AFRI5 - The e-Commerce for Africa & the Future of Logistics

In the last three decades, we have been able to innovate new technologies that has help bridged the gap between consumers and manufacturers. In the same time, we have observed an ever growing consumer culture and with it a rising need for more efficient means of transporting goods from manufacturers to the end-user. As our needs grow in size, so do the size of the product delivery vehicles, as do the cost of service delivery offered by the logistics companies.

We have developed a simple solutions to get everyone involve in the business of logistics, significantly reduce the cost of service delivery for small and medium scale businesses, and reduce global CO2 emissions. We have recognized a problem and have come up with an ingenious solution to tackle this problem.

• To create a community based platform that prioritizes made in Africa goods and services, and the needs of small and medium scale enterprises.
• To build a network of everyday people who will serve as a conduit in the large supply chain.
• To encourage and promote the use of African made in Africa products, thereby reducing the number of cargo deliveries that come into Africa, which in turn reduces CO2 emissions.
• To build a smart and efficient system that will serve the community through the collecting and sharing of information.
• The United States alone sells over $700 million worth of used clothing to Africa, we can reduce our dependence on imported used clothing by creating and promoting locally made ones.
• By creating community that allows every individual to serve as a logistics agent, we would’ve built a thriving local economy.

The goal of the e-commerce is to prioritize small and medium scale enterprises, whose products and services are made in Africa. While the logistics division will be geared towards serving the needs of all small and medium scale businesses in Africa, certain incentives will be put in place to nurture and build a manufacturing and production culture, rather than a the almost complete dependence on importation.

We recognize the importance of adapting an idea to work seamlessly in most environments, and we are exploring the possibility of replicating the business model in other growing economies outside Africa.

Our solution is a simple but innovative one. We are creating an e-commerce platform which will promote to Local manufacturers, producers, farmers and other small businesses in Africa.

We are changing the way we handle logistics by putting the power of delivery into the hands of everyday users, this allows us to cut down the cost of delivering products from businesses to customers.

By involving everyone in the delivery process, we will reduce the need to use number of vehicles needed on the road to service an ever growing logistics industry, we will also be creating an interconnected community that is self-sustainable. The long term effects will be seen in the growth of each local economy, and the healthy non-toxic environment.

You place an order online, with your address registered to the database, the app automatically create a chain link of 2-5 everyday people who will be involved in the delivery of said package from point A to point B. This will mean more people who drive, have an extra incentive beyond the liability of owning a car, a young teenager on a bicycle could pick up the package the rest of the way into his neighborhood.

We are creating a platform that brings people closer together through e-commerce and logistics.

The e-commerce will exclusively sell made in Africa Products which promotes more innovation and economic growth within each respective region.THe

e-Commerce isn't a new technology, Alibaba is an example of a company that exclusively sells Chinese products to china and the rest of the world. Obviously their business model has been successful due to the advanced manufacturing processes they have developed. They also have a large population to back it up.

Uber is a company that has succeeded in transporting people from place to place without owning the vehicles. Our goal is to replicate the Uber model with little changes to account for geographic, environmental and cultural factors.

We will be deploying mobile applications for users, we are devising a tracking system to analyze movements for better service delivery. We will be introducing electronic vehicles in for of tricycles and bicycles for neighborhood deliveries.

Our e-commerce platform will

Youth unemployment is at an all time low, most youths are looking into business as a means of survival. As soon as they startup a business, they begin to encounter constraints that are financially impossible for them to address, and so they bend to the norms of running a business without proper support systems.

We conducted a controlled simple controlled survey using the most basic social media tools (Whatsapps). We asked small businesses to highlight what challenges they face on a daily bases, Logistical support ranked second to the lack of a platform to sell their products.

We also asked if they will pay a certain amount to get their products sold and delivered on our platform, 98% of small business owners considered it to be a great deal.

To answer your question, we expect our solution to address the problems we are facing because we are also business owners who have recognized the importance of community in the growth of any economy.

We have been building and training a team of young graduates who are desperate to join the community to build a sustainable platform for the future of our country and continent.

We know our environment better than any foreign companies who often times focus on the bottom line which is the money, we want to build a future of Africans who are proud to innovate and use made in Africa products and services.

We are in the concept phase, we are mostly conducting surveys to understand the needs of our community. Our plan is to roll out a test pilot with 50-100 businesses within the first 3 month, to better understand the complexities in real-time.

We plan to plan to effectively service a thousand businesses in Africa within the first year.

Our projections in five years puts us at around 2 million active users for our e-commerce platform, and five hundred thousand businesses

Launch the logistics company along side the e-commerce for Africa, with whatever available resource we have at our disposal.

To create a network of SMEs that partner with each other to scale up the manufacturing and production of goods and services.

To promote the use of made in Africa products and services.

To provide the relevant technological skill and infrastructure that caters to our specific needs.

In developed economies, thousands of startups launch and fail because of easy access to funding, and of course failure isn't frowned upon as the case may be in Africa. Most of the investors are only interested in the success and often times desire a quick money making scheme, rather than a long term project that will better the lives of everyone.

At least 500,000 Nigerians graduate from universities every year, most of whom lack the basic skills needed in a technological driven work environment. Cultivating a skilled team is usually the best option when one can not afford to pay and sustain a skilled labor force.

The cultural barriers are overwhelming, however we have seen a rising change through the use of technology, the demand for better services due to a change in demography.

