Dewji, Davido testimonies inspire youth
African youths who attended and followed the just ended Forbes Under 30 Summit Africa have every reason to look forward to a bright future if they could put into practice what they have learnt.
Amongst the great lessons from international speakers was that the youth should think about how they can make money. “If you have Wi-Fi and you are not making money out of it, then it is making money out of you."
Amongst interesting speakers was Africa’s youngest billionaire, a Tanzanian national, Mohammed Dewji, President of MeTL Group, whose story on how he was able to build a fortune after his graduation is a marvel to listen to.
Equally impressive was that of American-born Nigerian singer and songwriter, David Adedeji Adeleke, best known as Davido who too rose to stardom and today his net worth is in millions. Interestingly, both have a rich United States background, having lived and studied there before they decided to return back to their motherland.
Dewji, who is also a legislator in his country told the Forbes Under 30 Summit audience that he ran for office in order to develop his community. Further that, “It was either I remain in USA or return to Africa because Africa at that time had many challenges, while the US was advanced and had a bigger market." However, it was his research that influenced his decision to return to Africa where he saw the need for value chain development, as well as manufacturing. He now runs a big textile company.
He told his audience that while in the US, he realised that Tanzania and the entire East African countries produced cotton, but they imported textile from China. His textile industry has a labour force of 4 000 people, and to that he said, “We have all the advantages to compete against China.” Further that his company could wrap the world three times with the textile that they produce.
The MeTL Group also has an agriculture business and is the world’s largest producer of twins and ropes, sisal yarns, for their local and export markets. Over and above that, the company makes sisal bags which are used for packaging food materials like coffee, beans, cocoa and maize and the bags are exported to numerous countries in Asia, Europe and other East African countries.
In addition, 48 year-old Dewji said in his area, and over 10 years, the number of secondary schools increased from just two to 22 and through his philanthropy organisation, he offered scholarships to university students. His future plan is to increase the country’s accessibility to portable water to 100 per cent in the next five to 10 years.
Singer and songwriter, Davido - whose latest album, Timeless, is rated second on the Billboard - took to the podium, cheered by the entire fully packed hall before sharing with the delegates valuable insights into the music industry and what it takes to succeed as a young artist in today’s world.
He said the discussion at the summit provided an opportunity for the world’s most elite young game-changers to learn how he was able to turn into a “successful musician and entrepreneur through the Afro beat genre."
Davido, born November 1992 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA and raised in Lagos, Nigeria, made his musical debut as a member of the KB international group, and established himself as one of the internationally recognised kings of Afro beat.
His global fame and followership enabled him to get paid over US$1million for his World Cup draw performance in the Qatar. Interestingly, he describes his rise to stardom as a miracle especially considering his break into the music scene.
Davido, who through his influence on the social media helped Afro beat to penetrate the market said a lot has changed especially in the USA, stating that there was a time when people did not know anything about Africa.
In addition, Davido said the whole dynamics of music production had changed due to advances in technology, one could produce a song and be a star on Tik Tok the next day, and this is why it was important for one to be extremely creative. Interestingly, the man who rakes millions in the music industry said he was not in it just for the money. But, “I am marketing the culture."
In his initial stages of musical journey, he worked with others, but as time went on, he realised he could also sing and recorded his first song which people liked. By his confession: “In those days social media did not exist and I was still a student."
At the time, he recorded a song on Friday and on Monday when he returned to school, everyone would cheer him. This influenced his decision to quit college to focus on his music, something which did not please his father - also a successful businessman who believes in education.
Davido regards his fellow Nigerian and Africa’s richest man Aliko Dankote as his Godfather and credits him for teaching him the art of business.
“He taught me everything I know in business including being disciplined. He said each time when he meets Dankote, he always asks, "how much did you save?"