TECHDIGEST – The management of Konga, Nigeria’s leading composite e-commerce giant, has raised the alarm over the activities of suspected fraudsters using its brand name to scam unsuspecting victims. The company cautioned the public and its customers to remain alert to the antics of these unscrupulous con artists.

The warning comes amid revelations that some individuals have recently been targeted by the scammers.

Notably, Konga says it has flagged a malicious website – https://kongahome.com/- being used by the fraudsters to rip off their victims after artfully convincing them to make payments into a fake merchant account for a task, VIP privileges or for the purposes of receiving some benefits. Investigations also reveal that in other cases, the scammers rely on phoney letters purportedly from the Philippine National Bank, while also illegally using the Konga logo on some letters written to their victims.

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In a statement issued by Konga, the e-commerce company called on the public to exercise extra vigilance in order not to fall prey to these gimmicks, while also urging them to report any suspicious activities through the company’s official customer service channels.

‘‘We have recently been made aware of a few incidents where suspected scammers attempt to leverage our reputation and the trust reposed in us by our customers to carry out various fraudulent activities. Please, keep your eyes open and beware of scammers and their antics. Konga will NEVER ask you to pay money into any merchant account. There is no such thing as Merchant Task payment or VIP in Konga.

Also, we are currently not having a 9th Anniversary Sale, as touted by some of these scammers. Konga is 10 this year and we are celebrating our customers with a 10th Anniversary Sale. This campaign kicked off on Monday, June 27 and will run through July 10, 2022 exclusively on our platforms.

“Please note that our only official website is www.konga.com and news or updates on any of our promotions or special offers/incentives/freebies for customers will be shared via our website and our social media pages. Our social media handle is @shopkonga on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, while for LinkedIn, it is Konga Group.

‘‘Please, do not hesitate to report any fraudulent or suspicious activities through our official customer care channels. You can send us an email at help@konga.com. Call us on 07080635700, 08094605555, 018883435 or send us a WhatsApp message via https://wa.me/2348094605555.

“We remain committed to our mission of creating a trusted and vibrant retail ecosystem that facilitates trade across Africa, while living up to our status as the e-commerce group you trust,’’ the disclaimer read in part,” the company stated.

Source: Nairametric 

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TECHDIGEST – American e-commerce giant, Amazon, is set to disrupt the Nigerian e-commerce market as it plans to launch in the country in April 2023. When it launches, Amazon will compete with Konga and Jumia, the two dominant players in the Nigerian e-commerce space.

According to a report by Business Insider, the company will be expanding to five countries across Africa, Europe, and South America, while maintaining its base in the United States. The five countries are Belgium, Chile, Colombia, Nigeria, and South Africa.

Amazon, which currently runs in 20 different countries, is investing in long-term growth while it scales up its US-based outlet.

The report says this could result in more competition for local e-commerce companies, which operate across Africa, and Mercado Libre, a leading online marketplace in Latin AUS-based.

READ ALSO: Finally, NITDA Issues Code of Practice for Online Platforms Operating in Nigeria

Business Insider in the report said the timing of the rollouts in a detailed timeline would be between 2022 and 2023.
“Belgium’s marketplace, called Project Red Devil, is slated for late September 2022. The one in Colombia, dubbed Project Salsa, is scheduled for February 2023.

“South Africa, codenamed Project Fela, is also expected in February 2023. The marketplace in Nigeria is due to launch in April 2023. That project shares the codename Project Fela with South Africa,” it said.

“Chile is planned for April 2023, too. It shares the Project Salsa name with Colombia,” the report added.

The report also revealed that all countries plan to launch their marketplace and access Amazon’s fulfilment service, ‘ Fulfillment by Amazon’. It said that Amazon’s prime membership programme is expected to be available at launch in Belgium, while other countries will get it shortly after their introductions.

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Forbes, a globally renowned media company, focusing on business, investing, technology, entrepreneurship, leadership, and lifestyle, revealed this in a special feature published in its Forbes Africa edition late last week.

