Former Minister of Finance and founder of DashMe Foundation, Mrs Kemi Adeosun
From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
Former Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, has launched a new entrepreneurship platform, Nidacity, aimed at addressing Nigeria’s alarming 95 per cent startup failure rate and strengthening the country’s small business ecosystem.
The platform, which officially went live on Tuesday, is designed to equip Nigerian entrepreneurs, particularly young and female founders, with practical education, mentorship, and business intelligence needed to build resilient and sustainable enterprises.
Speaking at the unveiling, Adeosun described the initiative as a timely intervention in a country with one of the highest rates of entrepreneurship globally but a troubling record of business survival.
She noted, however, that the same statistics present an opportunity for economic transformation if more businesses can be supported to survive and scale.
“The timing is urgent. Nigeria has the world’s highest entrepreneurship rate, yet as many as 95 per cent of startups do not survive beyond five years. With SMEs accounting for about 85 per cent of employment, the human cost of that failure is felt in every community. Nigerian entrepreneurs are already doing something extraordinary by creating the vast majority of jobs with very little support. If we can help more of these businesses grow, the employment gains will be enormous,” Adeosun added.
“As part of its rollout, Nidacity has launched a flagship initiative known as the “Many Roads” Survey, a nationwide digital project aimed at documenting the origins and evolution of Nigerian businesses. The survey seeks to gather personal and family business stories to build a comprehensive archive of the country’s entrepreneurial culture,” the former minister stated.
According to Adeosun, the data generated will provide evidence-based insights into the structural and cultural drivers of enterprise in Nigeria, helping policymakers, investors, and educators better understand how to support the sector.
She further noted that findings from the survey will be published on the platform and shared with key stakeholders to inform decisions that could improve business outcomes nationwide.
The former minister explained that Nidacity is structured around five core pillars, including a podcast featuring founders’ stories, a library of entrepreneur profiles, practical business tools, educational content such as webinars and courses, and news analysis tailored to the Nigerian business environment.
She added that the initiative is not a charitable effort but a strategic investment in Nigeria’s economic backbone.
“The platform delivers its content through digital, audio, and community-based formats, targeting entrepreneurs across different stages of their journey,” she said.
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