Afropolitan

Quote:
“I often say to people that you want to be careful how you challenge yourself. You don't want to change too many things at once when changing a job.”

Today’s episode features Adia Sowho, the CMO of MTN Nigeria, and also the first woman to occupy that position.

“I'm not a classic CMO, but interestingly, I think I'm the CMO the tech company needs. I hope to try to, from my role, reconnect MTN to that deeper purpose and start taking the conversation forward. What happens beyond connectivity? How do we make MTN a part of the next bunch of unicorn stories?”

Starting with her first degree in Electrical Engineering, Adia’s career has cut across technology, telecommunications, and finance.

Adia has been referred to as the Sheryl Sandberg of the startup ecosystem and later as the Olivia Pope of the Nigerian tech ecosystem.

Listen and learn how Adia built her track record of creating impactful work in her positions.

Adia’s Reading List
https://www.amazon.com/Sovereign-Individual-James-Dale-Davidson-ebook/dp/B00AK9IXXM-The Sovereign Individual by James Dale Davidson and Lord William Rees-Mogg
https://www.amazon.com/Formula-Universal-Laws-Success-ebook/dp/B07B863X6B/- The Formula by Albert-László Barabási



Show Notes:
03:42 Adia talks about her role as the CMO of MTN Nigeria?

07:03 Adia explains MTN’s position in the tech space.

12:02 How digital finance services help build legacy and trust.

16:32 On corporate companies versus startups.

21:44 Why founders need structure in their companies.

24:37 The turnaround process of Thrive Agric.

29:46 How to navigate intergenerational spaces.

35:56 Building synergy between fintechs, banks and telcos.

39:36 How managing her reputation and making relationship investments have paid off.


The Afropolitan Podcast is hosted by Eche Emole, co-founder of Afropolitan.
Listen and subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Jamit, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Want to learn more about Afropolitan?

Twitter - https://twitter.com/afropolitan
Website - https://www.afropolitan.io/

Afropolitan is creating a digital nation to enable Africans and the diaspora to build abundant lives. Our history as Africans is one of abundance. Systemic oppression has limited our progress, and being Black is associated with scarcity. It is time to reclaim our abundance.

Our knowledge and history have been passed down in Africa through oral tradition. That oral tradition continues till this day, but today we call it podcasting. We seek to preserve our history, achievements, and knowledge for today and the future.

This episode features Eche Emole and Chika Uwazie, co-founders of Afropolitan, a digital nation that enables Africans and the diaspora to build abundant lives.

Eche is the co-founder of Afropolitan, a network comprising the best that Africa and the diaspora offer across art, finance, tech, and media. Eche is a former executive at Flutterwave Inc., a payment technology company focused on helping banks and businesses provide seamless and secure payment experiences for their customers in Africa and globally. Eche has 10 years of experience building communities across the African Diaspora.

Chika is co-founder of Afropolitan. A seasoned HR professional with multiple successful companies under her belt. Born and raised in America, Chika moved back to Nigeria to run Talentbase, a human resource and payroll software company. Chika is passionate about helping export exceptional African talent to the world.

The Afropolitan Manifesto: https://afropolitan.mirror.xyz
How to Start a Country by Balaji Srinivasan - https://1729.com/how-to-start-a-new-country

Eche’s reading list
Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
The Almanack of Naval Ravikan by Eric Jorgenson
The Way of the Superior Man by David Deida
How to start a new country by Balaji Srinivasan

Chika’s reading list
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert kiyosaki
The Psychology of money by Morgan Housel
The Art of Seduction by Robert Greene



Show Notes
10:15 Introduction of co founders.
13:15 Birth and transition of Afropolitan.
18:09 Afropolitan mission and why it's personal.
36:00 How to execute the Afropolitan mission.
46:41 Experience with the fundraising process.
50:37 Advice to founders trying to raise capital.
55:47 Most significant encounter with failure and lessons learned.
1:14:48 What does being Afropolitan mean?
1:18:22 Last words.


The Afropolitan Podcast is hosted by Eche Emole, co-founder of Afropolitan.
Listen and subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Jamit, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Want to learn more about Afropolitan?

Twitter - https://twitter.com/afropolitan
Website - https://www.afropolitan.io/
Afropolitan Community - https://linktr.ee/afropolitangroup

Hi I'm Eche, co-founder of Afropolitan and host of the Afropolitan Podcast, In this new season I’m excited to share what we’ve been up to.