We have trained and are still training a number of young graduates and college students who will be transitioned into the bigger community we are trying to create.

We have tried to create an awareness on the need to learn how to use modern technological tools to serve our everyday needs.

We have contacted the various businesses that are actively involve in manufacturing, to better understand their needs.

We are in the process of downloading various YouTube training resource material, to aid with our training in the areas of Graphics Design, Programming, Web Design and Development, CRM, ERP and more.

In partnership with a Local fabrication company, we have decided to purchase used bicycles and modify them into Cargo delivery Bikes.

We do not have a full or part-time staff for our solution. What we have been able to do is leverage the community of great minds, to brainstorm on how to better deliver and effective solution to most of the problems we currently face. Some of this individuals are young entrepreneurs who understand the importance of creating the platform and sustaining it, and so they contribute their time and chip in wherever needed.

We have identified individuals that are key to the success of this project, we are in the process of training more.

As i mentioned earlier, i do not have a full or part-time team, what i have is a team of selected experts in their various fields, who are ready to get on board as soon as we kick start the project. Some of them contribute their time and resources, towards the eventual launch.

We have a team of legal experts in Tax Law, Human resource management, Corporate Law, Property Law and more.

Kam is a skilled android developer who is currently working on a financial trading system.

Jules is a social media branding and marketing genius, who is currently working and training others in her industry.

Dan is one who understands leadership and is a small business owner.

Rose is a graphic designer who is passionate about digital painting.

Kenneth is a web designer who is currently Learning UI design.

Mercy is a financial management genius, she is learning how to use mobile apps to streamline her work and integrate technology into her everyday workflow.

Hannah is and Electrical Engineer who understands climate change and its effects on our environment.

I am proud of my team and look forward to working with everyone of them.

We have established a business relationship with a local machine fabrication and construction company, to help setup our physical infrastructure.

We are in the process of negotiations with supermarkets, building supplies markets and a number of small businesses to get them on board.

Through one of our partners, we are in the process of securing funding from the Nigerian Bank of Industry.

We are also contacting individual taxi owners and tricycle taxi owners to get them on board.

Farmers especially in rural areas are also part of our partnership program through the Plateau State Farmers association.

Our e-commerce customers are primarily small and medium scale enterprises who are involved in manufacturing, production and service delivery that utilizes locally sourced materials. By partnering with small businesses, we are able to purchase their goods and help promote locally made products.

Our logistics division helps to serve the needs of all of this businesses, through subscription packages, the people involved in the delivery chain is paid each time they have to pick up a package and deliver it from one point to another. This creates a community of where everyone benefits.

According to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics, small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria have contributed about 48% of the national GDP in the last five years. With a total number of about $17.4 million, they account for about 50% of industrial jobs and nearly 90% of the manufacturing sector, in terms of number of enterprises.

We are in a unique position to create a platform for small and medium scale businesses, especially ones who are specialize in manufacturing and production of goods and services, to sell their products.

Our logistics decision not only offers competitive pricing compared to existence companies, we also make a profit and everyone involved in the delivery chain, is paid to do what they already do.

Solve provides us with a platform to meet innovators and industry leaders.

The opportunity to meet investors is also afforded to everyone through Solve.

We get to understand the peculiarities involved in starting up a company from an international perspective.

The networking opportunities that provides an innovative atmosphere to grow our ideas.

The learning opportunities through various Solve partner organizations, to better understand the needs of the world we live in.

Ifixit is a company that provides repair manuals for computers, mobile phones and various home appliances. We believe such a business model could be replicated in Africa to encourage the repair of damaged electronics rather than buying and replacing them with new ones.

We will like to Partner with Companies like Haas to bring in advanced manufacturing equipment to drive the local fabrication companies to the future

Companies like Microsoft with their industry standard Hardware and software, will provide us with the necessary tools to build an efficient workflow and environment for our community.

We will like to Partner with Google and Uber to better understand how their geo-mapping systems work, for better logistical support.

AI has been at the forefront of our project since it's conceptions, although we haven't developed a system, we understand that both e-commerce and logistical support can not work seamlessly without the integration of Artificial Intelligence.

Our plan is to adopt and modify some of the useful open source tools available to us, development and integrate existing ERP systems with AI, from manufacturing to service delivery.

Due to bad roads and traffic, part of our goal is to adapt and modify existing vehicles, i.e motorcycles and bicycles, retrofit them with cargo carriers and convert them to electric vehicles to reduce carbon emission and to encourage a circular economy the promotes the recycling of old bicycles.

We are also partnering with SMEs that specialize in manufacturing and fabrication, to train young engineering students on how to design more efficient vehicles, their by reducing the need for importation.

60%of the businesses that inspired this project are small and medium scale businesses owned by women. A lot of this businesses have reached a point where they can no longer advance further without a platform to promote and provide a sustainable solution to some of their needs. Part of our goal is to provide free training for women in technology and business development strategy, to encourage more women to go into business for themselves.

In anticipation of our this project, we have trained a number of women in the area of financial management using modern digital tools, programming, graphic design, CRM and even basic computer hardware maintenance.

As a technology enthusiasts, one of my major concerns today is the privacy and security of data in a connected world. While their is the need to collect massive amounts of data for effective service delivery, we are setting up legal systems in place, that allows users to hold us accountable for any breach of confidence. The data we collect on a daily basis, will serve as the foundation to better understand the needs of our customers, i.e the businesses, our logistics partners and the e-commerce users.