BD Weekender

Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

WEEK 31

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1 AUGUST 2020

OTTO ORONDAAM’S

SLUM2SCHOOL LAUNCHES AFRICA’S FIRST VIRTUAL LEARNING STUDIO Successfully Onboarded 948 Learners Across 11 Communities In Lagos Towards Its 10,000 Learners Goal

MEN’S CLUB on what the audience can expect from the new season and how the COVID-19 pandemic affected their shooting.

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REVIEW As Digital WealthBook celebrates one year since publishing, we decided to put together some reviews from the readers.

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

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Editorial

PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF Frank Aigbogun MANAGING DIRECTOR Ogho Okiti EDITOR BUSINESSDAY Patrick Atunaya EDITOR BUSINESSDAY SATURDAY Lehlé Balde

Editor’s Note

By Lehlé Balde | AUG 2020

W

elcome to the premiere edition of the BusinessDay Weekender, every Saturday brought to you online. I hope you are reading this in good health and in a place where you feel safe in these trying yet very interesting times.

The Weekender will feature stories and articles with a focus on business, living and lifestyle. I am delighted to share the first edition on the 1st of August 2020. As we were preparing for the first edition, as most writers do, I wanted more time to put together this edition, but if there’s anything COVID-19 has taught me, it’s that time is an illusion and absolutely of the essence. As the world has slowed down, we at BusinessDay felt a strong need to create a newspaper that shares the stories of the young corporates, entrepreneurs and creatives who are essentially the future leaders of tomorrow. Our aim is to improve every week and bring you Saturday content that you can enjoy while feeling inspired and discovering new business ideas, people and opportunities.

As the world adjusts to the new normal, it goes without saying that the business world has changed, the new normal is here in present day and its fascinating to see the world adjust.

Change can come suddenly, however I believe that change is an opportunity for renewal. Our lifestyles and living have dramatically changed, with some people working some people working from home, to ordering in and having events and meetings on zoom, the world has done a 360 in a matter of 4 months, but alas life goes on. I hope you feel inspired to welcome change into your life in whatever capacity that presents itself.

In this week’s edition of The BusinessDay Weekender enjoy some refreshing content from some of Nigeria’s brightest corporates, entrepreneurs and creatives.

Thank you for reading.

With gratitude

Lehlé Balde is the Editor of Business Day Weekender email: lehle.balde@businesssday.ng | social: @lehlelalumiere

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OPERATIONS Fabian Akagha MANAGER, CONFERENCES & EVENTS Obiora Onyeaso BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER (South East, South South) Patrick Ijegbai COPY SALES MANAGER Florence Kadiri DIGITAL SALES MANAGER Linda Ochugbua GM BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (North) Bashir Ibrahim Hassan GM BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (South) Ignatius Chukwu HEAD HUMAN RESOURCES Adeola Obisesan HEAD OF TECHNOLOGY Onyinye Eze Creative Lead Doyin Philip Design and Art Direction iSixty Contributors Segun Adams Anthony Nlebem Vivian Ojo Nike Anani Oge Modie Steph Anyamele Tochukwu Macfoy. Dr Foy The Luxury Network Nigeria Art X Zubby Emodi Adedoyin Jaiyesimi Eni “Tiger Fire Rose” Simisola Obasanya Ebunoluwa Orebajo Chinasa Ken-Ugwu Roseline Nkanta Enquiries +234 812 587 9675 http://www.businessday.ng/ The Brook, 6 Point Road, GRA, Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria.

01-2799100 Legal Advisers The Law Union

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

News Summary

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News Roundup

By Olufikayo Owoeye

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OVID-19 impact could worsen stage 2 loans - Agusto & Co. as banks write off N1.9trn loans in 4 years. Rating agency Agusto & Co says COVID-19 pandemic with its impact on businesses has elicited an increase in the volume of stage two loans. In its latest 2020 Banking Sector report, Agusto noted that stage two loans are susceptible to adverse migrations in the face of a prolonged macroeconomic downturn. Stage two loans primarily comprise exposures with an increase in the associated credit risk compared to when the loan was disbursed.

The report noted that following the 2015/2016 recession, the Nigerian banking industry has written off a minimum of ₦1.9 trillion of impaired loans from its loan portfolio.

“This volume of write offs has been driven by the weak macroeconomic climate and the introduction of the IFRS 9 accounting standard in 2019,” the report said.

According to the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 9, approximately 23 percent of the Banking Industry’s gross loans and advances was classified in the stage two category as at 31 December 2019. As at the same date, four out of the twenty-four banks covered in the report had stage two loans to gross loans ratios above the 23% Industry’s average.

Also following the forbearance granted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in March 2020, permitting banks to restructure loans to businesses that have been adversely impacted by the novel COVID-19 pandemic, the banking industry had restructured over ₦7.8 trillion (almost half) of the loan portfolio as at June 2020.

Apple shares gained about 6.3% in extended trading.

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lumide Akpata elected as President Nigerian Bar Association. Olumide Akpata has emerged winner of the Nigerian Bar Association’s (NBA) national elections, after defeating two other contestants; Babatunde Ajibade (SAN) and Dele Adesina (SAN). This win makes him NBA’s first non-SAN President in years.

Akpata who won the election with a total of 9,891 votes of the total 18,256 ballots cast, while his closest rival, Babatunde Ajibade (SAN) polled 4,328 votes and Dele Adesina (SAN) polled 3,982 votes.

Announcing the winner on Friday morning, Chairman, Electoral Committee of the NBA, Tawo Tawo (SAN) said; “I, Tawo Tawo, the Chairman, Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA), as the electoral officer for the 2020 National Officers’ Election, hereby declare Akpata Olumide Anthony, having scored the highest number of votes cast and satisfied the provisions of the constitution of the NBA 2015 (as amended), the winner of the election into the office of the President of the Nigerian Bar Association”.

The forbearance is expected to keep the Industry’s impaired loan ratio, which stood at 7.6% as at 31 December 2019, at bay in the short term, Agusto & Co. is however concerned about the performance of these affected loans, given that the coronavirus pandemic is yet to be curtailed and a second wave may be looming.

“A further slowdown in economic activities and a total lockdown may worsen an already bad situation” the report said.

“Stage two loans are a threat to the Industry’s capital base, which has come under pressure in the last three to four years owing to the adoption IFRS 9 accounting standard and the recession. The COVID-19 pandemic is a further threat to capital which could impact profitability,” the report added.

The report said the Industry’s asset quality is further threatened given significant exposures to vulnerable sectors.

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“Apple’s record June quarter was driven by double-digit growth in both Products and Services and growth in each of our geographic segments. In uncertain times, this performance is a testament to the important role our products play in our customers’ lives,” Tim Cook, Apple CEO, Also, Facebook Inc’s Q2 financials beat analysts’ highest estimates, recording growth from a COVID-19 pandemic-fueled disruption in global digital advertising in 2020. The company’s apps continue to bring new users.

Facebook reported that its revenue surged by 11percent to $18.7 billion, compared with the $17.3 billion forecasted by analysts.

Facebook’s main social app logged 2.7 billion monthly active users in the period in review compared with the 2.63 billion average estimates. Shares jumped about 6.5% in late trading.

The impressive earning result boosted Facebook shares gaining as high as $254 in extended trading t, on track to set a new record after closing at $234.50. The stock had gained 14percent so far this year.

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here’s no slowing down for tech giants Apple and Facebook, despite COVID-19 impact. Apple and Facebook beat global investors’ expectations with their latest earnings results.

The companies’ financial results released Thursday evening show that the two tech giants recorded an impressive surge in revenue in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Specifically, Apple Inc’s third quarter revenue outperformed Wall Street forecasts showing consumers bought more new iPads, iPhones, and Mac computers to stay connected during the COVID-19 era.

t was a brief trading week as the equities market opened for three days in observance of the public holidays (Thursday 30th and Friday 31st July 2020) declared by the Federal Government of Nigeria to mark the EidEl-Kabir celebrations. A total turnover of 421.984 million shares worth N5.337 billion in 11,801 deals were traded this week by investors on the floor of the Exchange, in contrast to a total of 1.350 billion shares valued at N14.433 billion that exchanged hands last week in 16,723 deals.

The Financial Services industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 249.588 million shares valued at N1.563 billion traded in 5,899 deals; thus contributing 59.15% and 29.29% to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.The Consumer Goods industry followed with 51.760 million shares worth N1.072 billion in 1,877 deals.

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The third place was the Industrial Goods industry, with a turnover of 46.197 million shares worth N833.473 million in 1,489 deals.

Trading in the top three equities namely WAPCO Plc, FBN Holdings Plc and Mutual Benefit Assurance Plc. (measured by volume) accounted for 110.114 million shares worth N685.942 million in 1,587 deals, contributing 26.09% and 12.85% to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

The 12.5percent surge was driven by growth in data revenue in the first and second quarters of the year. This amounts to c.N100 billion monthly in revenues compared with an averaged of N97 billion monthly in 2019 and N86.5 billion in 2018.

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TN Nigeria reported a half-year revenue of N638 billion in 2020 compared to N566.9 billion reported same period last year.

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agos State said it is set to drive a new growth in hospitality business with the approval of N1 billion seed capital for investment in tourism.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced the approval of the loan on Wednesday at the 6th Lagos Corporate Assembly held at the Banquet Hall in the State House, Alausa.

The Governor said the State would also be collaborating with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to further create access for fund to support the hospitality business.

“We have just given approval for N1 billion support that will be given out through the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund to support hospitality business in the State. The beneficiaries of this fund will go through screening in line with the requirement of the agency. We are making this investment because of the huge potential for job creation and inclusive growth this sector can bring about,” Sanwo-Olu said.

In the second quarter of 2020 total revenues rose 8.5% to N308.9 billion driven largely by higher data revenues. Data revenue increased from N56.7 billion to N79.9 billion in the quarter under review. Call revenues the company’s mainstay suffered a 1percent decline to N176.2 billion suggesting a drop in its average revenue per user. Call revenues make up about 68percent of its service revenue. Mobile subscriber growth was just 3.8percent in the quarter.

However, revenues from its Fintech division fell 7.7percent to N10.2 billion in the quarter.

It however rose by 29.6percent in the first half of 2020 compared to the year before. Pre-tax Profits for the quarter was N62.2 billion down 13.4percent Year-on-year. Earnings per share N2.11/N2.4 15.6percent up Quarter-onQuarter. The earnings per share dip was due to higher operating expenses.

The Governor said the investment was required to bolster the hospitality sector by providing key operators in tourism business with soft loans to boost their capacity in driving growth. The initiative, Sanwo-Olu observed, is necessary to position tourism business as a new frontier for job creation and economic prosperity in the postCoronavirus era.

The seed capital will be domiciled in the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), the Governor said, adding that the funds will be made available specifically to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) operators in the sector.

Saturday, 01 August 2020

News Summary

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emi Otedola, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Akinwumi Adesina, Folorunso Alakija, and Paul Enenche 2020 listed on ‘100 most reputable Africans’.

