- The richest man in China, Jack Ma is scheduled to attend a Digital Economy Summit in Abuja. This is Ma's first visit to Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa. Before the event, he met with Nigeria’s vice president, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.
- The richest man in China, Jack Ma is scheduled to attend a Digital Economy Summit in Abuja.
- This is Ma’s first visit to Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa.
- Before the event, he met with Nigeria’s vice president, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.
Jack Ma, the co-founder and former chairman of Alibaba Group (the renowned e-commerce and tech firm)), has arrived in Nigeria for the first Digital Economy Summit in Abuja.
Ma is a Special Guest Speaker at the event theme, “Leveraging Digital Economy for Trade & Investment.” The two-day summit is organised by the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment and it will end on Friday, November 15th, 2019.
The summit will feature discussion around the digital economy, innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit of a youthful populace.
Niyi Adebayo, Nigeria’s minister of industry, trade, and investment, in a pre-event release, said, “Technology, trade, and investment are inextricably linked in a digital economy.”
Jack Ma grows wealth to $38 billion
In a recent Forbes China Rich List, Jack Ma emerged as the richest entrepreneur in China for the second time in 2019.
Between 2018 and 2019, he has grown his wealth from $34.6 billion to $38.2, despite stepping down as the Chairman of the renowned Alibaba Group.
Jack Ma’s activities in Nigeria
According to Alibaba Group, Jack Ma will be speaking at the digital economy summit in Abuja and hold a panel discussion with other guests.
Earlier before the event, he met with Nigeria’s Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, in Abuja. According to a report by Channels Television, Jack Ma said he is ready to invest in Nigeria through his “Four Es” programme – E-infrastructure, Entrepreneurship, E-government, and Education.
Ma’s Netpreneur Prize for Africans
It is not yet clear if Ma will visit tech entrepreneurs or tour tech hubs while in the country, like the Twitter CEO, Jack Dorsey, who left Nigeria a few days ago.
In 2017, Ma visited Kenya and Rwanda and discussed investment opportunities in the East African nations. In 2018, he returned to Africa and launched the Netpreneur Prize, a $10 million competition for African tech innovators, in Johannesburg, South Africa.
