Building bridges

Kelvin Umechukwu from Nigeria joined this year's learning tour with the aim of building more bridges between China and Africa.

With a mechanical and programming background, Umechukwu set up Bumpa in 2021. The company helps small African businesses run and expand their operations through a business-focused app and e-commerce services. "My parents used to run a small business, which had extremely low efficiency," he said.

During the pandemic, Bumpa received an increasing number of requests for assistance from local companies unable to directly do business.

Umechukwu said a key issue his company is now trying to address is trade fragmentation.

"As a business owner in Nigeria and Africa, you are likely using multiple sales channels. The problem with this approach is that you don't have a centralized place to manage all your inventory, orders, and customers, so, we want to bring everything together in one place," he explained.

"On the other hand, many local businesses still do not use any digital tools today, and Bumpa tries to leverage technology to manage and grow businesses, and enhance business efficiency," he said.

Umechukwu said he was inspired by Tencent's development of payment systems and cloud infrastructure.

"We are currently exploring the cloud for retail. What I have learned from Tencent is that there are already tools specifically designed for my industry, such as using artificial intelligence for fraud detection and various available payment methods," he said.

Umechukwu was particularly impressed by the sheer volume of orders he saw at JD.

"They have this board that shows you how many orders have been received in real time. When we got there at 10 in the morning the number had gotten to 9.1 million," he said.

"I think it has given me a glimpse into how enterprise and trade can help a country build prosperity," he added.

Umechukwu said he wants to keep in touch with personnel from Chinese companies like Alibaba.

"I know that many of my clients, such as those in Nigeria, have sourced their goods from China, and there is significant trade between China and Africa, with considerable development in logistics. My goal is to engage with and learn from Chinese companies in the fields of communication and e-commerce, while also seeking partnerships to fundamentally help more Nigerian clients," he said.

"China has shown me that many things are possible, and I hope to lead this transformation and innovation, and drive it in my own country and continent."