Africa faces critical challenges for digital development, including underdeveloped digital infrastructure, lack of accessible, and inadequate skills for digitally enabled industries, among others.
Vincent Didanda, a digital strategist, was inspired to co-found FiguresHub Africa, a virtual learning and training platform offering industry-relevant courses such as Cybersecurity and Data Analytics, among others, aimed to empower individuals with the skills required for today’s digital economy.
He started the company in 2022 with an initial capital of $100,000, which was self-funded with contributions from their board of advisors.
“We were driven by a mission to bridge the digital divide in Africa, there are brilliant, capable individuals who simply haven’t had the opportunity to acquire the right digital skills.
“The lack of access to quality, practical, and affordable tech education means many young people get left behind. That’s what inspired us to launch FiguresHub Africa,” he said.
Didanda emphasised that seeing the uneven playing field in the continent, and the fact that technology could help level it; his team decided to create a platform that is not just about training but about empowering people to transform their lives, families, and eventually, communities.
“Beyond personal passion, we were motivated by the clear skills gap in Nigeria’s workforce, especially in digital roles. We believe that by democratising access to top-tier education, we can unlock untapped talent and build a stronger economy,” he stressed.
Didanda explained that the firm is on a steady upward path. “We have trained hundreds of learners so far, and our goal is to train at least 10,000 Nigerians within two years, either through scholarships or paid enrollment.
“The progress is good, though we are always pushing to accelerate our impact, we know growth isn’t just about numbers; it’s about recognition. We’re deliberate about improving our brand visibility in the digital education and tech space,” he stressed.
FiguresHub Africa aims to ensure the continent becomes a household name associated with career transformation through consistent messaging, strategic partnerships, media engagement, and thought leadership.
Though there are many firms in the digital space, FiguresHub has the edge in that it starts with beginners and support them all the way until they are job-ready.
“We guide them from “zero to career-ready,” including mentorship, portfolio building, and job placement support, while many platforms stop at course delivery.
“We help our learners navigate the job market with confidence, offering soft skills training, career coaching, LinkedIn profile optimisation, internship placements, and direct links to job opportunities,” Didanda said.
Despite having 50 dedicated professionals across operations, instruction, support, and strategy, the firm is currently expanding through ‘FiguresHub PRO’, which is designed specifically for professionals in the government and corporate sectors.
“We provide high-level, industry-aligned training such as strategic leadership, compliance, and data analytics for decision-making. We’re also scaling Kstudy Learning, designed for children aged 5–17.
“Kstudy provides engaging, culturally relevant learning experiences in coding, STEM, Nigerian languages, and more. It’s about planting seeds early so the next generation isn’t just tech consumers, but creators too,” he said.
Besides, the firm plans to scale across other African countries and deepen its presence in Nigeria; hence, are investing in building more enterprise training partnerships; working directly with companies to upskill their teams and tailor content to their unique needs.
To survive the accelerating inflation, the firm embraced a multi-pronged approach, such as streamlining its operations by leveraging a hybrid work model; balancing remote and onsite roles to minimise overhead costs.
Didanda describes Nigeria’s digital education space as growing rapidly, citing the large youth population as a tremendous potential. He said most of the youth are looking for affordable, flexible, and practical ways to learn new skills.
“The biggest opportunities lie in bridging the skills-to-employment gap, especially with job-ready courses in tech,” he noted.
However, he said hiring the right team is the greatest challenge facing the business; as managing a hybrid team at some remote, some-on-site, comes with communication and productivity challenges.
To navigate the challenges, Didanda said the firm is offering free courses, running scholarship programmes, and working with professional HR firms to recruit not just based on qualifications but character and passion.
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