13/08/2026
Last Saturday, our founder represented Kada SMEs Hub at the invitation of Siyarwa, Zaria, an e-commerce platform founded by Ajee Alfa , to speak on “SMEs Digitalisation and the Future of E-Commerce in Northern Nigeria.”
Beyond digital marketing, social commerce, reputation management and scaling, one message I tried to emphasise was the importance of continuous training and retraining for SMEs. Technology and the way people do business are changing very fast. What worked yesterday may not be enough tomorrow.
I also raised a concern about Zaria. From some of the SME workshops where I have been invited to speak, the turnout has sometimes been discouraging. For a city with our population, history, businesses and entrepreneurial potential, I believe we are still behind when it comes to taking advantage of opportunities for business training and retraining. We need to do more.
One interesting part of the event was meeting Dr Kabiru Ishaq, Director of Communications at SINTS, another e-commerce platform. The last time we interacted that much was sometime in the late 1990s when we travelled to Birnin Gwari for a Musabaqa (Qur’anic Recitation competition). Something went wrong at the secondary school where we were camped, and we almost got beaten. We eventually had to seek accommodation at the Emir of Birnin Gwari’s palace. 😂
Kabiru didn’t recognise me immediately, but the moment I mentioned Birnin Gwari, the memories came back. What happened that time wasn’t funny at all. 😂
It was also good seeing Dr Kiru and Abdulkadir Imam at the event.
My appreciation to Alfa, the Siyarwa team, the SINTS team, and everyone who participated. More importantly, I hope we continue to create these opportunities and that our SMEs take advantage of them. Digitalisation is moving fast, and we cannot afford to be left behind.