The list, which was pooled by Reputation Poll International, a leading global reputationmanagement firm, had 47 women and 53 men drawn from across Africa.

These prominent individuals are active players in different professional fields such as education, advocacy, business, entertainment. They were selected on the criteria of integrity, visibility, and impact.

Ethopia’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed; presidents of Republic of Rwanda, and Democratic Republic of Congo, Paul Kagame and Felix Tshisekedi also made the list.

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S dollar set for worst month since 2010 in relentless sell-off. The US dollar has tumbled the most in a decade this month, propelling sterling and the euro higher, on questions over the recovery of the world’s biggest economy and growing political uncertainty.

The dollar index, a measure of the greenback against six peers, has shed 4.3 per cent in July, its worst monthly sell-off since September 2010.

It sought to close the month out on a high note, however, rising around 0.4 per cent on Friday.

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Culinary Delights

Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

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Culinary Delights

By Lehlé Balde

Legacy Grill Gourmet at Your Doorstep Lehlé Balde AUG 2020

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t is always inspiring for me when I see young people turning their passions into profit and that is why I am delighted to write about Legacy Kitchen on this edition of Culinary Delights. I have missed connecting with our readers through culinary experiences so it’s nice to be back.

Legacy Grill is located on 7A Bose Enemenoh, Ikoyi, Lagos off Queen’s drive in Ikoyi. Owned by Oreoluwa Okuboyejo, who is also Head Chef and CEO. He studied Economics at the University of Houston, also a music producer is a young millennial passionate about following his dreams and is combining his passion of food and culinary arts to create a legacy through his restaurant Legacy Kitchen. When I asked Oreoluwa the origin of the name Legacy Kitchen, he said he is “trying to build something bigger than him, a legacy of sorts.”

Legacy Kitchen, prides itself on flavourful and tasty comfort food. If I were to describe the menu at Legacy Kitchen, I would say it is heavily inspired by Japanese, French, Nigerian and Lebanese cultures and I appreciate how diverse the menu is. You can get anything from burger and fries, prawn avocado salad, oven baked jollof couscous, chicken wings, grilled chicken, shawarmas, Japanese rice, Bolognese and much more. Let’s call it a fusion of cultures. Legacy Grill opened in 2018 with DJ Cuppy was announced as the brand ambassador with her very own pink Cuppy Shawarma.

Prior to the pandemic I had the pleasure of going to the physical location of Legacy Grill and it’s a spacious indoor/outdoor space perfect for large gatherings and family events. I particularly liked the garden portion and the simple yet carefully thought out space. Covid-19 has been a tough time for many restaurants, inducing loss of sales due to social distancing measures, however it is encouraging to see Legacy Grill still standing almost 5 months after the government imposed lockdown of all restaurants except for delivery and pick up. Legacy Kithen has to pivot and focus on optimising their deliveries and using social media and other digital tools to sell food to their customers online.

Like many of you, during the lockdown I found myself at home and cooking more than usual and from time to time I really missed going out to eat. One of the things that the lockdown has taught me is that we can make do with the bare minimum but it also highlighted that going to out to eat is something that I really enjoy doing.

On this particular day, I had the chicken katsu with jasmine rice. Chicken Katsu is a crispy chicken katsu served with savory sauce and eggs over rice, this Chicken Katsudon (Chicken Cutlet Rice Bowl) is a typical lunch enjoyed by all ages in Japan and apparently in Lagos too because I thoroughly enjoyed my meal. It was filling, tasty and fresh. The delivery service was also prompt and the driver was very friendly. I definitely will be ordering from them again and I encourage you to do the same. Stay safe and Eid Mubarak to all those celebrating.

See you next week.

Follow them on Instagram @legacy.bar.grill or call on +234 8090936499 +23409060970097

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Tech

WEEKENDER

Tech

By Azubike Emodi

Remote Working: The Puzzle of Nigerians Adapting to a New Normal Azubike Emodi AUG 2020 The aim of this article is to provide a quick and easy proposal to get any company working online, and remotely.

Status Quo “Don’t worry, sir. I will be available all evening awaiting your feedback. I’m sorry, I was unreachable all day – my phone has got battery issues,” says Mr. Video Editor, with the phone to his ear as he types furiously on his keyboard. “Ok oo… last time it was generator issues, but it’s fine,” I replied. “I’ll get the feedback from the client and call you back in 10 minutes.” The client had spent millions on their TV advert to be broadcast the very next day, and at this time there was the very real threat that all that money would go to waste.

In “the abroad” a lot of companies are more welcoming to the idea of working from home, usually, due to increased worker satisfaction, lower overhead costs, and, in some cases, increased productivity.

However, due to the aforementioned set of uncontrollable factors, working from the office seemed like it would be the status quo in Nigeria for the foreseeable future.

On the 29th of March 2020, however, President Muhammadu Buhari made the announcement that would force most businesses to shut down completely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Whether we liked it or not, the era of remote working in Nigeria had officially begun.

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What is happening now

Working with teams remotely has always been a challenge in Nigeria due to a collection of factors – internet connectivity issues, power issues, device theft during commutes, aggressively loud housemates or family members… the list goes on. Worse still see, is if you have a team member as unfortunate as Mr. Video Editor who seems to consistently have sizeable amounts of his day affected by natural disasters and other “acts of God,” that conveniently prevent him from successfully accomplishing any given task.

How to approach going forward

minutes and 45 seconds later, I place a call to Mr. Video Editor, and it rings continuously without an answer. On the 3rd attempt, on the second ring, I’m greeted by another voice that spoke the sentence that I was dreading to hear; “THIS person’s phone is switched off…” This is a true story and is, sadly, quite a common occurrence in a lot of service businesses.

It is due to instances such as this, that remote working in Nigeria is considered a luxury reserved for company bosses, chairmen, department heads, and, on the odd occasion, possibly, a few high performing members of the team.

The effect of the distancing is now being felt by every single business.

In some cases, it may be as minor as the annoyance of an unclear voice call from a team member that lives in an area of poor cellular service, or in extreme cases, could be the shut down of a business forever

So now that we must work remotely, what next? In order to have your team performing optimally while working remotely, you really have no other option but to opt for cloud productivity software. In lay-mans terms, these are online tools and technologies geared towards helping you work from wherever you are from right within your website browser. A lot of them start out free, but start to charge once your usage exceeds a certain amount.

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Tech

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WEEKENDER

At our agency, Monospace Digital, we use a collection of online cloud tools for the entire team, and then more specialised ones for the various departments. Our general stack, which is relevant for most businesses, consists of the following tools: Google Docs: I still find it hard to believe Google gives this out for free, but hey. This gives each user a Google version of Microsoft Office Suite (Google Docs replaces Microsoft Word, Google Sheets replaces Microsoft excel, etc). It also gives you access to 15GB of storage space to host your files. This means that all the files you save within a Google Drive folder can be accessible to anyone you share it with.

Google Hangouts (Or Google Meet): This comes standard as part of the Google Docs. There’s a lot of fanfare around Zoom, but I love this because you can use it right from within your browser without needing to install any applications. Straight to the point.

Slack: This is amazing for internal communications. We have “Channel” to discuss client projects with the team and even external partners and consultants outside of your work domain. This allows for real-time communication.

Notion: I won’t lie, I was a bit late to the table with this one. I’d like to call this a note-taking application for ease, but that would be an insult to this program. They refer to themselves as an all-in-one workspace.

It allows you to take notes, compose a list of tasks, product roadmaps, used as a design repository, and so much more. They even had a handy tool to allow me to migrate all my notes across from Evernote!

Paystack: These guys changed the game for e-commerce in Nigeria.

They easily allow anyone to receive payments and have it resolved to their accounts. This means you don’t need More important than tools, however, is “mindset.” It takes a level of discipline to come to terms with new software and use it everyday. It does not matter what amazing magical online tools you have, if the person you hire refuses to follow workflows and processes, or if they are unavailable during a group call.

Back to our story from before. It appears we would be unable to get Mr. Video Editor to complete our video. Luckily for us, we use the core cloud solutions mentioned above as part of our day-to-day operations. After our inability to reach Mr. Video Editor, we swiftly engaged another team member who was able to continue using the project files from where they left off. Great. Now, on to the next problem...

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Whether we liked it or not, the era of remote working in Nigeria had officially begun.

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Zubby is a media, marketing, and technology professional with over a decade's experience leading multinational teams to create winning campaigns, and helping businesses around the world to build and scale their brand. He began his professional career in the UK, freelancing with top businesses and publishing brands to improve their online identities. He eventually returned home to Nigeria where he's led cross-functional teams across multiple African markets to execute award-winning campaigns for top tier clients. He now runs a full-stack marketing and technology business that provides these world-class digital services to businesses on the continent, empowering them to perform competitively on the world stage. email: ze@monospace.ng

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

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Interview

The COVID Hero UBA Foundation The Luxury Network AUG 2020

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he Covid Hero campaign by The Luxury Network Nigeria, in partnership with Business Day, and Robert Taylor Media aims to applaud outstanding individuals, whose work is critical to the survival of Nigeria in these unprecedented and challenging times.

It’s driven by the company’s ethos of partnership and collaboration for greater impact - especially in the ongoing fight against the coronavirus. The next organisation under the spotlight is UBA Foundation. The Foundation was the first by a bank in Nigeria, and since inception of the Foundation in 2005, it has impacted hundreds of thousands of lives across the continent through various special projects carried out in various host communities. The CEO of the UBA Foundation is Mrs Bola Atta. Bola is also Group Director, Corporate Communications at UBA Plc. Read the interview with Cas Ojo, the MD of The Luxury Network Nigeria below: Please tell us about the Mission and Objectives of the UBA Foundation The United Bank for Africa (UBA) PLC is committed to being a socially responsible company and role model for businesses in Africa. The bank established its Foundation, the UBA Foundation in 2005 as the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of the UBA Group. The UBA Foundation is committed to the socio-economic improvement of lives across Africa, focusing on development in the areas of Education, Environment, Economic Empowerment and Special Projects. The Foundation draws its inspiration from the Group's intrinsic values of Enterprise, Excellence and Execution and its mission statement: "to be a role model for African businesses, abiding by the utmost professional and ethical standards, and creating an enduring institution.”

Can you tell us some little known, but interesting facts about the UBA Foundation?

United Bank for Africa is the first bank in Nigeria to institute a foundation – The UBA Foundation- in 2005. The Foundation since inception has donated hundreds of thousands of books across Africa through the READ Africa initiative, and has impacted over hundreds of thousands of lives across the continent through various special projects carried out in various host communities.

Please share some of the Foundation’s key projects to-date: The scope of the foundation covers 4 main areas: Education, Empowerment, Environment and Special Projects. The Foundation is actively involved in facilitating educational projects and bridging the literacy gap on a pan-African scale. The Education pillar is the umbrella arm of UBA Foundation that guarantees this commitment.

