General
At Jumia, Every Opinion Counts Irrespective of Gender—Ajagunna
Adejoju Ajagunna is the Head of Customer Service at Jumia Nigeria. In this interview, she spoke extensively on the challenges of working in the COVID-19 era, balancing the roles as a career woman and mother, and the equal opportunity for career growth at the e-commerce company. Excerpts:
What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
It means inspiration where I am inspired to dare and to do more. A day where every female gender irrespective of our profession or status is recognized globally, a day where it is important to celebrate the success and growth of every woman, one who has been able to conquer, who has been able to stand for her rights and explore the full potential of herself with no restriction to any obstacle.
We need to celebrate every gender called “WOMAN” as the world appreciates our hard work, resilience, struggles, wins and achievements, a day the world stands for “US” and reflects on the impact we have made in society. Officially a day that is devoted in celebration of all women but to me, every day is IWD because we create magic always
How has COVID-19 affected your role in Jumia since the pandemic started?
2020 has been the most challenging and daring of my 8 years in Jumia where opportunities were explored and we had to transition to a new normal by activating work from home in our attempt to ensure our consumers do not lack general essential and food supply due to restriction in the movement for most parts of the country.
In the beginning, it was a struggle supporting the team to suddenly change the dynamics of how we use to work by commencing remote working and adapting to the new tools.
Some of our team members were not sure if this was going to be possible or if we could achieve our number one goal of ‘winning the love of our customers in a pandemic where few of our processes had to be reviewed by ensuring all COVID-19 guidelines were adhered to.
The pandemic has brought about CHANGE where alternate channels of a new work-lifestyle are continuously being integrated without compromising the JUMIA standard. With all of these, I had to ensure we give time for the new learning curve, adequate support for onboarding and mastering of the new normal as we are the Jumia ambassadors
What are the challenges you’ve encountered in your career as a woman and how did you overcome it?
Well, most of my challenges came in my early stages of taking up a leadership role especially with managing the largest team where women are the largest team members, it was not easy managing the diversity of all types of human with the mindset that my processor was male as such it was expected that the role should be dominated by the male gender.
So, what I did was, I wore the shoes of the male gender and walked the walk by keeping the momentum and turning around the situation in taking up the mantle of leadership. It was also difficult to balance the curve of attaining a leadership role and being an awesome mum to my children especially when they were toddlers who could not understand why I could not be present for storytime in their schools and feel saddened by my unavailability but I have been able to create time at the homefront while I make it up to them in creating that schooling atmosphere at home by playing & learning which is moulding their values to create opportunities when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade out of it.
How will you say Jumia is contributing to the growth/development of female staff?
There are several ways Jumia contributes to the development of her female staff, one of such initiatives used in promoting gender equality in the provision of mentor programs which helps to guide us through any challenge in the course of our career without any gender exclusion.
We also have the opportunity of the women forum where we all come together to discuss business, obstacles, opportunities and work-life balance and honestly, it has been engaging and rewarding as you see staff from all levels relate and share learnings, I would say, it’s always a way to learn, relearn & unlearn.
What impact has gender equality made on your life and work?
Jumia is an organization that allows you to explore opportunities as long as you can earn them by hard work and a lot of positive push. One of our core values “You don’t need a title to a leader” allows equal rights amongst all which genuinely values your contribution and supports you to grow even as a woman.
Most of the C-levels in Jumia are women who in one way or the other have contributed to the immense growth of the business. Jumia has promoted equality as every opinion counts irrespective of your sex or level.
What female figure motivates you?
Actually, there are two particular female figures that inspire me: one is African while the other is American. The question for me is why these two women inspire me: they are women who have made good use of the opportunities around them with a powerful resilience not to stop but continue to ensure that their achievements continue to impact the lives of women especially the young & upcoming ones.
The first figure is Chimamanda Adichie who is a Nigerian, a writer of short stories & novels, I am stuck on one of her quotes ‘When there is true equality, resentment does not exist.’
My second female figure is Hilary Clinton; a politician. Both women are an inspiration to me because of their strong will and confidence level, I admire their courage in how they have done things differently.
What is the most important piece of advice you’d give to a woman thinking of starting her career?
There is so much pressure from the world out there where our young women are not sure of who they are or what they stand for, which sometimes makes them lose priority and focus.
However, my message to young women out there and generally to women “Be YOU…Be ENOUGH”: fuel your passion, making mistakes is allowed, it does not stop you from achieving your goals but in the end, you learn from it and this makes you a better woman. Make sure you work hard and have fun by celebrating your achievements and giving yourself a pat on the back.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
President Bola Tinubu on Saturday confirmed the killing of a senior ISIS leader, Mr Abu-Bilal Al-Manuki, in an overnight operation carried out by the United States and Nigeria.
