How Ogedegbe fills guidance gap for Africans seeking study abroad

 

 

 

As more Africans explore opportunities to study and build careers overseas, the need for credible guidance has never been greater.

Harold Ogedegbe, the founder of GrandRoyal Travel and GrandRoyal Visa AI, emerges as one of the experts bridging that gap, providing support that simplifies the journey from application to departure and making international education and travel more accessible.

Harold’s personal experience inspired him to enter the business. “When I applied to study in Germany in 2019, I spent months gathering and paying for documents that were not even required because of conflicting information.

“Afterwards, I waited for months before receiving my visa; meanwhile, I realised many qualified students were struggling because they lacked access to clear and reliable guidance,” he said.

GrandRoyal Travel is a travel tech company that Harold started in 2021 to help Africans study, travel, and relocate abroad with greater confidence.

Unlike many startups that begin with external funding, Harold bootstrapped his business from his personal savings while working part-time in Germany.

“The initial investment was modest and covered domain registration, hosting, software subscriptions, and essential tools.

“As the platform has grown, I have reinvested into improving it rather than seeking outside investment, which has let me keep full control over the vision,” he explained.

According to the tech expert, “Instead of asking applicants to search through dozens of websites, YouTube videos, embassy pages, and social media groups, we bring everything into one intelligent platform that guides users from the moment they decide to study abroad until

Though Nigeria is still grappling with tech evolution, Harold explained that his business has evolved significantly.

“We started primarily as a travel blog focused on practical travel advice. Today we have expanded into education technology by building AI-powered tools that simplify visa applications and relocation planning.

“Our audience has grown through organic content, search engines, and social media, and we have built trust by providing information people can actually use,” he said.

Besides, he emphasised that Nigeria presents both real challenges and enormous opportunities.

“The entrepreneurial energy here is remarkable, despite economic pressure. In my space specifically, the opportunity is huge, and the numbers prove it. Africans lost around $67.5 million in rejected Schengen visa fees in 2024 alone, and Nigerian applicants face rejection rates near 46 percent, against a global average of about 18 percent.

“That means thousands of capable Nigerians are being filtered out, not because they cannot study or travel abroad, but because they lack clear guidance and proper preparation. That gap is exactly the opportunity,” he said.

Speaking about what makes GrandRoyal Visa AI different from its competitors, Harold said most websites simply provide information, without an intelligent support system.

“We’re building an intelligent decision-support platform. Rather than asking users to search through hundreds of articles, GrandRoyal Visa AI understands their individual situation and gives personalised guidance.

“Someone just beginning to explore studying in Germany needs very different information from someone who already has admission or is preparing for a visa interview, and the platform adapts to those stages,” he explained.

To survive the inflation, he said the firm relies on digital tools that improve productivity while keeping costs low and grows through organic search and social media instead of expensive paid advertising.

His long-term vision is to grow GrandRoyal Visa AI into a complete AI-powered travel companion for international mobility. “Germany is our current focus, but the plan is to expand support to other major study and relocation destinations such as Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland, and France, among others,” he said.

Moreover, he wants GrandRoyal to become one of Africa’s most trusted platforms for studying, travelling, and relocating abroad, a single ecosystem where someone can plan an entire international journey, from choosing a country and securing admission to obtaining a visa, settling in successfully, and building a career abroad.

Meanwhile, he said funding is one of his biggest challenges. Navigating the murky waters of funding, Harold explained that he has learned to stay focused on long-term goals rather than short-term setbacks.