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Digital Marketing in Africa: Bringing Much-needed Skills to Nigeria’s Youth
By Brian Abel – Team Lead, Greater Africa, Ad Dynamo by Aleph
There is a huge demand for digital marketing skills around the world, hardly surprising in a vastly online world, in which the majority of people are considered to be permanently plugged in. In essence, if you’re not marketing to people digitally, you’re not really marketing to them at all. Considering this, it is astonishing just how big of a skills gap remains.
Prior to 2020, we already witnessed a wide digital marketing skill gap, and this has only increased in recent years thanks to the rapid digital transformation brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, according to research by Salesforce and Rand Europe, the skill divide is so large that it could cause 14 G20 countries to lose out on US$11.5 trillion in cumulative GDP growth.
Africa is not excluded from this growing divide either. Despite difficulties ascertaining the precise figures on digital marketing within Africa, it is worth noting that research from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) shows that some 230 million jobs across the continent will require digital skills by 2030.
However, thankfully, within that same skill gap, there is a significant opportunity for young Africans and Nigerians. If young professionals are equipped with the necessary skills to succeed, especially within digital marketing, doors will begin to open for them. This will enable them to not only guide domestic businesses through their digital marketing transformations, but also become significant players on the global digital stage.
The Importance of Digital Marketing Skills
In order to understand the scale of the opportunity, it’s worth remembering that Nigeria’s GDP, already the largest in Africa, is set to reach US$450 billion in 2022, having returned to a growth trajectory post-COVID-19. Furthermore, increasingly large proportions of that economy are also either wholly digital or digitally enhanced. In fact, digital revenues in the country are expected to hit US$16.43 billion by 2025, up from US$11.38 billion this year.
Moreover, it is also worth noting that only 51% of Nigeria’s population currently have internet access. However, as the infrastructure for connectivity becomes more ubiquitous and prices fall, that number will grow rapidly, and it is anticipated that 35 million additional Nigerians will be online by 2026. It is therefore clear that there remains plenty of room for growth within Nigeria’s economy, and in parallel, it will become increasingly important for both multinationals and home grown businesses to market themselves online. That in turn makes it critical to not only foster, but also grow digital marketing skills, and ensure that those companies have the best possible on-the-ground support.
The Youth Opportunity
Fortunately, Nigeria already benefits from a booming young population, with the average age of 18, and many of which are digital natives, having grown up with mobile phones, and access to the internet. Therefore, having already been indoctrinated into the digital world, they are unafraid of technology, understand its potential to connect people with brands, and are eager to expand their knowledge.
Therefore, by equipping Nigeria’s youth with in-demand digital marketing skills, it is possible to not only ensure success for business marketing, but also that these young professionals get the chance to enter high-growth industries with the promise of economic advancement. This is undoubtedly critical in a country where unemployment for people aged 15 to 24 is as high as 53.4%.
Nevertheless, in order for any digital marketing skills initiative to make a tangible difference, it cannot be solely focused on providing young people just general skills. Thus, instead must ensure that everyone has the relevant skills needed to effectively market to people across the world’s leading digital platforms, including Twitter, Snapchat, and Spotify.
This notion is in fact at the core of our commitments at Aleph Group. Our Digital Ad Expert Programme aims to educate, certify, and connect thousands of Africans with the digital skills needed to succeed in a rapidly digitising economy.
Our aim is to create a generation of young people that are capable of driving their local digital economies to the next level.
Beyond Marketing
It is, of course, important to consider the additional benefits of these skills, as they will not only serve individuals who choose to pursue careers in marketing. In fact, the skills and certifications provided may also complement entrepreneurial enterprises or symbolize a diving board into the broader digital landscape, and thus, ultimately result in added developers, technicians, and well-rounded generalists crucial to building the digital economy.
The digital opportunity in Nigeria is massive, it is therefore crucial that the country’s young generations are given the best possible chance to embrace it, and therefore equipping them with essential digital marketing skills may well be the best place to start.
About ₦2 billion changes hands in bets every day (KPMG Gaming Outlook 2025), driven by a 60-million-strong punter base that treats wagering as both entertainment and side-hustle. Industry revenue is on pace to hit US $3.63 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) by December 2025 – roughly the size of Nigeria’s entire recorded-music market.
Smartphones rule this universe: more than 90 percent of slips now start and finish on a handset, which is why the market leaders obsess over data-lite apps and USSD deposits almost as much as odds feeds.