In addition to hailing the remarkable growth trajectory that has seen Konga become the first African e-commerce player to hit profitability, Forbes equally referenced the various thriving subsidiaries that have transformed the Konga Group into a formidable, flourishing e-commerce ecosystem, while also highlighting the pivotal role of KongaPay, a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)-licensed fintech platform as a leader in the Nigerian e-wallet space.

Following its 2018 acquisition by the Zinox Group and the tremendous growth it has recorded, Konga, Forbes noted, would potentially attract over a $2bn valuation when it eventually decides to go public, as widely envisaged.

‘‘While the brand eyes its listing on the stock market to fulfil its potential in the marketplace, there are reports that it boasts over $2 billion valuation, thanks to its new acquisition by Zinox.

‘‘Konga has continued to show promise in the online marketplace. After its acquisition, a review of the company’s performance shows the brand experienced over 800% growth. This surpasses expectations in e-commerce sectors across the continent. The new phase of Konga, driven by young, ambitious and innovative individuals, has seen it rake over $3oom in investments, according to reports.’

‘‘Efficient management of these investments has driven the brand to succeed in the e-commerce space, placing the brand on a profitable footing. The transformation has seen the brand recording significant progress in its online and offline transactions. Data shows that Konga fulfilled to the last mile 85% of all orders placed on its online and offline platform. The brand has also navigated and found a lasting solution to issues with logistics, one of the great hindering factors with e-commerce in Africa,’’ the article read in part.

In a chat with Co-CEO, Konga Group, Prince Nnamdi Ekeh who is rounding off his MBA studies at Oxford, Forbes also beamed its focus on the future of e-commerce in Africa, with Prince Ekeh who heaped praises on his Co-CEO, Nick Imudia and the entire Management and staff of the Konga Group for their resilience and dedication, revealing that the future remains bright.

‘‘E-commerce in Africa is set to take off to unprecedented heights in the next decade and players who are well-positioned will

reap the fruits. Like I mentioned before, we have already seen triple-digit annual growth numbers and yet there is still so much market share left to capture as we transition people into the e-commerce era.

‘‘I also believe blockchain and decentralized finance will play a great role in improving financial inclusion in the continent which will give people more access to digital services like e-commerce. As economists, we were trained to look at indicators and so far, most critical indicators trend positively: Population, youth population, mobile penetration growth rates, connectivity growth rates. If these indicators continue to improve, I have no doubt that Africa will house one of the biggest e-commerce players in the world, and my job is to make that Konga,’’ Prince Ekeh disclosed.

The full Forbes Africa feature :Konga can be accessed here:

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TECHDIGEST – The e-commerce section of the Nigerian digital economy holds immense potential for the overall growth of the economy.

With 58 online marketplaces in the Nigerian e-commerce space, the contribution of companies such as Jumia, Konga, Jiji, Kaiglo, Njalo.ng, in recent years are exceptional and the economic outlook for the next few years of stability and consolidation.

Recently, the federal government revealed the improving impact of e-commerce on the country’s economy, saying the current e-commerce spend in Nigeria has grown to $13billion per annum and is expected to hit $75billion in revenue per annum by 2025.

According to Dr. Evelyn Ngige, permanent secretary in the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, e-commerce grew in Nigeria from 14% in 2019 to 17% in 2020. She stated that her ministry was passionate about the growing Investment opportunities in the e-commerce value chain, which are capable of contributing significantly to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Statista’s digital market outlook for Nigeria’s e-commerce also said the number of online shoppers in the country, which was at 76.7 million in 2021, is expected to hit 122.5 million by 2025.

A report by Agusto & Co predicted new entrants into the small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) segment of the Nigerian economy thanks to the emerging e-commerce sales trend.

“Through e-commerce, players enjoy a wider customer reach with the ability to simultaneously connect to millions of consumers locally and globally. We note that the emergence of COVID-19 positively impacted the sector, with players recording a gush of customer orders particularly during the lockdown period. We expect this trend to continue into the emerging post COVID-19 era premised on the rising rate of adoption of online shopping by consumers on the back of the relative convenience it offers,” the report stated.