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Interview

Saturday, 01 August 2020

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What are the primary goals of the UBA Foundation?:

The United Bank of Africa Plc, through the UBA Foundation, donated USD 14 million to governments in Africa to fight the spread of the Corona Virus across the continent.

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The Read Africa program and National Essay Competition are geared at stimulating the quest for sound knowledge and arming educational institutions/organisations with support and/or resources to meet various learning needs. The UBA Foundation aims to make sustainable improvements in the lives of the needy and underprivileged by empowering youths through entrepreneurship programmes which benefit the community at large. The foundation regularly supports skills-acquisition and empowerment conferences, workshops, and seminars including Sponsorship of the TEF/UNDP Pitching Competition to identify and seed thousands of African Entrepreneurs in the Sahel/Lake Chad region; the 7th Annual Celebration and Entrepreneurial Awards of the Fate Foundation, a private-sector-led non-profit initiative with a vision to foster the establishment of 5,000 businesses and the creation of employment for at least 50,000 Nigerians; the Gavi Vaccine Alliance "Give A Child A Chance" campaign to end infant mortality in Africa through vaccinations, and many more. We have also rehabilitated educational institutions; built hostels across Africa; sponsored adult literacy programmes; Provided entrepreneurial and job skills training; advocated financial Literacy; constructed foot bridges, Communication and Technology centres ; Trained teachers and students; Provided scholarships and so much more. In May 2008, The UBA Foundation joined a group of elite financial institutions who signed on to the United Nations Environment Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) Statement.

Through this, we have pledged our commitment to improving the environment and promoting sustainable development by maintaining a number of gardens across Africa and forging best practice throughout the industry.

The UBA Foundation is committed to the socio-economic improvement of lives across Africa, focusing on development in the areas of Education, Environment, Economic Empowerment and Special Projects. These focus areas inspire the bank to 'Do Well and Do Good' by extending the hand of partnership and aid to those communities that need it the most.

How has the viral outbreak impacted the work of the Foundation?

Since the outbreak of the virus in March 2020, The UBA Foundation has continued to play its role, albeit virtually when necessary. We often go across the African continent with our Read Africa Initiative and encourage students in less privileged communities, to read to hope for brighter futures. With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, we were unable to take this physically to the schools but decided instead to do so online. We were still able to ship books to various countries, even though many schools are closed right now. The receiving ministries of education and other agencies who have received our shipment of books are able to distribute them effectively to those who need them.

With our National Essay Competition which is often written in a physical setting, the fact that many schools are shut at the moment has had an impact in delaying the competition for this year. We have however, decided to take the competition virtual in order not to deprive kids who have been hoping for a chance at scholarships to the tertiary level of education.

What has the general response been to your work since the Covid-19 outbreak?

The United Bank of Africa Plc, through the UBA Foundation, donated USD 14 million to governments in Africa to fight the spread of the Corona Virus across the continent. We have worked closely with government agencies in all 36 states in Nigeria and in 19 African countries to provide aid in various forms across UBA Group host communities. The responses from host and international communities on the effort and the impact of UBA Foundation activities around the COVID 19 pandemic has been positive and well received. For some, it was a jump start at the beginning of the pandemic.

What are the main challenges the Foundation has faced since the Covid-19 outbreak?

A large percentage of the activities the UBA Foundation undertakes is targeted at the under privileged but due to social distancing restrictions, we’ve had to develop and implement viable alternatives to be able to carry out our activities. However, a majority of the youth we aim to help remain marginalised as access to internet remains a challenge in the face of social distancing protocols. We are attempting to tackle this head on in steps. We recently collaborated with the Five Cowries Arts Education Initiative to provide comprehensive worksheets to substitute educational literature for youth that do not have access to internet or E-learning platforms and who are unable to attend school.

What is the driving force that keeps the Foundation committed to its goals?

At the UBA Foundation, we believe in intervening and building capacity within communities to facilitate projects that act as a catalyst to social and economic development. Our primary driving force is to make a positive impact on the lives and societies amongst whom we conduct business, and beyond. It is imperative that we play an active role not only as Africa’s global bank but also as a brand that is known for doing good because it is part of our corporate DNA. As one of Africa’s largest financial services institution, we recognise the need for a social contract between the bank, the community and its people and we continue to work towards this goal.

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WEEKENDER

Interview

What are the most rewarding moments so far?

The most rewarding moments thus far for me are those moments when we bring joy to a child’s heart. Like when we announce the winners of the National Essay Competition each year. To see the children and their families’ reaction is priceless. You know that these children through the competition, will be changing the course of their lives and even of generations with the opportunity to be able to go through university without the worry of funding. I always feel so privileged to be able to contribute meaningfully, no matter how small, to the future of our youths.

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As one of Africa’s largest financial services institution, we recognise the need for a social contract between the bank, the community and its people and we continue to work towards this goal.

Saturday, 01 August 2020

We cannot place value on the stillness of our environment as it has had a chance to heal and breath. If we take the good that came out of this period, we can continue to build a better world. I hope that when we look back many years on this year 2020, we can dwell more on the growth and development that emerged from it. I hope it has rung in a new era and one that is conscious of the earth most especially.

What do you anticipate the future of Nigeria will be postCOVID? We operate in 20 African countries so the UBA Foundation does not speak to Nigeria alone. We work throughout our communities on the continent. We are preparing them for a future that is inclusive and that leaves fewer people behind. One that is more caring and less hectic. A future that is technologically driven without losing sight of humanity.

This is the type of life we are working towards, post Covid-19.

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Does the Foundation have any new advice for the public with regards to the ongoing crisis?

It is very sad that many lives have been lost due to the pandemic. Sad also that many have suffered ill health and financial stress as well as anxiety and loneliness amongst other things. But it would be even sadder if we went back to normal and never grew from this dark period. I feel that the pandemic brought on a season of reset. Reset of our values, both cultural and spiritual. This has been the first time for many families in many years, that they were able to bond together, eat together, study together, pray together and for a prolonged period. You cannot place value on how much that is worth.

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

Interview

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WEEKENDER

Saturday, 01 August 2020

Business of Employment

Business of Employment

By VIvian Ojo

Funemployment: Introducing a new economic term Vivian Ojo AUG 2020

My name is Vivian and I am unemployed. Why on earth would you take career advice from me? Well, I like to think that it is much like being treated by a sick doctor. If you can overcome the stigma of it all, you may recognize that a doctor who has the same illness as you, is both more aware of your pain points and more invested in the cure.

For many people who have ever been unemployed the first sentence of this piece is rarely said plainly and out loud without a slew of other sentences about your previous job, your side projects and when available the start date of your next job. Over the past 6 months, I have learned to say this sentence with more confidence- so much so that while I am still unemployed, I am writing this column to help Nigerians better understand the education to employment market, define and build their careers and ultimately find and create work.

Over the past 5 years, I have connected hundreds of young Africans with full time employment opportunities through my work as a career coach and counsellor. I have reviewed several job applications, resumes, grad school essays and coached people for several case interviews. The wealth of experience I have built is not mine alone and my experiences searching for work and helping others do the same have fortified a tried and tested formula to position any individual for their next best job. This recipe has landed me job interviews and offers as country manager, CEO and strategy lead for organizations with large portfolios, many of which initially required double the number of years of work experience I had when I received the offers. Over time roles have come to me and I have learned to be ready to receive. I hope to share each lesson of this season of unemployment in a different edition of this column, but to start, let’s get into some light macroeconomics to describe the unemployment market young people are facing today.

When your concern is a paycheck or the lack thereof, the type of unemployment you are facing can seem inconsequential. Yet this absolutely matters for identifying what your next course of action should be. There are four main unemployment types that are each relevant to some degree in the Nigerian market. Nigerian economists are most concerned about cyclical unemployment, caused by declining demand or recession, and structural unemployment, caused by a mismatch between the demographics and skills of workers and the types of jobs available. COVID19 and a strained oil industry, which KPMG analysts call a twin shock can be particularly damning for employment and we will discuss these how individuals can counteract this later.

Frictional unemployment is termed to articulate the friction of transitions between jobs and lastly and seasonal unemployment typically experienced by farmers and other blue collar labourers describes those not employed all year round. In traditional economics, frictional and some cases of seasonal unemployment are not considered true unemployment categories as these individuals are expected to ultimately find jobs.

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Business of Employment

Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

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“

The funemployed are not simply informal employees and while they can be, they are not always entrepreneurs.

Yet, the precarious nature of the current labour market means that frictionally/seasonally unemployed individuals can easily slip into long term unemployment cycles, particularly because for white collar workers unemployment can be as economic as it is psychological. It is for this reason that I strongly advocate for young Nigerians to rapidly shift to another form of unemployment I call functional- nicknamed “funemployment”.

Functional employment is an economic term I coined that perhaps modern economists like Bassier “Decolonizing the teaching of economics” (Africa is a country 2016) would consider endorsing in order to broaden our understanding of the distinctions between developed and emerging labor markets. Functional employment is basically premised on two concepts. First, functionally unemployed (funemployed) individuals work informally and periodically on multiple endeavors to ensure revenue, leveraging their existing resources, networks and even stealth to do so. Secondly, because their work is typically agile and market responsive, in most cases these funemployed individuals create their own job opportunities, which can trickle down to others in their network e.g., a side hustle driving for Uber or managing a fleet of drivers. This type of unemployment can be complex and demanding of significant manpower, strategic planning and time. The funemployed are not simply informal employees and while they can be, they are not always entrepreneurs.

They are more like market gap fillers who exploit any opportunity to generate revenue and are actively looking for any means to increase their revenue streams, improve their education and capability levels, and will apply to formal employment opportunities as needed.

”

At a micro level, there are few things more powerful than funemployment to gradually transform high talent and low opportunity African economies. It is rightfully named the most fun of employments. When combined with the correct network and emphasis, funemployment can become a lifestyle that supports the careers of young people in emerging markets, who refuse to wait for the government or corporates to change their circumstances.

As one such young person, who has been privileged to have significant treasure, time and talent invested in my academic and professional career, I could not be more proud to be funemployed and to take you on a journey to not simply finding, but also creating, the right next opportunity for you.

With gratitude, Viv

Vivian has consulted with some of the largest international development, educational and corporate organizations across the world and with several African Governments focusing on people and capability building. She has worked on business strategy and job placements with McKinsey and Company, MasterCard Foundation, and African Leadership Academy. She is a board member of United World Colleges Nigeria and a member of Umsizi Fund’s peer learning network that convenes over 30 employment placement organizations from around the world including Harambee, Generation, and Education for Employment. She has a longstanding passion for transforming the African education to employment landscape. She has done work on this as part of her Masters in Public Policy from Oxford University and has been published on the topic in the Harvard Africa Policy Journal among others. email: thewritewritingcoach@gmail.com | social: @thewritewritingcoach

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Image of the Week

Saturday, 01 August 2020

Image of the Week

Kassou Seydou, Miroitement, 2020

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Interview

Saturday, 01 August 2020

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Diary of a Young Executive Who is your guru?

