheth (yes Japheth, I’m bringing this up here), then two people need to answer for it: the first one is obviously Japheth, then the second “person” is the company. Why Japheth? Because he’s… Japheth. Who else would I ask first on why Mr I’m-Always-Looking-For-Trucks repeatedly sends me late reports. He is accountable for his actions, or inactions. Do you know who else is accountable: THE COMPANY. It is the company’s JOB to create systems and processes that allow for the easy flow of work while mitigating the risks of inefficiencies popping up every now and then. So I have to look at the company and its systems and evaluate if it needs adjustment. In the case of Japheth, he now uses a shared Google Doc to blast updates even when he’s in the field, because he spends a lot of his time in the field. But Japheth is not the point here. My talk with Japheth should fix any human-related part of the error. We see an increase in his will to rectify the inefficiency. But I had to have another talk but this time with the abstract entity that is the company and say “Hey! MIG! how could this happen on your watch?!” You see, when there’s a will, there should be a way, and that way should as fluid and easily replicable as possible so as to stop similar inefficiencies from coming up later. Interim possibly permanent solution: Google Docs! Leadership is solving problems Let’s go back to the mental adjustment I earlier mentioned. From how I see it, leading a company means taking the baton from the non-humanoid “company” and YOU being in charge of finishing the race. It implies that any inefficiencies of the company become your inefficiencies. It’s failures become yours. And yes the good days are yours also. Former United States Secretary of State Colin Powell once said “Leadership is solving problems”. Very aptly put. Why would one take on the challenge of solving problems for a living? The headache! Maybe to earn a living, a reward, as a passion, for leisure, a bonus. But whatever it is, it comes with a significant amount of responsibility to potentially everyone, as in EVERYONE. But like I said, it all depends on how sensitive you are to the inherent role the company plays in the daily lives of other people. The Ripple-Down Effect of Business Decisions A company’s business activities affect many more people than you can readily identify. When it affects one person, it indirectly affects anyone that the person directly affects. That creates a ripple effect from there which theoretically doesn’t end. Because, if every 1 person directly affects, let’s say, 10 people, then on the next level those 10 people will directly affect 100 people (10×10) and these 100 people directly affect 1000 (100×10). Go five levels up and that the company will INDIRECTLY affect the lives of 100,000 people PER PERSON THE COMPANY DIRECTLY AFFECTS. I tried to get fancy by calling Jessica Fleischer-Djoleto for some regression analysis equation or correlation model for this scenario. I always wanted a Bsc in Mathematics; she has one. But the above explanation of the ripple effect should let you understand that companies, their leaders and their business activities can have a significantly huge say in how we go about our daily lives. A company’s business activities influence not only its employees, customers, competitors and suppliers but also the community, even the government, and definitely the environment. Businesses are expected to conduct its operations responsibly and do no harm. A company’s leadership has to adjust its priorities and the team mindset to suit what is expected of a socially conscious business. But as the situation stands, new things come up every now and then. The Era of the #MeToo Movement A good example is the rise of the #MeToo Movement. The cause spread very quickly and it has taken down many powerful figures across the world. This has forced every leading company to re-evaluate what constitutes proper working environment for its employees. Because that is what leaders do, they solve problems, even the ones that haven’t happened yet. You should see why it’s not too much of a chore if a company’s leadership decides to execute a major overhaul of the company’s current practices and its social impact efforts just so they can avoid all the negative publicity that comes from being caught up in a #MeToo scandal. This actually sets you up for long-term success. Government and Lawmakers also have taken note of the change in tide and are taking appropriate measures. For example, in California USA, the rise of the #MeToo Movement saw the birth of new legislation that looks to increase