Afropolitan is creating a digital nation to enable Africans and the diaspora to build abundant lives. Our history as Africans is one of abundance. Systemic oppression has limited our progress and being Black is associated with scarcity. It is time to reclaim our abundance.

In Africa, our knowledge and history has been passed down through oral tradition. That oral tradition continues till this day, but today we call it podcasting.

We seek to preserve our history, achievements and knowledge not just for today, but for the future.

Listen to season two of the Afropolitan podcast, where we extract the blueprints of fearlessness, innovation and progress from Afropolitan citizens who are building the future of a bold and progressive nation.

​​Join the network of abundance → https://linktr.ee/afropolitangroup
Afropolitan Website → https://www.afropolitan.io/

Today we chat with Fola Olatunji David, the co-founder of Kickoff Africa; a startup focused on investing in startups, enabling quick turnaround time with regards to decision making for startups and connecting experts to startups and also offers training in select fields needed to grow a startup.

In this episode, he shares his story about his foray into tech and how his experience and extensive knowledge of
Sports betting
Venture Capitalism and
Product Marketing has helped him to understand African users and become a better consultant for startups.

In this episode, our guest is Tobenna Arodiogbu. He is the Co-founder and CEO of CloudTrucks.

His interest in the trucking business led him to found Scotty Labs, a startup that allows users to remotely control autonomous vehicle. He currently runs CloudTrucks a startup that enables truckers get more revenue, better cash flow and reduces their cost of operation.

Listen to Tobenna as he shares his story about his formative days in the world of economics and how the knowledge helped him transition to the world of tech.

In this episode, our guest is Sadiq Onifade popularly known as Wurld.

He is a Nigerian singer and songwriter who has collaborated with artists such as Akon, Mario, Timbaland; award-winning producer Sarz and electronic dance music DJ Major Lazer.

Listen to Wurld as he shares his story of his early days as a singer and songwriter navigating the music industry in Atlanta and Africa; his favorite artist to record with and his plans for the future.

Episode 1 of the bonus episodes of the Afropolitan Podcast.

In this episode, our guest is Odun Ewenyi. She is the Co-founder and Chief Operations Officer of Piggyvest and the co-founder of Wine and Whine and Feminist Coalition.

Listen to Odun as she shares her story about her entrepreneurial journey into Fintech, the birth and sustenance of Piggyvest and the active role played during the October Protest.

Iyinoluwa Aboyeji
Today, we chat with Iyinoluwa Samuel Aboyeji, a Nigerian entrepreneur. He is a co-founder of the tech companies, Andela and Flutterwave.
He is also the general partner and co-founder of Future Africa, a platform that provides capital, coaching, and community for mission-driven innovators.

In this episode, Iyin demystifies the process of building a start-up, knowing when to step back, and staying driven.

Today, we chat with Affiong Williams also known as Affisuparstar, the CEO/ Founder of ReelFruit the largest fruit processing, packaging and marketing company in Nigeria. The company, founded in 2012, retails a range of dried fruit and nut snacks through a variety of channels including over 450 Supermarkets, Airlines, Schools, Hotels, and concluding export sales via Amazon.com ReelFruit is an award-winning brand, winning both an international Women In Business Competition in the Netherlands. She has also been recognized by Forbes Magazine as one of the most promising ’30 under 30′ entrepreneurs in 2015. Affiong is passionate about agribusiness and looking at innovative, market-driven solutions to add value to local produce given Nigeria’s unique agricultural landscape.

In this episode, Affi tells us the story of her journey, her evolution and reinvention.

Now let’s head over to Affi.

Today we chat with Obi Asika a Nigerian creative industries entrepreneur. He is known for his involvement in the growth of Nigeria’s music industry, as the founder and CEO of Storm 360 - an indigenous music label that spawned entertainers including Naeto C, Ikechukwu, Sasha P, General Pype, L.O.S., Ms. Jaie, Tosin Martins, and Yung 6ix.
He is a founding partner of Dragon Africa - a Strategic Communications Firm based in London, Lagos, and Accra, and is the Chairman of OutSource Media, a leading communications and content production company. Asika also sits on the board of the Collecting Society of Nigeria (COSON)., and is a prominent figure in laying the infrastructure for the growth and development of the media & entertainment industry.
In this episode, Obi tells us the story of his journey, his evolution, and his reinvention.
Now let’s head over to Obi.