Commenting on this development, Jumia CEO, Spalazzi said: “It shows that Nigerians are embracing e-commerce more, and the services are becoming part of their daily lives. Importantly, this also shows that consumers are getting value from e-commerce services. This has been our aim at Jumia from the onset, and we are happy that the country is gradually seeing the impact of e-commerce to the economy.”

He added that e-commerce holds a lot of economic potential for Nigeria if given the needed support. “This is just like a tip of the economic benefits the country stands to get from e-commerce. A huge chunk of the market is yet to be exploited. The industry holds a lot of economic potential for Nigeria in terms of employment, technology development and overall GDP of the country,” Spalazzi said.

Figures by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), also showed that Nigeria’s e-payment transactions increased by 85.5% year-on-year to N171.99tn in August 2021.

Little wonder the Nigerian government is paying more attention to this sector and formulating policies to facilitate a vibrant digital economy.

Abdullahi Kashifu, the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in his congratulatory message to Jumia on its 9th anniversary said that the federal government is visibly at work to improve digital economy activities in the country, especially seeing as it provided immense support to the government during the covid lockdowns.

He stated that Jumia has had an impressive nine years of e-commerce journey which has seen it expand to several African countries, creating employment opportunities and becoming a good reference for innovative startups on the continent.

He said “These are the kind of startups we encourage, an innovation-driven enterprise. You look at the global market and huge capital investment and job creation. And also you are innovative and creating a lot of jobs in the ecosystem.”

According to the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, “Internet penetration in Nigeria in the last one year is unprecedented. Based on available records, the internet came to Nigeria most probably around the year 2000. Up to 2919, the penetration was 33%. Averagely, that’s about 1.7% penetration annually. But from August 2019 to November 2020, the penetration catapulted to 47%. That is about a 12% increase within one year. It is expected that, by the end of 2021, we could have more that 50% internet penetration in Nigeria and this is encouraging indeed. E-commerce, leverages on internet penetration, without it’s very difficult. So the more broadband penetration, by implication, the more e-commerce activities in the country.”

Going by these indices and other pillars falling into place, e-commerce is set to be a major contributor to the direction of Nigeria’s digital economy as the nation surges towards the projected 2025 growth mark.

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TECHDIGEST – Konga, Nigeria’s leading composite e-commerce giant, has signed a partnership with the Federal Government through the Diaspora Commission to further strengthen the relationship between Nigerians abroad, their relatives and the nation.

To this effect, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Konga and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) on Tuesday, September 14, 2021 in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Present at the signing ceremony was Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, chairman/Chief Executive Officer, NIDCOM; Leo Stan Ekeh, Chairman of Zinox Group; Nick Imudia, Co-CEO, Konga Group and Isa Aliyu shata, vice president, KongaPay, as well as other senior officials of NIDCOM.

The terms of the MoU will see NIDCOM partner with Konga in offering Nigerians based in overseas locations a credible platform devoid of the potential concerns of fraud and other unscrupulous practices.

Consequently, through this synergy, Konga will place its huge resources, extensive reach, world class assets and credible database at the disposal of millions of Nigerians in the Diaspora in search of a reliable and robust platform to work with in the country.

In addition, the partnership will see Konga set up an exclusive Diaspora Marketplace to aid Nigerians abroad gain access to quality Nigerian products and services, while also helping them sell their own items locally.

Furthermore, NIDCOM will also leverage Konga TV, a cutting-edge Cloud TV soon to be launched by the e-commerce giant, to reach millions of Nigerians across the globe.

The development is one which the FG believes will ease capital flight, while also boosting the scope of useful foreign exchange earnings through Diaspora returns.

‘‘We are delighted to have signed this partnership with Konga which remains unarguably a world recognized and credible e-commerce leader in Nigeria,’’ disclosed Mrs. Abike Erewa, NIDCOM Executive Chairman. ‘‘Through this initiative, millions of Nigerians will have access to a reliable platform here in Nigeria to guide their investment decisions, while also offering them a chance to empower their loved ones through the numerous opportunities that abound on Konga Group. We are also confident that this partnership will encourage many Nigerians resident abroad to gain useful knowledge and consider major social investments in Nigeria, a development that will further rub off positively on the economy.”