President Donald Trump had earlier announced the elimination of the notorious terrorist via a post on his Truth Social.
Later, in a statement today, Mr Tinubu praised the action, describing it as “a significant example of effective collaboration in the fight against terrorism.”
“Our determined Nigerian Armed Forces, working closely with the Armed Forces of the United States, conducted a daring joint operation that dealt a heavy blow to the ranks of the Islamic State,” he said in the statement.
According to him, early assessments confirm the elimination of the wanted IS senior leader, Abu-Bilal Al-Manuki, also known as Abu-Mainok, along with several of his lieutenants, during a strike on his compound in the Lake Chad Basin.
He commended the partnership between Nigeria and America in waging war against terrorists, thanking his US counterpart “for his leadership and unwavering support in this effort.”
“I commend the personnel involved on both sides for their professionalism and courage, and I look forward to more decisive strikes against all terrorist enclaves across the nation,” the Nigerian leader added.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria is set to strengthen its defence architecture by deploying artificial intelligence-powered surveillance systems and advanced anti-drone technology as part of efforts to modernise the country’s military capabilities, according to the Minister of Defence, Mr Christopher Musa.
He disclosed this during a high-level visit to Monaco, where he led a Nigerian delegation to conclude discussions on the multi-domain Hybrid Intelligence Shield (HIS) project.
According to Mr Musa, the initiative is designed to enhance border security, protect urban centres and improve the country’s response to emerging security threats.
The project is expected to introduce AI-driven surveillance systems capable of identifying threats rapidly through smart algorithms, while anti-drone technology will be deployed to intercept and neutralise unmanned aerial threats.
The government also plans to establish national and regional command-and-control centres to improve real-time coordination and response to security incidents across the country.
Mr Musa said the initiative would place strong emphasis on technology transfer and local capacity development through the establishment of a military Centre of Excellence in Nigeria.
He added that the federal government would leverage partnerships with international firms, including Marss UK Ltd, while simultaneously building indigenous capabilities to address insurgency, illegal mining, piracy and other security threats.
Nigeria has continued to battle multiple security challenges in recent years, including insurgency in the North-East, banditry and kidnappings in the North-West, farmer-herder clashes in the North-Central region, crude oil theft in the Niger Delta and piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
Nigeria is stepping up its defence as the border region of Nigeria, Benin and Niger on the southern edge of the Sahel region is becoming a new stronghold for jihadists, as militants turn forests and pastoral networks in West Africa into bases for recruitment and international attacks.
Attacks in Nigeria have also risen, with data from the website of the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), a conflict-monitoring group, affirming that the number of suicide bombings in Nigeria by March already matched the annual average over the past six years.
The Nigerian military has also been dealt a blow to its military bases and senior figures targeted. In April, Brigadier-General Oseni Omoh Braimah was killed when Islamist fighters attacked a base in Borno State.
To also meet the defence goal, Nigeria is stepping up efforts to build domestic arms-manufacturing capacity.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria and Morocco are set to sign a major intergovernmental agreement later this year to push forward the long-delayed Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline project, a multi-billion-dollar energy corridor expected to reshape gas trade across West Africa and Europe.
The agreement, expected to be signed in the fourth quarter of 2026 by President Bola Tinubu and King Mohammed VI of Morocco, follows the completion of preliminary technical studies for the ambitious project, according to officials from both countries.
The pipeline, also known as the African Atlantic Gas Pipeline, is projected to stretch about 6,900 kilometres along offshore and onshore routes across West Africa, making it one of the largest gas infrastructure projects on the continent.
With an estimated cost of $25 billion, the pipeline is designed to transport up to 30 billion cubic metres of gas annually once completed.
Discussions on the project gained fresh momentum during a telephone conversation between Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and her Moroccan counterpart, Mr Nasser Bourita.
The project would not only strengthen energy cooperation between the two countries but also improve regional economic integration and expand Africa’s access to European energy markets.
According to Morocco’s hydrocarbons and mining agency, ONHYM, part of the gas supply will support Morocco’s domestic energy demand, while large export volumes will be directed to Europe.
The project, first proposed about a decade ago, is seen as a strategic alternative gas supply route amid rising global energy security concerns and Europe’s search for more diversified energy sources.
Beyond the pipeline, Nigeria and Morocco are also exploring broader economic partnerships, particularly in fertiliser production and distribution to support food security across Africa.
Both countries also agreed on the need to revive the Nigeria-Morocco Business Council to strengthen trade and investment relations under the African Continental Free Trade Area framework.
Analysts noted that the project could significantly boost gas monetisation opportunities for Nigeria, expand regional infrastructure development, and deepen economic ties between West African nations and Europe if successfully executed.
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