Online market hub, Jumia, penultimate week, listed shares on the New York Stock Exchange and grabbed the headlines as one of the first African businesses among its genre to do so.
However, that spotlight was in itself a point of argument, generating diverse opinions and mixed reactions on social media and other major news platforms The question of Jumia’s African identity, almost took the shine off the ecommerce’s bold steps in listing on the biggest stock exchange in the world.
The ecommerce company had explained that the reason it listed on NYSE was to showcase the digital innovation happening in Africa as well as to tap into the huge database of investors who have a marketplace and tech focus in New York than in any other place. However, there are still questions of what benefits this listing will be to Africa. An ecommerce analyst and social media commentator, Ojuiri Abel said that the mere fact Jumia has offices in Africa does not give it African identity neither does its listing benefit Africa because no African shareholders are in Jumia’s board. Apparently trying to answer the question, Jumia has provided five key areas it feels the listing will impact Africa. According to Jumia’s Public Relations Associate, Adeniyi Ogunfowoke, the Jumia IPO will greatly have a positive impact on Africa, Africans and African businesses in at least five ways:
Business perception: Compared to other parts of the world, it is relatively cumbersome and tough to do business in Africa. Regardless, Jumia has weathered the storm, survived in over six years; it is present in 14 countries and has become the first African Tech company to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange. The growth trajectory has been massive despite the many challenges of doing business on the continent. The World Bank Ease of Doing Business 2018 report backs this up with Nigeria ranking 146, Ghana -114, Egypt -120 and Uganda -127. Meanwhile, Kenya, South Africa, Morocco and Mauritius scored 61, 82, 60, 20 respectively, thus performing reasonably well. The IPO simply reveals that it is possible to do business in Africa despite the infrastructure deficits and developmental shortcomings.
Benefit to young African entrepreneurs: There are millions of young entrepreneurs across Africa taking advantage of technology to tackle one social problem or the other. It is a topsy-turvy ride for many because being a young entrepreneur especially in Africa will drain you. So if you want to reinforce your aspiration as a young African entrepreneur, look no further than Jumia. Before the eCommerce firm arrived at the IPO bus stop, it encountered a lot of challenges which it conquered and it is still conquering. You can also vanquish these challenges and become the ‘Jumia’ of your own sector.
Source: Vanguard