Strive Masiyiwa – Successful African businessman with similar values. Considered one of Africa’s most generous humanitarians.

Lots to learn from him on how he has built up a platform to address social ills in Africa.

What do you crave at the end of the day?

After a long working day, I just want to play FIFA 20 on PS4 with friends online before going to bed.

Which song is currently in your head?

Way maker - Sinach

Seyi Akinwale

What’s something you wish you understood more about?

Senior Vice President, GE Capital Sub Saharan Africa

How do you deďŹ ne Success?

What was the last thing you did that required some courage?

Enrolling in an Executive MBA program during these unprecedented times. I recently begun my EMBA program at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

What have you done for the ďŹ rst time?

Adapting to working and living during a pandemic. Interacting with colleagues, customers and banking partners and getting deals done primarily through Microsoft Teams has been interesting. Engaging with friends and having birthday and social parties via zoom calls have also been a ďŹ rst.

This has got to be the mystery of the human mind. I am an ardent student of the causative reasons of the thinking and behavioral patterns of humans. I believe this is often a product of the information they have received and previous experiences. Hence, a concept I always seek to understand the peculiarities for each human I interact with.

Success is impacting the world with the investment of your personality. It is leaving the world better than you met it.

What is an idea you can’t seem to shake o?

How we can reduce the number of out of school children in Africa.

There are over 13 million children out of school in Nigeria and I believe the private sector must be a part of solving this problem; as this aects the environment where they operate, and government alone cannot eectively address this growing danger. A few years ago, I set up The Special Foundation (www.thespecialfoundation.org) to contribute to addressing this societal ill.

Last box set or Netix binge?

What makes the biggest dierence in your life?

Ensuring my daily activities make an impact. I enjoy my role at GE Capital as I daily see the impact of my work connecting capital to infrastructure and delivering innovative ďŹ nancial solutions that help the world work better. This is particularly signiďŹ cant in emerging markets like Nigeria with low access to electricity.

What apps do you use the most?

WhatsApp – I am more likely to respond to a quick message than a call. Instagram – I use the platform as a ‘stress reliever’ and for learning about social and political happenings.

First thing you do in the morning?

Say a prayer, go for a 40 mins walk to mentally plan my day, read a devotional, check the headlines of local and international news, and have my bath.

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The Last Dance – It was interesting watching Michael Jordan story from when he was an emerging star on his high school team to becoming a worldwide marketing force and cultural ďŹ gure.

What’s worth paying for?

Education – Education helps to reďŹ ne the mind. The information from formal and informal education is invaluable and often is the determinant of how successful a person becomes.

To whom did you address your last handwritten letter or note?

My wife. It was her birthday a little over a week ago, so I thought to write down a note with all the things she has done in the last year, for which I am grateful forđ&#x;˜Š .

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Cover Story

Saturday, 01 August 2020

Cover Story

slum2school launches Africa’s first Virtual Learning Studio “In the early phase of the lockdown, we were very keen on ensuring that thousands of our beneficiaries, their families and communities had all the information and basic requirements for safety and sustenance. As we progressed with our online mentorship, guidance and counselling sessions, relief bank projects, our beneficiaries kept asking if there was ever a chance for them to continue learning as most of them had begun assisting their parents in hawking and trading in various neighborhood markets within their communities.

We had also received reports of cases of teenage pregnancies and we had thought it urgent to launch the Virtual Learning Program to keep both boys and girls engaged in learning, counselling, advocacy and various forms of mentorship during this period.”

“Today, we have successfully onboarded 948 learners across 11 communities in Lagos, Nigeria and our goal is to reach 10,000 learners across more communities. Thanks to Alitheia Capital and ESPN who supported the first sets of tablets for the kids, EatNGo who supported our teachers and Microsoft who provided Office 365 licenses for all our student and teachers.Today we are seeking more partnerships and collaborations to enable us not only to reach 10,000 learners across underserved communities, but indeed to ensure that every child irrespective of their social or economic background, has the right to learn and excel in life.”

S

lum2School Africa, a leading volunteer driven social developmental organization, officially launched their first virtual learning studio and classroom for children across underserved communities in Africa which is tailored to provide access to continuous learning for 10,000 deserving children for free.

Over the past 8 years, Slum2School Africa has supported over 108,500 children by providing various forms of educational scholarships, psycho-social support and through this program many more children will be impacted positively.

The Slum2School Virtual Learning Studio/Classroom is a state-ofthe-art virtual space for learning where various activity and discussion-based classroom experience can be recreated to keep learners engaged virtually. It connects learners from several communities and cities who can easily log in concurrently and join real-time class sessions with their peers, teachers and trainers. It is a powerful innovative learning space not only for the students but the teachers and helps bring a much more intimate, measurable and equitable opportunity for learning.

Speaking to our correspondent, the Founder and Executive Director of Slum2School Africa, Orondaam Otto, said, “Integrating digital learning as a means of educating children from slums and underserved communities has been very important for us at Slum2School Africa and when the Covid19 pandemic led to the shut down of schools, we were able to launch much faster into the future what we had been gradually preparing for, even though we had several challenges including funding.”

Speaking about some of the challenges, he said “We experimented with various solutions which were not achievable with our timeline and we faced some financial constraints but we remained undeterred. We reached out to the team that built the Harvard Business School Virtual Studio, but we could not afford their price, but with the learnings they gracefully shared and several other tech volunteers we had on our team, we were able to design and build ours within 8 weeks.

“

Seeks Partnership to Support 10,000 More Children across Underserved Communities to join its Virtual Learning Program.

”

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Cover Story

Saturday, 01 August 2020

The major challenge here was getting our beneficiaries connected as the majority didn’t have access to digital devices and so we had to order more tablets which unfortunately took 5 weeks to arrive due to the global lockdown. We had to deal with issues like access to power, data, safety and security of devices and our team worked brilliantly in mitigating all these challenges across the communities.

So far, we have seen that the learners are very excited and now spend more time learning a lot of things at their pace which they would not have learned even in a classroom and we believe that this is indeed what the future of learning should be like.”

Also, speaking at the press conference, the Head of Operations, Ruth Ebe mentioned that to scale and sustain this program various organizations, individuals, media partners, donors and corporate institutions across various industries, are invited to join forces with Slum2School Africa in ensuring that these children, especially the most disadvantaged, have access to quality education during the ongoing pandemic and beyond.” She further highlighted the fact that, “it costs N50,000.00 [ Fifty thousand Naira] to provide a device for a child and N100,000.00 [ One hundred thousand Naira ] to support a child for a year on the virtual learning program.”

More information can be found online at www.slum2school.org/ virtual-learning and donations can be made via www.slum2school.org/donate

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WEEKENDER

Today, we have successfully onboarded 948 learners across 11 communities in Lagos, Nigeria and our goal is to reach 10,000 learners across more communities.

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

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Interview

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Wealth Building

Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

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Wealth & Money

By Nike Anani

The challenge Young Leaders face in managing Older Subordinates Nike Anani AUG 2020

Africa boasts of a population of 1.2billion, of which those aged below 18 are 50%. In addition millennials make up approximately 30% of our population. That means approximately 80% of the African population is below the age of 38. Projecting ahead, our population is set to double to 2.5billion by 2050. The implication of this trend is that we will increasingly see a younger workforce. Furthermore we will see more incidents of “young” people managing older subordinates.

Therein lies a challenge for young leaders: Our culture is rich in elderdominance, whereby older people are to be accorded respect by virtue of their age, and are not to be questioned. How do these young people then assert their leadership in business? Further, many young lack confidence about their leadership capability as they feel they do not have legitimate authority to lead. Many young feel that they do not have sufficient war stories to earn their stripes.

We are living in a VUCA world – volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous: our leaders of tomorrow will have to navigate these increasingly choppy waters to ensure that their businesses thrive.

Critical to being able to get their businesses to thrive is being able to optimally manage their people, older subordinates included.

Young leaders tend to struggle in this area because of the psychology of attraction: one tends to feel more comfortable around people who are like them. Having to lead older subordinates throws them out of their comfort zones. In this zone of discomfort, young leaders often second-guess themselves with thoughts like, "They will resist my leadership and assume that I do not have the experience to do the job. They will not support my ideas".

This internal rhetoric is often not based on truth. Instead often they are unfounded assumptions young leaders hold about how others perceive them. These cripple their confidence and hinder their ability to lead, as “What you focus on grows, what you think about expands, and what you dwell upon determines your destiny.” (Robin Sharma)

Albert Einstein said, “You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else.” Young leaders will lose the game of leading older staff perpetually if they do so in an authoritative style. Many are unable to play well because they are oblivious to the rules of their game. Instead they are attempting to copy a match they watched the elder generation play instead of learning the rules of their game.

The game of authoritative leadership, where the leader has absolute authoritarian control, is predicated on that authority being derived from the leader's superior knowledge, as a result of his/her experience and/or age. So a young leader with less experience than older subordinates will struggle: It’s like a young junior military officer trying to lead experienced personnel: The experienced troops will laugh at him and not take him seriously.

To be able to win the game, young leaders need to lead in a collaborative style, where they lead by example, listen to and learn from older subordinates, building trust and mutual respect.

Multigenerational workforces are critical as age-diverse organisations are able to foster creativity and innovation, key tenets required to survive the choppy disruptive waters we will continue to face in our business environments.

Nike Anani is a Speaker, Author and Mentor for NextGens that seek to be effective change agents in their Family Enterprises. She is a guide and a spark-plug for action: helping NextGens identify and implement new opportunities, shortening the journey from identification to impact. She fuses her 9 years’ experience as a NextGen executive in her Family Enterprise and as a Chartered Accountant, to bring practical solutions to the table. She is the co-founder of African Family Firms, a pan-African association of family businesses: here, they build community for family businesses, founders and NextGens alike.She is a member of Family Firm Institute and a fellow of the Institute of Management Consultants. She sits on the boards of several companies, including ARM Harith Infrastructure Fund and Mixta Real Estate Plc. Nike loves working with NextGens who are ambitious and passionate about their Family Businesses and need some guidance in precipitating change. email: na@nikeanani.com

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

YUP!

There’s More to You email: info@isixtyvisual.com | social: we.are.yup

YUP! is dedicated to showcasing the exceptional individuals’ propensity to combine multiple passions in one successfully. We celebrate Young Urban Professionals who have thriving 'Side Hustles’ and are too much to be given one label.

Doyin Philip AUG 2020

Yup! It’s

Jemima Osunde

A

presenter, model, and actress of Edo descent came into limelight when she played Leila in the Television series ”Shuga” but since then she has gone on to work on other projects like ‘Lion Heart, ‘Delivery Boy’, ‘New Money’ amongst others. However, a little known fact is that she is a graduate of the College of Medicine of the University of Lagos and an inductee of the Medical Rehabilitation Therapist Board of Nigeria.

