NCC and connectivity debt

THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS) has urged the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to issue a 90-day ultimatum for telecom operators to settle interconnectivity debt

THE DWINDLING IN VESTMENT appetite from Venture Capitalists ( VCs) and non- affordability of data are two of the biggest setbacks trailing the future of Nigeria’s edutech (education technology) ecosystem, key players in the sector have said.

They explained that the edutech ecosystem has not been at par with sectors like fintech, agritech, e-commerce in terms of attracting investments from VCs and angel investors.

“One of the reasons why we have not even seen many being funded is because investors believe that education is not our top priority in Nigeria and it’s very difficult to scale and be profitable,” Jide Ayegbuisi, founder of Edusko, an edutech startup told business a.m.

“To scale any edutech solution, you need funding but we don’t have many venture capitalists or angel investors who have interest in edutech like we do in fintech, e-commerce and agritech,” Ayegbuisi added.

With some of very many edutech startup founders playing in the space to solve the humongous challenges in the industry, the foot-dragging of the necessary Nigerian authorities to make education a priority by providing affordable Internet are countering the efforts in the sector.

Edutech startups in some other countries like China and India are making greater strides and receiving more attention compared to what is obtainable in Nigeria.

Goldman Sachs in 2016 reported that global investments in China’s edutech companies rose to $1.2 billion, which is projected to grow 20 percent annually, while the entire Asia-Pacific is projected to represent 54 percent of the global edutech market by 2020.

Further, a report released by Google and KPMG projects that India’s online education market will grow more than 6 times to $1.96 billion over the next four years.

Edutech startups should provide more access to education

However, irrespective of the challenges already affecting the sector, it now gets worse as some founders are more interested in making profit rather than providing access to quality education, a problem, which has been lingering over the years.

“The majority of the edutech startups in Nigeria are primarily focused on making profit rather than providing ubiquitous access to high-quality education to Nigerians and beyond by leveraging the power of technology,” said Gbenga Ogunfuyi, founder and CEO at Scholarx, a social impact startup that focuses on education financing to help young Africans access quality education through scholarships, crowdfunding and e-learning.

He said Nigeria, many startups and companies are busy solving the wrong problem.

“The problem we have in the edutech space is more of providing access and quality.”

He said any startup that is providing access should not focus on profit making but primarily ensure that students get access to education at little a cost, adding that edutech startups should provide the opportunity bridge that connects young people with opportunities both home and abroad.

“Edusko platform provides schools with the opportunity to reach out to millions of school finders with ease. We are making good schools available, accessible and affordable.

“In a world where it is becoming increasingly difficult for parents to make informed decisions in placing their wards in the right schools, our startup is poised to furnish parents with necessary information about available good schools in Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, Europe and America,” said Ayegbuisi.

He maintained that the ecosystem is moving in the right direction. “I think we are in the right direction. Although penetration is very slow, players within the education space are beginning to realize the importance of technology in solving our huge problems in education,” he said.

Edutech as a business or social enterprise?

Edutech is predominately an input-focused business, with little attention to the output or end result from using all this technology. The focus of any edutech startup in Nigeria, therefore, will have to be long-term as a short-term goal like making money will only truncate the vision, key players in the sector said.

Edutech startup founders should ensure that they are flexible and patient regarding their business model as a scalable business model would take a while.

According to Beavly, an online training marketplace that connects people who want to learn new skills with top professionals who offer practical and physical training for a fee, edutech startups should not expect a quick flip or quick growth as building a large, successful education company will take 20 years.

“The growth curve will not be like an Internet technology company until you hit millions in revenue.

Then things will ramp quickly because you will have identified your core market and built the beginnings of a brand.”

Edutech ecosystem has not been at par with sectors like fintech, agritech, e-commerce in terms of attracting investments from VCs and angel investors