Also speaking at the event, Ekeh, Chairman of Konga commended the NIDCOM Chairman and her team for their efforts and professionalism in making the partnership a reality.

Ekeh, who pioneered e-commerce in Africa through the now defunct BuyRight Africa Dotcom over 13 years ago, lauded the power of e-commerce in bridging gaps and growing the wealth of nations in the 21st Century, a role he stated that Konga is eminently positioned to play in view of its huge resources and growth trajectory in Nigeria and beyond.

He added that the partnership is expected to cause a change that would be a blessing to Nigerians in the 21st century.

On his part, Imudia, Co-CEO, Konga Group also stressed the many opportunities that abound for Nigerians in the Diaspora through the partnership with NIDCOM.

‘Many Nigerians abroad can now find credible merchants for their purchases in Nigeria or even set up their own stores on Konga. Also, they can access reliable information before committing funds or while making investment decisions. With Konga, Nigerians abroad can afford to extend support to relatives and their respective communities without stories.

‘‘Put simply, Nigerians abroad can order foodstuffs, medicines, and other products on Konga platforms and get them delivered to their families and friends without stories, no matter the location in Nigeria. All they need do is open a wallet on KongaPay, a Central Bank of Nigeria fully licensed mobile money platform. They can also use Konga platform to pay school fees, monthly feeding allowances and pay contractors working for them in Nigeria etc. and receive alerts that their instructions have been carried out with 100% accuracy.’’

The partnership with NIDCOM comes just as Konga recently signed off on another partnership with the Ministry of Youths and Sports Development to empower millions of Nigerians youths through a job and wealth creation scheme known as Konga Jobs (KJ).

The initiative targets the employed, under-employed and unemployed Nigerians. Konga also recently entered a strategic partnership with the Edo State Government to launch the Edo Marketplace (EMP) on Konga as a major platform to take SMEs in the state to the global marketplace and to better serve the unreached and under-reached.

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TECHDIGEST – Konga, Nigeria’s leading composite e-commerce giant, has been applauded by the Sunday Dare, minister of Youths and Sports Development, as a digital platform with immense capacity to help re-write Nigeria’s unemployment narrative.
He made this known during the signing of a landmark partnership between Konga and the Ministry aimed at generating creative employment for millions of Nigerian youths.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to seal the partnership was signed on Monday, September 13, 2021 in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The initiative was unveiled under Konga Jobs (KJ), a youth empowerment and job creation scheme of the Konga Group.

Specifically, the partnership will see Konga deploy its world-class assets, huge resources and cutting-edge technology backbone, while also placing its growing list of thriving subsidiaries across multiple verticals at the disposal of Nigerian youths who are desirous of an opportunity to earn a meaningful living and create wealth.

Konga says the scheme is targeted at the employed, unemployed and under-employed Nigerian youths across board.

Present during the signing ceremony was the Minister, Hon. Sunday Dare; the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Youths and Sports, Mr. Nebeolisa Anako; Chairman, Konga Group, Leo Stan Ekeh; Co-CEO, Konga Group, Nick Imudia; VP, KongaPay, Isa Aliyushata, as well as other Management staff of Konga and senior officials of the Ministry.

‘‘We at the Ministry of Youths and Sports are of the view that public-private partnerships remain the way forward when it comes to the onerous task of creating opportunities for our youths. This belief has come to the fore with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic and has also been reinforced by a recent World Bank report.

‘‘We are delighted to have a technology-driven partner such as Konga partnering with us on this programme. Also, we are confident that through this MoU which we have signed today, we will be re-writing the narrative for millions of Nigerian youths who are the beneficiaries of this project.’’