On how she is able to combine both, she said in an interview: “I’m able to combine acting with med school because I try to do one thing at a time. I manage myself for now and try not to overload myself with work especially when I have a lot to do…”

She also shared on her Twitter page that she nurses the ambition to be featured on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy before the show ends. We wish her the very best.

Doctor / Actor

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Personal Branding

Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

When last did you Google yourself?

Adedoyin Jaiyesimi AUG 2020

I

t was back in 2012. I was an intern in a media company. Aside from my daily task of writing news articles for the website owned by the company, I also had to curate content for special columns on the website. There was a special column called, “30 Days, 30 Voices” that I really loved. I had to find 30 unique voices to contribute articles on any topic of their choice. The variety of the perspectives, subject matter chosen and the voice of each writer made the column quite thrilling for me.

Finding writers to contribute wasn’t too difficult. I usually leveraged social media and Google. Google allowed me to ‘check out’ the person before I shortlisted them as a contributor. One day, while working a fresh list for the column, a thought crossed my mind ever so softly, “Why don’t you Google yourself?”

Sheer curiosity resulted in me typing “Doyin Jaiyesimi” in the Google search bar; utter amazement cleared away that curiosity as I scrolled through the search results. There was a Doyin Jaiyesimi quite alright; it just wasn’t me. I did eventually find a search result that related to me but it was about an award I received as an undergrad in university two years before that and it was on page six of the Google search result.

I wasn’t pleased with the outcome of this Google search. It felt like I was ‘invisible’ digitally. Not only did the single result that had to do with me appear on the 6th page, the Doyin Jaiyesimi that owned the rest of the search results was a man. Imagine if someone had to research me to find out more information about me, maybe for an opportunity, just the way I did for the 30 Days 30 Voices contributors? They definitely wouldn’t have found anything useful.

Adedoyin Jaiyesimi

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One day, while working a fresh list for the column, a thought crossed my mind ever so softly, “Why don’t you Google yourself?”

How many opportunities had I missed because of this? How many people were on the lookout for someone with my skillset but I didn’t show up on their radar? It was clear to me that I needed to do something to change that. Eight years later, I completely own the Google search result for my name.

Saying that we now live in a digitally connected world will be stating the obvious. More than ever, we spend a significant number of our daily hours on the internet and we get most of our information from there. It is therefore critical for you to have a good digital presence, especially if you are looking to explore opportunities beyond the boundaries of your physical location.

Want to know how well you are doing digitally? Simply Google yourself. What do you see? Did you find yourself? Did what you found accurately represent what you do and stand for? If the answer here is no, then you know it’s time to do something about.

I encourage you to Google yourself today (and periodically too), scroll through to at least the fifth page of the search result and document everything you find about yourself.

Adedoyin Jaiyesimi is the Chief Communications Consultant at The Comms Avenue, a capacity building and knowledge exchange platform for leading and innovative communications professionals across the world. The Comms Avenue offers highlevel knowledge sharing meetings and training programs for communications professionals and corporate organizations. She has vast experience consulting for international organizations and top corporate executives and specializes in providing strategic communications consulting for development,

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philanthropic and corporate organizations, helping them to develop and implement a robust communications strategy.

Adedoyin has successfully executed projects for the W Community, Women in Business, Management and Public Service (WIMBIZ), Leading Ladies Africa, Heritage Bank, African Philanthropy Forum amongst others. She has been profiled on She Leads Africa, Leadership Newspaper and Lionesses of Africa. She was also featured as one of The Spark’s Visionary Women in 2019.

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Review

Review

Digital: The New Code of Wealth

In June 2019, J.J Omojuwa, published a book called Digital: The New Code of wealth. Almost a year later as the whole world has had to become digital the relevance of this book is very timely. In the year 2018, African startups surpassed $700 million in annual investments, from 450+ deals. All across the continent, people are deploying the power of digital platforms to make change happen. The last decade has seen a rise in new businesses, including online betting, new media powerhouses and the continued rise of Africa’s cultural superstars. Omojuwa captures all of these and more as he makes a data-backed argument that digital holds economic prospects for those on the continent willing to explore the power of technology.

This power can also be wielded in socio-political contexts. It is being used to take a solid stand for gender justice and has helped to expose corruption at scale. Though the digital space comes with challenges – such as access and security – its benefits promise to make good.

Digital: The New Code of Wealth argues that the digital space offers the continent an opportunity to create collectives that can thrive together over the plethora of challenges being faced.

As Digital WealthBook celebrates one year since publishing, we decided to put together some reviews from the readers.

Public Reviews “The book is doing me giz giz. Reading a chapter, you’d think that’s where all the treasure ends. Okay, I’m doing a thread on this. Then few lines into the next chapter, and you’re already lost in confusion— which one do I do now? Too good a book!” @akorive001 “In this world of the digital economy, @DGTLWealthBook is a mustread for would-be billionaires in promoting shared prosperity.”@JaphetPhilip “Without famzing @omojuwa, I can say this is one of the most professionally published books I’ve bought in recent times. Texture, content, feel and impact. All on point. I should get more copies for more friends” @sobafemi “@DGTLWealthBook, A book that exposes the wealth hiding in the 4th industrial revolution authored by @Omojuwa. We recommend this book for individuals, institutions ad corporate organizations. Go get a copy”@hypemanafrica “I loved reading #DigitalWealthBook long before it was published.

From the first skim, I knew this was a goldmine. The author has, with this work, distinguished himself from the pack of digital natives who became influencers across the Nigerian, West African and African virtual communities. I unreservedly recommend this book to every entrepreneur, student and even middle-aged individual who not only wants to be relevant but also intends to maximize the knowledge economy for multi-faceted benefits. JJ does not just demonstrate his unique grasp of the digital ecosystem in #DigitalWealthBook but lends credence to the work of others - visionaries and practitioners alike - through the highlighted success stories featured and a few more whom he invites to share experiences in interviews. And through all these, he makes a business case - too strong and poignant to be ignored - about why digital is the frontier for the present and future.” Amazon review.

“For me, the book ‘digital: the new code of wealth’ is first of its kind, blazing the trail on a subject that is easily the most talked about but yet deeply misunderstood and mis-applied. The pragmatic precepts in the book are timely for a generation that is wont to squander time and resources on social media platforms and yet gain little or nothing. The book teaches how to derive personal value and wealth from using social media and the author’s well documented successes in the digital space are illustrative of the realness of the precepts taught in the book. I started reading once it was delivered and couldn’t put it down. It is a page turner and very relatable.” Olu Kunuji

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

Interview

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Small Business

How to Attain Top-of-Mind Status for your Small Business Stephanie Anyamele AUG 2020

O

ne easy Sunday evening while “surfing” Instagram, I came across a post from the popular Naija Brand Chick. She asked the question, “what business problem will you like to get sorted this week?” Followers were to comment and others could tag a brand or person to help solve that problem. As I scanned the comments section, I was looking for opportunities to promote my own business but instead, the opportunity to promote other businesses presented itself. There were requests for product photography, digital marketing, book writing and influencers amongst others so I proceeded to tag the relevant businesses that I knew offered these services.

The interesting thing was that many of the businesses I tagged were not necessarily ones that I had any direct experience with - they were businesses that came to the top of my mind because of their consistent visibility over time. This made me realise, or rather reminded me, that it is those who continue to show up over time that can earn top-of-mind status. And what do I mean by top-of-mind status? Simply, that when your area of expertise, niche or product type is mentioned, people tend to think of your brand first.

I also experienced this with my SME consulting practice. At the beginning of the lockdown period, clients suddenly either had the time to look more into their business operations’ or were panicking about the effect of the pandemic on their businesses. They mentioned that my brand was top of their mind because they’ve been seeing my videos and posts over a period of time.

We know how important top-of-mind status is for any business, particularly a small one threatened by changes in its external environment such as the effect of the coronavirus pandemic, so how exactly can this status be achieved?

Here are 3 sure ways to start developing top-of-mind status for your business: Maintain or increase your marketing efforts. Regularly share posts about your product or service, tell your close associates, collaborate with other relevant brands, run adverts on social media – do as much as you possibly can to get the word out to as many people, as often as possible. The results may not be instant but the long-term impact will be worth it.

Offer great customer experience. You may have heard that it’s cheaper to keep your current customers than it is to attract new ones and in my experience, this is absolutely correct. The easiest way is to ensure your customers cannot deny the quality of your product or service. From placing an order right through to the delivery of your product or service, this must be a consistently positive experience.

This not only encourages continuous patronage but they would also be more likely to want to tell others about your brand.

Maintain communication. There might be time gaps between customer orders or client consultations so it’s important that you maintain communication with them whether through a newsletter or regular check-ins via phone calls or messages. This simple act may appear seemingly insignificant but it can significantly decrease the likelihood of your competitors being considered as an alternative to your brand.

The important fact to note with all this is that, attaining top-of-mind status is a long-term strategy with rarely instant results but when it matters the most, your business will enjoy the outcome.

Stephanie Anyamele is a Small Business Consultant & Chartered Accountant with over 7 years’ experience in financial advisory, operations management and business strategy. She is the Founder & Principal Consultant of Charles Ardor & Company, a boutique management consulting firm working with owners, leaders and managers of small businesses to improve their financial and operational performance.

She is also the Founder of "What Next, Coach?", a business support membership platform that prepares small businesses to grow into medium-scale enterprises. email: s.anyamele@charlesardor.com | social: @stephanyamele | linkedin: Stephanie Anyamele

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Cool Things We Found

Saturday, 01 August 2020

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Energy Gad Clothing

2.

Energy gAd is a lifestyle & fashion brand, founded by Do2dtun in 2018. The brand focuses on new-age ideology, Neo-Africanism & nature inspired silhouettes that are relevant to modern aesthetics & pop culture. You can shop the creative collection here by visiting.

1.

3.

Bamboo Invest Bamboo gives unrestricted access to over 3,000 stocks listed on the Nigerian stock exchange and U.S. stock exchanges, right from your mobile phone or computer. Download it on the IOS Store or Play store.

5

things we discovered this week

Eden Life The average person spends 10 hours per week doing household chores. Eden frees up your time to focus on more productive, life-enriching activities. Â Say Goodbye To Chores Forever! Tired of housework? Eden built the service you always dreamed of and now you can avoid house chores by automating them on the Eden App.

5.

4.

The Braiding Vault in Lekki

The salon located in the heart of Lekki at Greenville Mall on Admiralty Way is owned by Joy Adesanya. The salon salon known for excellent customer service, that is also COVID-19 compliant.

They also sell hair bonnets and accessories.

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Celebrations: The perfect gift store The perfect gift store for all your gifting and wrapping needs. Check them out in Lagos on 45 Adebayo Street Lekki and Abuja on Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent.

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Sports

Sports

By Anthony Nlebem

FA Cup Final: Who wins the battle at Wembley?

