TLcom appoints Omobola Johnson as Lead Partner in West Africa

Omobola Johnson

Wow! Nigerian women are truly doing good for themselves and sure better days lies ahead for our beautiful Naija women..Big congrats to Omobola Johnson, 52, a Nigerian technocrat and Minister of Communication Technology in the cabinet of former President Goodluck Jonathan, who has been appointed by London-based venture capital firm, TLcom as lead partner of its West Africa operations.

The company, which opened its first Africa office in Nairobi two years ago, is ramping up its investment in African start-ups through its TLcom TIDE (Technology and Innovation for Developing Economies) Africa Fund which could see it raise as much as $100 million.

The focus of the investments, which could range from $500,000 to $10 million, will be on e-commerce, energy, health and education technology startups which have a potential for fast growth. In Johnson, TLcom have a partner with a track record and understanding of the tech space in the region.

Maurizio Caio, TLcom founder, says the focus for the Africa Fund will immediately be on start-ups with high returns potential. “For this cycle we need to be very merciless in focusing on the highest potential entrepreneurs—to make a point and to demonstrate that high returns are possible.”

TLcom’s aggressive expansion in search of more tech opportunities in Africa could be a signal fears of investing in African tech companies and achieving profitable exits is abating. Caio says the bigger issue is identifying start-ups with real potential. “If you have a good company, you can exit. It is a not an exit problem—it is a quality of company problem.”

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@OmobolaJohnson