While lauding the Ministry for its proactive zeal in closing the partnership, Mr. Ekeh noted that since its acquisition nearly three years ago, Konga, which pioneered the martketplace structure in Africa in addition to a long list of innovative strategies, has grown immensely beyond expectations of all e-commerce watchers, with the company becoming arguably Africa’s biggest Composite e-commerce platform and the first to hit profitability on the continent.

‘‘Konga is driven by youths. This shows our youths have the capacity to deliver world-class corporates, even with all structural challenges confronting us in the country.’’

Ekeh added that the time is right for Nigerian youths to use their intellectual capital and digital skills to defend the nation and become global citizens.

He encouraged Nigerian youths to alter their destinies, while also stressing that their passion in this century must pay their bills.

Also speaking at the event, Nick Imudia, Co-CEO, Konga Group, affirmed that the partnership will afford Konga a chance to create millionaires across Nigeria within a short space of time.

‘‘Konga today provides employment directly and indirectly through partnerships for over 250,000 Nigerians. Through this partnership, we are looking to not only offer more hardworking and ambitious Nigerian youths a chance to earn good money and create wealth; we are also keen to create millionaires who will become their own bosses and employ others. In addition to opportunities which abound in joining our fast growing database of Konga affiliates and merchants, many more deserving and outstanding youths will also get job opportunities across the multiple entities within the Konga Group.

‘‘We are currently conducting a pilot with the Ministry of Youths and Sports and have taken on board about 350 youths already, many of whom are doing very well. The plan is to have at least one Konga agent in every kindred in Nigeria. But it is pertinent to state that we are also extending our reach across Africa in line with our expansion plans as our target by 2025 is to create jobs for over 500,000 Nigerian youths and over 500,000 for other African youths.

‘‘This is the only way we can rate our success on the African Continent,’’ he disclosed.

The event, which was held within the Ministry’s conference room at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, also witnessed a tour of the massive facilities within the premises.

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TECH DIGEST – The impact of the global pandemic has been devastating for many industries, and in particular for retail. During the height of the pandemic, many non-essential retailers were forced to close their doors for lengthy period, suffering huge losses and losing huge numbers of employees. This affected not only the businesses themselves but also those working there, which has had a huge impact on the unemployment rate.

The one silver lining for retail businesses has been the availability of online retail and e-commerce capabilities.Statistics show that online shopping has become extremely popular over recent years, and this is something that retail businesses were able to tap into over the past year and the regular closures of brick-and-mortar establishments.

Online Shopping Kept Retail Businesses Afloat

Some businesses – both large and small were unable to survive the challenges of the pandemic. However, there are others that managed to stay afloat as a result of online shopping and digital technology. From supermarkets and clothing retailers to entertainment and electrical ones, all sorts of companies within the retail industry have been reliant on online technology during the past year.

Some of the retail sectors that have been able to use online technology to weather the storm of the pandemic are:

Supermarkets

Many supermarkets used the internet to offer promotions and deals to shoppers with events such asMorrison’s sales and promotions. By offering promotions online, these businesses have been able to benefit from both the popularity of online shopping and the ability to entice shoppers away from rivals by offering better deals. With so many people eager to save money during the pandemic, special offers and promotions from supermarkets have proven extremely popular.

Tech Retailers

Many other businesses have also benefitted from offering online sales and promotions during the pandemic such as tech retailers. For instance, retailers such as Konga have used online technology to provide access to great deals for consumers. With more people than ever going online to shop for these types of products since the outbreak of the pandemic, tech retail businesses quickly realised that this was the ideal way to bring new customers on board with exciting offers and deals. In addition, it enables them to continue conducting business even while their physical locations were forced to close due to the lockdown and social distancing.

Fashion Retailers

Another sector to suffer due to the closure of physical locations during the pandemic was the retail sector. However, many have been able to stay afloat by focusing on online sales and promotions to attract new customers and hold on to existing ones. Retailers like Next have been able to continue making sales over the past year despite their physical stores closing. They have boosted sales by offering great deals and promotions as well as convenient delivery and free exchanges to customers.

These are some of the industries that have been impacted by the global pandemic but have been able to turn to digital technology to help them to stay afloat.

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