Anthony Nlebem AUG 2020

A

London team will win this year’s FA Cup as city rivals Chelsea and Arsenal go head to head at Wembley stadium on Saturday August 1. It’s been a scrappy season for Arsenal and Chelsea, as the two London sides will hope to prove a point in the FA Cup final. It’s also interesting to see the two of the most successful clubs in the competition’s history do battle in the final, led by their new managers, who have lifted the trophy as players themselves. The match will be played behind closed doors at Wembley Stadium with no fans due to government guidelines regarding coronavirus outbreak. Chelsea manager, Frank Lampard and Arsenal’s boss, Mikel Arteta, once rivals on the pitch, will pit their fresh philosophies against one another off the pitch in the Wembley dugout.

Arsenal‘s season is not nearly as disappointing one. The Gunners stunned holders Manchester City 2-0 in the semifinals, while Chelsea saw off Manchester United 3-1 to leave Mikel Arteta and Frank Lampard within one game of glory in their first seasons in charge.

"We are really happy with what has happened in the last four or five days," explained the Gunners' manager. "To beat probably the best two teams in Europe is the nicest thing to do so credit to the players for what they are doing, their performances and the level of fight they are showing.” Arteta also reckons that an FA Cup success would convince Aubameyang to remain with the club, following months of speculation over the striker’s future: “Good and beautiful moments, they are always better than the bad ones," said the Spanish tactician.

"As I told you, the way I look at [Aubameyang] when I speak with him, he sounds pretty convinced. But obviously if he can see that success and the direction, we are taking is the right one, I think he will be more positive about it, yes. Hopefully it will help him to be more convinced we are going in the right direction.” The Gunners will be hoping this will be a repeat of the 2017 final in which they defeated Chelsea 2-1.

Chelsea, meanwhile, put in arguably one of their best performances of the season to defeat Manchester United 3-1 in the other semi-final.

The Blues suffocated the Red Devils and claimed a deserved victory, with strikes from Olivier Giroud, Mason Mount and an own goal from Harry Maguire.

Chelsea will be looking to win the FA Cup for a ninth time, with their most recent success arriving in 2018 when they defeated Manchester United 1-0 in the final. Manager Frank Lampard believes reaching the FA Cup final is a sign of his side’s improvement. “It is a great achievement for us to get there,” Lampard explained. “To win a semi is a great thing but to win a final is the thing. We are progressing, we are getting better. There have been recent bumps but [the semi-final win] was a performance of huge character and personality, work ethic and quality.”

Head to Head Stats Arsenal have won on 76 occasions, Chelsea 65, with 59 draws shared. Of their FA Cup clashes, Arsenal have won nine to Chelsea's five, with six draws. Arsenal and Chelsea contested the 2017 FA Cup Final, with the Gunners winning 2-1 thanks to goals from Alexis Sanchez and Aaron Ramsey either side of a Diego Costa goal.

Team News Bernd Leno is aiming to return to training soon, but will not be ready for the final and that means Emi Martinez will remain in goal. Gabriel Martinelli (knee), Shkodran Mustafi (thigh), Pablo Mari (ankle) and Calum Chambers (knee) all remain sidelined by injury. Mesut Ozil and Matteo Guendouzi are technically available, but it remains to be seen whether Arteta will restore either to his matchday squad.

Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi will miss the FA Cup final against Chelsea on Aug. 1 because of a hamstring injury, the Premier League club said. Mustafi, 28, sustained the injury during the closing stages of Arsenal's 2-0 semi-final victory against Manchester City at Wembley last week. "Mustafi, will miss remaining matches of this season. Further details on recovery programme will be confirmed in the coming days," Arsenal said. The German defender has received plenty of criticism for his inconsistent displays for the north London club since his arrival from Valencia in 2016 but has enjoyed a renaissance under Mikel Arteta, starting 12 of their last 15 Premier League games.

N'Golo Kante is facing a race to return from a thigh injury. Even if he returns, it will most likely be as a substitute. Billy Gilmour is out for the season after knee surgery, while Willian missed Chelsea's final League game against Wolves through injury.

Verdicts Given the two sides' respective League form, Chelsea are book favourites. However, Arsenal's recent wins against Premier League champions, Liverpool and FA Cup favourites, Manchester City show they are capable of upsetting any English team on their day. Much will depend on how Chelsea sit up. If they plan to dominate possession with a high line as both Liverpool and Manchester City did, they could be caught out by Arsenal's fronliners. Chelsea's key aim was Champions League qualification, and a Premier League topfour finish means cup glory would be the icing on the cake for Lampard if Chelsea lift the FA Cup. As for Arteta, there are definite signs of the coach imprinting his style and identity on Arsenal already, but a worst League finish in 25 years has given the prospect of winning a record 14th FA Cup added importance.

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Resources

Saturday, 01 August 2020

WEEKENDER

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Resources

The Acumen West Africa Fellows Programme The Acumen West Africa Fellows Program brings together exceptional leaders from across West Africa (Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and The Gambia) who are daring to embrace the difficult journey of social change. Over the course of the year, the Fellows will come together to learn with–and from– each other. As a deeply bonded cohort, they will engage with a curriculum that is based on practical skills and character, geared towards action and grounded in the value of moral leadership. After they finish the first year of the Fellowship, the Fellows join our global community of 698 Fellows.

Africa Energy Generation Prize aims to recognize young Africans who have “an innovative project or idea” across the thematic fields of energy, health or agribusiness.

Visit www.energy-generation.org/aegp2020?lang=en

To learn more, visit www.acumenacademy.org/ fellowship/wa Deadline: August 6th 2020

offers flexible and rapid response grants up to $20,000 to select initiatives in Africa to implement activities that advance digital rights, including advocacy, litigation, research, policy analysis, digital literacy and digital security skills building.

To learn more, visit https://cipesa.org/the-africa-digitalrights-fund-english/

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Deadline: August 15th 2020

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WEEKENDER

Media

Saturday, 01 August 2020

This thing called Media Dr. Foy AUG 2020

#DONTLEAVEHASLEFTYOU When social media was created no one knew the length it would get to. We just had Whiz Kids that were passionate about changing the world and truly they did.

This said skit went viral in June, with thousands of social media users mimicking his play on words and employing dry humor in theirs. Joshua Alfred has proven so many times that he is a creative genius in the entertainment and creative industry through the use of social media and also, the success of the “Don’t leave me challenge” cemented his influence and reach in this rich industry (don’t leave me).

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In an interview with Techpoint Africa it was revealed that Alfred, alias Josh2funny, made it to the big stages by garnering popularity with social media comedy skits, especially on Instagram. And this was responsible for the successful stand-alone comedy show he hosted in February 2020.

ccording to dataportal.com there are currently 3.8 Billion Social Media users in the world which represents 49% of the world's population. Now this survey was carried out again just as it is July 2020 and more than half of earth's population are on Social Media. The latest data show that 3.96 billion people across the planet use social media today, equating to almost 51 percent of the total global population.

Let’s put this more into perspective.In a recent research carried out

by J. Clement for Statista, it is estimated that in 2019 there were 24.59 million social media network users as of 2019 and this number is estimated to grow to 44.63 million users in 2025. You can’t help but believe these numbers with the success of the Big Brother Africa Show hosted by the famous and former BIg Brother winner Chukwuebuka Obi-Uchendu. In an article written by Premium Times Nigeria, it was disclosed that in the third season of the reality Tv Show, “Double Wahala”, they recorded over 170 Million votes. 170 Million Votes!!! For you to understand the magnitude of this you have to know that In 2016, it was estimated by the Nigeria National Bureau of Statistics that there are 178.5 Million people in Nigeria.

After he won a competition called Project Raw Talent Hunt Competition in 2011 he decided to take his creativity seriously and consistently did stand up comedy from that time till 2015. He knew quite well that when starting out in an industry it is very difficult for people to support or give you a handout. Having that in mind he went ahead to use the power of social media to promote his talents and in fact, the Don’t leave me challenge is his second global trend.

Having said that, becoming a force in the entertainment industry requires a higher level of consistency. Creatives have to be consistent and innovative with their content because there is a fight for attention in the social media space.

With these data, research and statistics before you you have no other choice but to agree with me that since the inception of social media it is more likely that an entertainer with an attractive personnel, astounding creativity and the right strategy can become a global sensation with just the click of a button. How to make a bad joke become a global sensation.

There are 24.59 Million social media users in Nigeria and at least 35% of these users are content creators. The only way to stand out in this red ocean of creativity is to create your blue ocean like Josh2Funny did and become consistent in letting people know that you have a blue ocean. This challenge has put Africa on a global map although Africa, Nigeria to be specific is seen as the home and motherland of creativity as we have produced a lot of global icons and industry leaders but the #Don’tLeaveMeChallenge gave the world what it needed the most in times like these - a reason to laugh and become part of something bigger.

In March of 2020 the popular social media superstar Joshua Alfred popularly known as Josh2Funny posted a skit on Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter that consists of a series of puns. With the success of that skit he knew that if he wanted to make it a national sensation he had to get the masses involved so he started the “Don’t leave me challenge” which gave other micro-influencers to express their creativity and leverage on the challenge. Little did he know that it will go beyond the borders of Nigeria. Currently that video has over 500,000 views on Twitter and it has been recreated multiple times by TikTok users from the United States, Japan, and Europe.

Content creators should take a cue from Josh2Funny and start seeing social media as a powerful tool they can use to bring the world closer together. They should start creating intelligent contents that can serve the global community having in mind that there are over 3.9 Billion Social Media users in the world. It’s high time we moved from just creating contents for just Nigerians and Africans and start creating contents for the global audience because... Smart creatives are already doing this and if you don’t get on board, don’t leave me will eventually leave you, if you do not completely realize this is the only way onwards.

Dr. Foy is a content development and entertainment project management professional, with seven plus years’ experience in television, advertising, marketing consulting, international cable networks and the digital economy. My background as a trained medical doctor gives me unique cross-functional competence. I believe in enduring positive contributions and enjoy working with visionary individuals and companies. social: @drfoy

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Mompreneurship

WEEKENDER

Mompreneur Article 001 - Nothing can slow me down, not even me!

TigerFIreRose AUG 2020

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remember when I first had my little munchkin, I was so determined to prove that nothing could slow me down; Not even childbirth. Less than 48 hours after major surgery, I was answering emails from my recovery room and dishing out instructions to my team. I felt like I was killing it. I mean look at me Young Entrepreneur, just had a baby, barely out of the recovery room and I’m still making things happen... I thought they said I couldn’t have it all? Who needs to interview me to know it can be done?... I was convinced I had broken the code until my routine daily Blood Pressure check. My B.P. was off the charts and heading towards a heart attack. Common sense begged me to dial it back but No! Not this Mompreneur! I have to have it all and prove ’them’ wrong so, I forged ahead, B.P. medicine in hand and stomach.

