• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Olayemi Abifarin: Entrepreneur on mission to deepen Nigeria’s broadband penetration

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From closing multi-million naira business deals to finding love, and learning, technology is simply at the heart of humans’ daily life.

With technological advancements over the years bringing everything to anyone anywhere, the world has become a global village heralding innovations daily.

Owing to this, Olayemi Abifarin, chief executive of Telcroft Technologies Limited – a start-up that offers a wide range of telecom transmission equipment, is on a mission to deepen broadband penetration across the country, so every student can easily access the internet.

To achieve this, Olayemi is leveraging on his Africa-wide experience and partnerships to deploy 5G internet connection across campuses for students of higher learning.

The young entrepreneur says he was inspired to establish his business in 2017 to bridge the country’s gap in connecting the unconnected while deepening broadband penetration.

“This is done by partnering and providing innovative and rock-solid technology from the world’s best telecommunications vendors (OEM’s) who do not have a presence in Nigeria,” he says.

Read Also: Nigeria’s broadband penetration recovers first time in 7 months

“The quest to provide access to broadband for the over 200 million people in Nigeria requires the support and strength of partners in technology and expertise which Telcroft offers,” he further says.

“Building on the relationships I have developed in my 14years managing mobile networks and communication service providers across Nigeria and West Africa,” he notes.

According to him, Telcroft has partnered with Siklu Communication – an Israeli telecom vendor that delivers multi-gigabit wireless fiber connectivity and Cambium Networks – an American telecom vendor that provides wireless connectivity globally, to provide solutions for connectivity to telcos as well as offering turnkey campus-wide broadband connectivity in tertiary institutions.

Since starting, Telcroft has carved a niche for itself in the connectivity market by providing solutions to network service providers and has continued to scale its operations.

The tech entrepreneur says his business plans to provide a fully managed campus-wide connectivity for four campuses in the short run and across all campuses nationwide in the long run.

Read Also: Nigeria records 45% in Broadband penetration -FG

Responding to questions on how the deployment would help facilitate learning on campuses, he says the pandemic has made it imperative for schools and higher institutions of learning to switch learning online, and getting Wi-Fi into classrooms is the first step in enabling digital learning.

“Getting Wi-Fi into the classrooms is the first step in enabling digital learning at the school. Without it, using laptops, netbooks or other online learning tools is impossible,” he says.

“Today’s multimedia education environment enables students to reach beyond the classroom, and the entire school campus needs to be connected,” he further says.

He adds that with solutions provided by his organisation through its partnership with Cambium Networks, campuses and schools will be able to easily access smart Wi-Fi.

On why he thinks the country is ready for 5G since it is yet to fully utilize its 3 and 4G, Olayemi says the country’s communication had already signed an agreement with NigcomSat to allow 5G services to ride on its C-band frequency spectrum.

He notes that there is a huge infrastructural deficit in the country which would impede the country’s broadband penetration.

He adds that plans are already ongoing to promote the national average of N145/m ROW costs, provide tax incentives and special waivers to reduce the cost of infrastructure for the private sector.

“The issues with the right-of-way, multiple taxations, and insufficient power among others have to be resolved for a reasonable headway to be made in terms of expansion of the existing 3G & 4G networks, broadband penetration, and offering affordable internet,” he says.

“Nigeria’s economic issues such as inflation, devaluation, and high import duties on telecom equipment have to be resolved,” he states.

“The 5th generation of mobile telecommunication is going to require huge infrastructure investment in Nigeria,” he says.

On strategy his organisation has adopted to survive the Covid-19 pandemic, he says Telcroft was quick to adopt the new normal.

“We have been more opportunistic during the pandemic, adapting to new sets of rules,” he says.

“We also took advantage of the increase in demand for work from home and study from home to sell our inventory of connectivity solutions for connecting homes,” he explains.

In evaluating the country’s tech space, the young entrepreneur says it has experienced a massive transformation, noting that tech start-ups in the country attracted the most venture capital investments into the continent.

He adds that the Nigerian tech space also possesses the most vibrant tech hub across Africa.

He states that most start-ups fail less than five years owing to their inability to have the right requisite business knowledge.

“Ninety percent of start-ups fail because they are mostly started by subject matter experts who are good at what they do but do not have the requisite knowledge of how to run a business,” he says.

You can be an awesome programmer, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to manage a team, find clients and close the sale. If you do not have a means of attracting customers and making sales, your business will fail,” he stresses.

Similarly, he adds that inadequate funding has also made most start-ups fail.

On major hurdles his business has experienced, he says multiple taxations and FX volatility have remained a major challenge limiting his business.

Olayemi urges the government to eliminate multiple taxations in the system, while engaging entrepreneurs in policy formulation.

On advice to other young entrepreneurs, he says “Plan, plan, plan… and plan some more. There is no substitute for a solid business plan. Build a strong team, it is important to recognize the value and experience they can offer for you and your startup.”

“Make the most of networking opportunities in your degree from networking events to industry talks, have a growth strategy, surround yourself with people who share your vision, and be ready for financial challenges,” he advises.

“Humans are generally risk-averse, but part of being an entrepreneur is being willing to take risks and knowing which risks are viable and which aren’t,” he adds.