Six Nigerians have been confirmed as speakers at the Forbes Under 30 Summit Africa in May.
The summit, set to take place in Botswana for 4 days
starting May 5, will return to the country’s capital city for a third
consecutive year. The event, themed “The Engine of Africa’s Economic Growth:
Investment & Entrepreneurship,” features a lineup of 27 entrepreneurs,
entertainers and leaders from across Africa, including 6 from Nigeria.
Nigerians confirmed to appear at the summit include Omah
Lay, Kennedy Ekezie, Bola Adegbulu, Ben Amadasun, Peace Itimi and Tia Adeola
Kennedy Ekezie
Ekezie was listed under the Forbes 30 Under 30 Africa for
2024. The 26 year old who hails from Imo state in Eastern Nigeria is the
Founder and CEO of Kippa, a payments and accounting platform serving 500,000+
small businesses in Nigeria, which has raised $10 million from global
investors.
Ekezie spent his formative years in Lagos before his family
relocated to Calabar. It was in the University of Calabar that he got his first
degree. He also holds a diploma in Leading Change from the University of
Cambridge.
Before Kippa, Kennedy worked at Tiktok in Beijing, heading
user acquisition for its expansion to Africa. He won a Yenching Scholarship
(Chinese Rhodes Scholarship) and was the highest-ranked competitive debater in
Nigeria for two years.
At the age of 16, while still a student, Ekezie founded the
Calabar Youths Council for Women’s Rights, focused on expanding access to
education for women in Nigeria, particularly addressing the issue of female
genital mutilation.
His work won the Queen’s Young Leader Award from Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II and was awarded the Young African Leaders Fellowship from
President Barack Obama.
Stanley Omah Didia (Omah Lay)
Omah Lay is a singer and producer from Port Hacourt in
Nigeria. The 25 year old was born to deep musical roots. His grandfather was a
percussionist for legendary Highlife singer Celestine Ukwu, and his father was
a drummer.
Omah Lay’s brand of Afro-fusion pulls from his deep personal
history with West Africa’s percussion-heavy highlife genre, as well as his
enthusiasm for the popular sounds of his generation, from classic rap to the
Afro-beats empire flourishing in his home base of Lagos.
He released his major label debut album Boy Alone in 2022
which saw him sell out his second US headlining tour. Previously he released
his two inventive EPs in 2020, Get Layd and What Have We Done.
Bola Adegbulu
Adegbulu is an exited AI entrepreneur and Principal Investor
at AI Fund, a Silicon Valley-based VC firm founded by Andrew Ng, a global
renowned leader in AI and is on the Time100 list of the most influential people
in AI.
Bola started as an engineer at General Electric, working on
propulsion systems. His entrepreneurial spirit led him to bootstrap his own
company, AutoMosys, which provided automotive diagnostics and repair cost
estimates.
Later, he founded Predina Tech Limited, using AI to predict
traffic accidents. The company’s success caught the attention of Zego, Europe’s
first insurtech unicorn, which acquired Predina Tech.
As an Entrepreneur In Residence at Cisco, He then advised
and incubated AI ventures at Cisco with $100 million revenue potential. In
2019, Bola was recognized by Forbes in their “30 Under 30” list for his
achievements in the tech industry.
Ben Amadasun
Amadasun is the Director of Content for Middle East and
Africa at Netflix, the world’s leading internet entertainment service, where he
nurtures key partnerships and drives the content strategy across Africa and the
Middle East to support Netflix’s membership growth and streaming rates on the
continent.
Amadasun leads his team of content executives to develop and
source local programming that is relevant and for the region and acquiring
global rights to shows and movies from across the African continent.
With over 20 years of experience in business strategy, consulting, and investment banking, Amadasun has held strategic roles across the African continent. Before joining Netflix, he served as the Senior Vice President and CEO of Econet’s Kwese Free TV, working across various Sub-Saharan African countries. Additionally, he led Modern Times Group’s TV1 in Tanzania as CEO and Head of Scripted Development.
Peace Itimi
Peace Itimi is a Nigerian writer, growth marketer, and
digital expert. The 29 year old indigene of Benin City has spent 8 years
leading growth and digital marketing initiatives for companies building for
Africa and emerging markets.
After co-founding René Digital Hub, Itimi excelled as a
Google student smbassador, AdWords certified Digital Marketer, and social media
strategis working with brands lik Korapay, Webcouper, and others.
Beyond marketing, Itimi shares her stories on Youtube. Her
channel features business insights, life lessons, and “Founders Connect” – a
series spotlighting African entrepreneurs—alongside “How I The Series,” which
delves into personal growth narratives.
As an inspirational blogger, Peace authored the e-book
ADWORDS AND ADSENSE FOR BLOGGERS. She has also trained over 6000 professionals,
students, and business owners across platforms like Google Digital Skills and
Facebook for Creators. She mentors startups at Google’s Startups Accelerator
Africa and has been an angel investor for over ten startups.
Tia Adeola
Tia Adeola is the founder and designer behind her
self-titled fashion brand that has made waves in the industry. Born in Nigeria,
raised in London, and now based in New York, Adeola started her clothing line
in her dorm room in 2016.
Her brand, Slashed by Tia, has garnered attention for its
unique aesthetic. Herer clothing has been worn by celebrities including Gigi
Hadid, SZA, Dua Lipa, and more. She solidified the brand’s position in the
luxury fashion space after her first official runway show at NYFW in 2020. The
show become one of the breakout shows of the week, garnering press from Vogue,
Elle, CNN, and many more.
In November of 2023, Tia took the runway to Nigeria where
she showcased her Resort 23 collection. In the fall of 2020, Tia produced her
first fashion film, titled “Black is Beautiful,” which was nominated in five
categories at the 2021 International Fashion Film Awards. Tia has recently been
named one of Bloomberg’s “Ones to Watch” and was featured on the Forbes 30
Under 30 list.
Previous editions of the summit have featured other
successful Nigerian entrepreneurs, innovators and entertainers including Davido
and other Afrobeats artistes.
The annual summit, which converges government officials,
venture capitalists, CEOs and celebrities will focus on spotlighting Africa’s
greatest business stories and biggest opportunities, and on the investors and
founders who are forging new paths forward.
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