My plan was solid - Work remotely and leave the field work to the team. Plan set, Execution activated. I got contracted to write a TV film and gave my new client a deadline based on my usual capabilities because we already know that... A baby cannot slow me down. Deadline set, work mode activated. I was working hard but somehow my pace had... Dare i say it? ’Slowed down’. *shocked gasp* Let us assume my usual delivery time is about 2 weeks... Week 5 and numerous apology emails later, I finally delivered to the client hoping I had not lost their business forever. My embarrassment level was high, my confidence bruised and my shoulder pad deflated. In the words of my native language, loosely translated... ’They still ended up getting me!’. My interviews and Tedx Talk dreams faded in the light of my latest self proclaimed failure. I worked double hard and all I had to show for it was High blood pressure and a bruised reputation of late delivery.

Are they people in a dark room churning out thoughts for me to battle and distract me or, are ’they’ ideas I have escalated to World scale battles in my mind where I am the heroine of this story that must surmount self constructed obstacles?) The world conditions you to believe as a woman, you cannot have it all - career, a fantastic marriage and well-rounded kids. Life tries its best to throw terms at you to support the world’s theories - work-life balance, developmental absence and many others. Our first mistake is buying into the delusion that everyday would be a perfect balance shared evenly among all the parts of your life. The truth is on some days, the scales would tip in favour of ’Mom’ and that is okay. On other days, it is greatly tipped in favour of ’Career’ and that is just fine. Expecting to split yourself equally into 3 separate entities everyday instead of being the one person you are, inclusive of these parts is a journey that only ends in frustration.

My takeaway from that experience has been: 1. If the world is allowed to evolve and adjust based on events happening around it, so am I. 2. When a new dynamic is introduced into your life, be it a new job, starting a new home or having a kid, instead of excluding this new factor from your life (like I was trying to do), you need to factor it IN and then engage from this new standpoint.

Needless to say, with this new understanding, I am better positioned and I have created a balance that works for me. Currently, my efficiency is at its peak, my delivery record has been redeemed (my Blood Pressure is normal) and best of all, I did not lose that client!

In retrospect, my major pitfall was trying to treat every aspect separately instead of factoring in my new dynamic. I was pretending I did not just have a baby, like admitting that in itself was a fault. I let myself buy into a pressure thought of believing I had something to prove to ’them’. (Who are these ’them’ and why are ’they’ out to get me?

TigerFireRose is the Chief Executive Officer of TigerFireRose Media. She has cut her teeth in the Visual Content Production industry, having spent time learning and running projects for various production houses commissioned by Africa Magic. Her versatility and creativity has taken her swiftly across the media space, rising in ranks and positions in a short amount of time from Content writer, to Associate Producer, to Production Manager and eventually Executive Producing her own content. She is a born leader who inspires her team to be all they can be, no holds barred!

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Feature Interview

WEEKENDER

Men’s Club TigerFIreRose AUG 2020

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s the much anticipated season 3 of Red TV’s Men’s Club is in the works. We spoke to the producer’s of the much anticipated show Tola Odunsi, Akin Akinkugbe and Bola Atta on what the audience can expect from the new season and how the COVID-19 pandemic affected their shooting. The Nollywood industry is particularly vulnerable to the effects of corona-virus as shooting shows and films requires a lot of close proximity between actors. It seems the Men’s Club took matters into their own hands….

The plan involved testing all cast, crew, and service providers for the show. Accommodating everyone in 4 separate secured and controlled locations.

1) What was the inspiration behind the Men's Club?

TOLA - The men’s club was actually inspired by a night out, myself, Akins, and a few friends (guys ), Everyone spoke freely about love, friendship, and struggles of life. It dawned on me that there are hardly any television shows that capture the perspectives of young men, especially from Nigeria. The very next day we started developing the concept into a television show, which has become what is the men’s club today.

4) What made you decided to produce Assistant Madams?

What's the connection between that show and Men's Club?

2) Men's Club season 1 and 2 took us all by surprise and quickly became a hit across Nigeria and the diaspora. It is a series that many young people can relate to. We have seen the season 3 trailer and are excited. What can you tell us about Season 3?

5) We are seeing more and more corporates creating their own web series. What makes the partnership with UBA successful?

AKINS - we knew we had a great story but you can never really tell how the audience will receive it. Trust me when I say we also have been somewhat surprised by the fanatical following of the first two seasons. Season 3 takes off higher from where we left things in season 2. Expect more drama, more relationship intrigues and of course more Bromance.

TOLA - Season 3 is a bigger production than the previous 2 seasons.

And we have added a few big names to the cast such as Sola Sobowale and Shaffy Bello. Story-wise I believe this is also our best season yet.

Every day our locations had to be sanitized and disinfected before the arrival of cast and crew and On set the crew had to wear gloves and masks with the exception of the actors on screen. I would say putting such measures definitely increased the cost of production significantly and this might be the new norm for productions worldwide

AKINS -They are actually two completely different shows. The idea for assistant madam was actually born way before The Mens club.

The timing felt right and we began the process of bringing it to life.

There is so much more to come from assistant madams.

TOLA Our Partnership Urban Vision / Redtv /UBA is very successful mostly because our goals are aligned, one of which is to deliver quality content that can be appreciated anyway in the world, secondly our executive producer Bola Atta understands the importance of UBA engaging the youth in a creative way.

AKINS Whereas other Banks might see these portals as just a marketing tool Red Tv actually buys into the vision of creating original world-class African content. Bola vast experience in this space cannot be overemphasized. Our union was seamless. We totally operate at the same frequency. I do not think we could have gotten it better with this partnership... Sorry I mean marriage.

3) The acting industry as a whole was affected because of COVID-19, how did the pandemic affect the shooting of Season 2?

TOLA - The pandemic broke out while we were shooting season 3 so we had to shut down the production for 3 months and then we had to come up with a new elaborate pre-production and production plan to ensure safety.

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Feature Interview

6) People really love the show. How do you carry out the audition process and can is there a world where the public could ever audition?

AKINS -In the earlier days we would do an open audition. The last time we tried this it was mayhem. We had to get help from the Police and LASTMA to control the crowd. We also continue to search for new talent. If you look at the cast from season one of men's club and assistant madams we bled in new talent who have gone on to become stars in their own right. So yes keep your ears close to the ground auditions will still happen

7) Do you have plans to expand viewership to platforms such as Netflix etc?

BOLA - We have so many plans that will unfold as we go along. We feel that we are still at early stages of development.

8) How do we ensure that more African stories are told on the global stage?

BOLA – I think the first step is to focus on positive stories that make people feel good. To tell the true stories that are relatable and reflect the Africa of today. Today’s viewing audience is more discerning in terms of quality of production and want to know that they are getting the best. They will demand this and not accept any excuses, so we need to constantly aim at delivering excellence. With more acceptability comes an expansion of the industry where the entrants (Actors and Production team) become competitive and more productive. That way, more stories continue to be told and the demand for our stories continue will keep increasing.

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WEEKENDER

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Self-Help

WEEKENDER

Playing Your ‘CARDS’ right Oge Funlola Modie AUG 2020

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s the globe moves away from the norm, the new starts to take precedence, however in a society that is driven more by culture than new norms, conflicts arise out of this transition.

It becomes imperative to learn how to navigate this transition for one’s success and growth. As the new gradually becomes the normal, the gap closes to form an innovative and vibrant society for everyone.

The acronym CARDS refer to managing your Composure and ensuring you keep the right kind of Attitude in your sphere of influence, these first two help you manage your Relationships and allows you provide valuable advice exhibiting a Drive without prejudice or judgment which ultimately produces a Solutions minded individual and society.

Let’s break it down: COMPOSURE: Emotional intelligence is really all about managing yourself well enough that managing others become easier.

Maintaining a calm composure in the face of aggressive or hostile environments is key to successfully navigating conflicts and coming out on top. A calm composure also acts as a deterrent to bad behaviour. I always use the Suzy Welch 10-10-10 method to evaluate situations and persons. Will this matter in 10 minutes, seconds, hours, weeks, etc? If it doesn’t, chuck it in the rubbish bin and walk on by! Be mindful of your reactions to situations and learn to manage your emotions better.

ATTITUDE: Learn to maintain a positive attitude at work or anywhere you find yourself. Surround yourself with things that make you happy. Create a personal space where you can go and recharge. I create my space wherever I go, my space has music, journals, colour pens, scented candles, candies (sweets) and a novel. Stay away from negative situations as much as you can. If caught in one, diffuse with a joke, calm but stern response or just walk away. Have an anchor song that keeps you steady and sure; mine is Titanium by Sia, most people like spiritual music or jazz, find your beat and stick to it. Most of all, always wear a smile, it helps both you and the person you are with and introduces cheer into the environment.

RELATIONSHIPS: Create the right and strategic relationships around you. In an office, know who the influencers and powerbrokers are. It has been said often a person’s network is their net worth. You spend at least 8 hours a day at your workplace, as much as it is possible try and have a good working relationship with everyone. Don’t be a people pleaser, be your authentic self and that means working on the above two points (Composure and Attitude) – if you have a calm but amiable composure, you will be approachable and this helps in building strong relationships within your sphere of influence. Build relationships on respect, faithfulness and loyalty.

These are very scarce currencies. Love People, Trust God- my motto!

DRIVE: Be driven. Never give the excuse you can’t. Everything is possible! Never stop learning. Read up on new things. Volunteer on new projects, start something new. Even if things seem to be moving slow, provide energy and innovative ideas. Never say ‘oh they don’t appreciate all my hard work” – still work hard, release all that creative energy, when you bottle all that up, it can become negative or disruptive in a bad way. Be driven!

SOLUTION MINDED: In a world that has become very critical, be the one in the room with light, look for the solutions, look for the way out of a problem. Don’t join the crowd of naysayers. Be positive that this too can be worked out and go for it. Approach every problem with a solution and not a criticism. Be constructive if you want to criticise, start with the positive parts of the project, then move to what isn’t working and finally move to your suggestions and offer help.

I do hope that these can help you start to play your CARDS right.

Remember it will be become a habit as you practise this daily. Best of luck at this! Next time we will be looking at GROWTH in the work place.

Oge is a published author, writer and speaker. She is the Editor and writer of GetFearlessly AunthenticTM Newsletter, a personal leadership newsletter that chronicles her life as a professional. She is involved in causes for women, young people and the vulnerable. She loves to read comics, watch comedy flicks, listen to music and play golf. Shares her love threefold- Love for God, Love for People, Love for Country. ogemodie.com

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Relationship

WEEKENDER

Man cannot live in isolation: Relationship as a key ingredient for success Chinasa Ken-Ugwuh AUG 2020

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am a people person and as I continue to navigate the various crevices of life I realise daily how critical relationships/people are to one’s success.

As my mixed-race Social Studies teacher said in her American accent to us JSS3 in her very first class to us - “ Man cannot live in isolation”. Those were words to remember for my JSSCE final exams, but they would interestingly also become words on marble that inform the realities of leading a successful life twenty-odd years later.

