By Pascal Oparada
Social Media/Tech Reporter
The story of Africa’s e-commerce giant, Jumia would have been different were it not for its West African co-founders.
The First African startup unicorn was started by a Nigerian, Tunde Kehinde and a Ghanaian, Raphael Afaedor.
The duo teamed up with CEO, Sacha Poignonnec in 2012 to co-found the e-commerce giant that is worth over $3 billion today.
There is so much talk about Jumia, which trades at New York Stock Exchange under the ticker JMIA, not being a truly African started-up because, according to AfricaFactZone, Jumia was incorporated and is headquartered in Germany, it’s administrative headquarters in Dubai, UAE and its global technology centre in Porto, Portugal, while its four chief executives not being Africans.
Analysts say the success of Jumia would not have been the way it is if not for these two west Africans who seeded the company during its infancy.
“Yet, Jumia Nigeria was co-started with these two West Africans. People need to see their faces to understand that without Jumia Nigeria, the mission of Jumia cannot thrive. Raphael Afaedor and Tunde Kehinde are key reasons why Jumia trades in NYSE today. They must inspire a new generation of Nigerian entrepreneurs”, Professor Ndubuisi Ekekwe said.