You would agree, that as simple as it may appear, cultivating and maintaining meaningful relationships is really not always a walk in the park, especially if you are the introverted type. Everyone has been in a situation when they have felt let down by someone because they expected some degree of commitment or loyalty from that person.

Imagine the relief when I listened to a teaching from the American clergy – Reverend T.D Jakes, on the three fundamental kinds of people that we will encounter in our lives. He essentially shared three buckets or categories of people, which will guide my recommendation on the 5Ws of embarking on a project.

1. Confidantes: These are people that are there constantly, they are into you and genuinely care about your goals and aspirations.

They care unconditionally and stand sturdily with you in every season of your life. These ones will tell you the truth even when it may appear harsh, but with the best intentions and ultimate goal of helping you fulfil those dreams that are critical to you.

Constituents: These are the people that are there for a time; they are with you because they are for what you are for. Essentially, this group will junk you for the next best alternative that fulfils the same objective. This is because, it was never about you, but rather for what you are for – shared interest, objective etcetera.

2. Comrades: These are the people that are against what you are against, and typically there for a time too. For instance, I am against Gender Based Violence, these people will leverage on this shared passion to work with me to end Gender Based Violence and one of the outcomes may be a policy to guide the enactment of certain law. T.D Jakes describes them as scaffolding, only there for a time to ensure that the shared objective is met. Once their work is done, they leave.

If you were to embark on any project, it is advisable to use the simple framework of the 5Ws outlined below. Knowing that people are critical to the successful outcome of any undertaking, it is instructive to understand and define your circles using the relationship categories described above.

• What: Articulate clearly the objective, i.e. what do you want to achieve?

• Who: First who are the people that need what you want to create or develop. Secondly, who are the enablers in your circle that will make this happen. This is where understanding the relationships in your life becomes critical. You must master the art of harnessing those relationships to create value.

• Why: The bigger picture, overarching purpose of what you are doing. This will inform clearly the roles the different categories of your relationships play and will reflect in the passionate delivery of the objective, which will endear the right audience to the brand or initiative.

• Where: Where will you find the people that will enable your purpose and objective and where will you find your target market/audience/beneficiaries. This will help plan channels of distribution and communication • When: Timing is crucial in delivering anything, it has to be the right time. Factors that can affect the right timing for an intervention or project will range from, socio-economic landscape, climate, political environment and other mega trends that impact consumer behaviour.

In a nutshell, understanding people and cultivating relationships is a critical ingredient for succeeding in life. The trick is in compartmentalising and knowing that everyone plays different roles that can create value if harnessed properly.

Chinasa Ken-Ugwuh (‘Nasa) is a social development specialist with a passion for humanity and making a difference. As a connector, she enjoys cultivating meaningful relationships and connecting people to opportunities that make a difference. As an expression of her passion for social issues, she co-anchors a TV Show “What Are You Saying” (WAYS) on PLUS TV Africa and also writes a bi-weekly column ‘Social Conscience with ‘Nasa’ in BusinessDay. Instagram: @with_nasa | LinkedIn: Chinasa Ken-Ugwuh

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Family

WEEKENDER

Career and Family: Can We Have Both?

Roseline Nkanta AUG 2020

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ave you ever wondered how to successfully combine a career and family responsibilities? Over the past few years, I have given it more than a passing thought, and in all honesty, I have tried a few suggestions but my success rate has been low (that will be a story for another day).

A few weeks ago, my hubby and I had an argument on the possibility of successfully attaining a balance in career and family. I argued that building and successfully maintaining both was tasking and time consuming, as such, the chances of achieving success was slim. I surmised that in the long run, one of the two would suffer. My hubby strongly argued that successfully combining career and family was attainable. We did not arrive at a conclusion as we could not come to an agreement. I suggested that a further research would help us arrive at a consensus.

This argument did remind me of a bet I had taken with a good friend some years back. I told him at that time that successfully combining a career and building a home was achievable; and I was going to achieve it. I remember how I passionately told him how, in a few years’ time, good planning and determination would help me achieve it. Ummh! Call it youthful passion or a grossly misinformed decision or bet! Whatever! I know better now! Back then, I was so career focused, now motherhood has won my heart!

My little research on career and family led me to great articles from which I gleaned timeless wisdom. Nancy Clark of Womensmedia blog and podcast wrote a thought-provoking statement. She said, “few people say at the end of their lives, I wish I had spent more time at work”. A U.S Work and Family Institute survey revealed that 60 percent of working parents feel considerable conflict between work responsibilities and time spent at home. Another writer gave tips on career and family management. The article that won my heart was ANNE-MARIE SLAUGHTER’s op-ed titled “Women Can’t Have It All”, in which she mentioned that, “Having control over your schedule was the only way women who wanted a career and a family can make it work.” I screamed “yippee!” as I read through the super-rich article. I hurriedly showed my hubby that this balance was not easy to achieve. I was virtually running my mouth as I pointed out different lines in the super rich article which Prof. AnneMarie Slaughter did great justice to.

I can say she is an authority on this issue as she has experienced the thrills of a high-profile career and the struggles of managing a family. The easy way to succeed in juggling the career and family ball is to assign important to each task per day while clearly defining your priorities.

Roseline is a prolific writer, wife and mother to 3 young intelligent and bubbling children. She actively supports and writes about effective family development, children wellbeing, development and bonding through. Her best writing are inspired by everyday life events and the growth process of her children. She is the chief editor at trendmother.com.ng, a family focused blog that guides busy women build strong families, raise great children and achieve work-life balance.

Instagram: @with_nasa | LinkedIn: Chinasa Ken-Ugwuh

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Lifestyle

WEEKENDER

Dressing the African woman’s Body Ebunoluwa Orebajo AUG 2020

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t’s pretty obvious that the typical African woman isn’t a size zero, more often than not she’s got curves and fills out in the right places. We mostly fall within the range of a size 12 to a size 16, either having a mix of these sizes or being a perfect size of one of these sizes.

I know this too well as I have never been a perfect size “X”, I have always been a mixed of these sizes. Sometimes I am even 2 sizes smaller on my upper body in comparison to my lower body. But, I realised that your body type or size should not relegate you to certain styles, and so I will be sharing the following tips on how to dress your hot curvy body: Ebun’s tried and tested 9 tips to dress your hot and curvy body: 1. Always lay a PROPER FOUNDATION by wearing appropriate undergarments: Get measured and wear the right-size bra, getting proper support is key, so invest in proper and effective shape wear.

2. OWN your curves and wear clothes that flatter them: You have been blessed with these curves so there’s no need to hide them.

Love and embrace your curves ladies! Wearing oversized clothes in a bid to hide them will only make you look bigger, by embracing your curves, you will find that clothes are actually more flattering.

3. Invest in FLARED PANTS: Flared pants will never go out of style, so dust off yours and prepare to make it a closet staple. Always make sure the top is shorter to balance your figure and outfit. If pants aren’t your thing, fit and flared dresses look good on any body type.

4. Choose the right FABRIC: If you are a fan of lighter fabrics it’s time to choose thicker fabrics. Materials with a bit of stretch and spandex are your friend because they are very slimming.

5. WRAP it up: Invest in a wrap dress. It is a must-have and works wonders for bigger busts as it separates the breast to enhance their appearance while cinching your waist in.

6. TAILOR your clothes: A good tailor is every woman's secret weapon. There's no substitute! Wearing clothes that fit and hang properly on your body can make the difference between Terrible and Terrific.

7. Fitted but not too tight: There’s a difference between being squeezed up in a dress and a dress fitting your body nicely, the outline of any undergarment shouldn’t be seen through the dress.

Once that happens, you know you have crossed the line of fitted into the “too tight”.

8. The Pencil Skirt is your friend: To-the-knee or slightly below the knee, is the most flattering hemline on everyone. It elongates your curves and gives your body good balance.

9. Finally, when in doubt choose a ‘free n flare’ outfit: Fit and flare dresses look good on any body type and we all have at least one in the wardrobe.

With these tips, go on, get dressed and remain body confident in whatever you choose to adorn your beautiful body with.

Ebunoluwa Orebajo, wife, mother, lawyer, a business owner and fashion enthusiast. She is a qualified lawyer, with an LLB from the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University, and a BL from the Nigerian Law School. She currently works at AA&R Investment Limited as the Principal Secretary to the Executive Chairman. She is also the MD/Creative Director of Plush Ribbons Services and Maria Ribbons Styling .

Maria Ribbons Styling was born out of her passion for fashion. She constantly shares fashion tips and provide fashion inspiration with her daily outfits that are easily achievable by the average woman.She believes that impossible is nothing, you just need to dig deeper within yourself.

Instagram: @maria_ribbons

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

Family

WEEKENDER

Finding a good Nanny Simisola Obasanya AUG 2020

T

his is one of the major issues parents face today.

Finding a good nanny is a lot like finding the right partner. If it’s a relationship you’re hoping will stand the test of “life and time”, there are definitely a few things worth considering.

First, ask yourself “Do I really Need a Nanny?”. It’s important to figure out exactly what you need. I find that many people use the word nanny to mean housekeepers, cleaners, cooks, etc. According to the International Nanny Association, a nanny is a child care specialist whose workplace is a family’s private home. This definition has evolved to include childcare specialists in more formal settings such as schools, or creches, but the emphasis remains on “Childcare”. This is not to say that nannies cannot perform other duties, but that is discussion for a different day.

Next you need to determine what would work best for you. It’s important to be more deliberate in finding out what we really need in terms of skill set, knowledge base, experience and character. Each one equally important. It’s okay to want what you want as long as you are realistic and true to yourself. A working mum with busy hours might do better with a nanny who lives in, a new mom with an older nanny whose own children are grown up. Hoping your nanny will stay longer than a year means it wouldn’t be very wise to hire someone who is transitioning between stages.

Understandably, a lot of times, we are pressed for time, maybe even desperate by the time we start looking, so we SETTLE. Like any relationship, settling ultimately leads to disappointments for one or both parties.

Now, where do you find a good nanny? The ‘go-to' is REFERRALS from past employers. This tells you that they have proven themselves to someone else in the past, and that someone is confident enough to put in a word for them. Another option would be to use a trusted agency. Research the agency, talk to some of their existing clients if you will, and ask about their processes. A good agency will have clients who will vouch for them.

In all finding the right nanny is a project in itself. It requires planning, patience, testing and trusting your instincts. When you eventually get set up with a nanny, it’s important to ask the right questions and watch out for telling signs. Hopefully, we will talk about that in more detail sometime.

In the meantime, have a great weekend and stay safe.

Simisola Obasanya is a childcare professional and advocate. Her brainchild Nanny Centre ( a Childcare Training school) was borne out of a passion for improved quality of childcare in Nigeria. She develops and facilitates childcare training programs for individuals, schools and the state Government.

Email: info@nanny-centre.com | LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simisola-obasanya-80518451

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Saturday, 01 August 2020

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