Our Litmus Test for “Best”
To separate hype from heft we graded each book on the nine variables that still matter after the banner ads fade:
- Odds edge & market depth – average margin on EPL, NPFL and niche sports
- Live tech stack – cash-out latency, in-play uptime, streaming rights
- Payout speed & reliability
- Responsible-gaming tools (RG) – time-outs, self-exclusion, deposit caps
- Licensing strength & dispute history
- Promotions that actually pay
- Product breadth – virtuals, jackpots, prediction games, casino
- Financial resilience – operating cash flow, retail footprint, VC war chest
- Cultural traction – agent networks, grassroots sponsorships, meme power
The Heavyweights – and Why Each Owns a Piece of The Best
| Operator | What They Nail | Ticking Time-Bombs | Verdict |
| SportyBet | Biggest traffic (≈ 57 M visits / month), sub-5-second cash-outs, crazy-low EPL margin (~4.5%). | Still no retail city hubs; crash loops on older Tecno devices. | Mobile kingpin |
| Bet9ja | Heritage trust, retail agents in 20 states, jackpots like Super9ja; circa ₦10 billion monthly handle. | Dated UX; odds less sharp since 2024 revamp. | Legacy war-horse |
| BetKing | Data-driven odds, Genius Sports in-play feed, renewed deal with Gamble Alert for RG training. | Slower KYC queues at peak traffic. | RG poster-child |
| Surebet247 | NLRC Permit 0001081; cash-first agent model with mobile slip tracking; boosted welcome bonus to ₦150k; full cash-out on domestic basketball. | Android app, iOS app; livestream rights still pending. | Mobile dark horse |
| 1xBet & Betway | Global market buffet, esports, crypto options. | Offshore-licence optics; occasional geoblock glitches. | International muscle |
| NairaBet, AccessBET, Msport, Premier Bet, BetPawa | NairaBet = pioneer cachet; Msport & BetPawa blitz TikTok; Premier Bet just signed Francis Ngannou. | Each misses at least one core pillar (RG tooling, market depth or fast payouts). | Specialist niches |
Two Deep-Cut Insights the Billboards Won’t Show You
- Women are quietly reshaping the market. According to University of Abuja (“according to data from the University of Abuja”), 30 percent of urban Lagos women now gamble regularly, and a 2025 field survey found daily spend often tops ₦50,000 despite lower median income.
- Mobile-money betting dents student wallets. According to Lagos State University, mobile-money deposits explain 26.7 percent of the variance in student financial well-being – a stat that should make every platform’s RG desk sweat.
So, Who Actually Wins?
- Premier-League diehards who live for lightning-fast in-play cash-out: SportyBet wears the crown.
- Corner-shop loyalists who still like to chat with a clerk: Surebet247 Betshop nails the cash-plus-mobile sweet spot.
- Jackpot chasers who want EPL on Saturday, Ugandan Super League on Tuesday, and darts on Thursday: Bet9ja is still the Swiss-Army knife.
Punters who value self-exclusion toggles and deposit caps (you should): BetKing edges ahead.
In reality, “best” is contextual. Odds hawks, live-stream junkies, crypto degenerates and agent-network stalwarts will all point to different logos. What you don’t want is a bookie that melts down at 89′ when Villarreal finally scores.
On that front, the four names above – plus a rapidly innovating Surebet247 mobile bet shop – look built to survive Nigeria’s next data-price hike and the NLRC’s tightening audit screws.
The rest? Keep one eye on their uptime dashboards – and the other on your bankroll.
By Lukman Otunuga, Senior Market Analyst at FXTM.
A flurry of high-risk events may pump global financial markets with fresh volatility this week.
Top-tier data, including US Inflation, the unofficial start of earnings season, and US Congress “Crypto Week,” among other themes, could spell fresh opportunities.
Amidst this, uncertainty over global trade will add to the mix after President Donald Trump threatened 35% tariffs on the EU and Mexico over the weekend.
Regarding US inflation, this may impact bets around Fed cuts in the second half of this year. Markets are forecasting CPI to rise 2.6% from 2.4% in the prior month, with core CPI rising to 2.9% from 2.8%. Signs of rising prices may shave bets around the Fed cutting interest rates – boosting the dollar as a result.
Closer to home, Nigeria’s June CPI data due July 15 is expected to show signs of cooling inflationary pressures. This could offer some relief to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which aggressively hiked interest rates throughout 2024. Inflation is expected to have eased to 21.4% year-on-year from 23% in May – marking the 4th consecutive month of decline. However, the slowdown is largely a technical adjustment aided by the recent gains in the Naira amid higher non-oil exports and a weaker dollar.
The CBN is scheduled to meet later this month and will most likely keep rates unchanged at 27.5%.
One key challenge for the country will be how to re-tweak its budget for lower oil prices. Indeed, the budget was based around oil production at 2 million barrels and oil prices of $75. Brent is trading around $70 with the nation producing 1.544m b/d of crude in May according to OPEC. Nigeria is hoping to raise production to 1.9m b/d by the end of 2025. But its impact on the economy may be muted if oversupply and tepid demand keep oil prices subdued. Brent is up 4% this month but still down over 6% since the start of 2025.
Bright Echefu, chief executive officer, Telecom Satellites Limited (TStv), and three co‑defendants appeared before the Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday on an amended twelve‑count indictment brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The charges allege money laundering, tax evasion, and investment fraud involving approximately ₦1 billion and $1.3 million.
Bright Echefu, chief executive officer, TStv
In addition to Echefu, the defendants are TStv Executive Director, Felix Igboanuga, Telecom Satellites Limited itself, and Briechberg Investment Ltd.
According to the April 5, 2025, amended charge sheet the EFCC accuses the quartet of defrauding Mr. Tanimu Turaki, Managing Director of Kalsiyam Global and former Minister of Special Duties, alongside BYI General Limited, out of a combined investment of ₦1 billion and $1.3 million. The commission has also included a ₦66 million alleged tax default.
The revised indictment lists:
Count 2: ₦33,909,542.47 in unremitted Company Income Tax
Count 3: ₦13,519,382.00 in unremitted VAT
Count 4: ₦19,488,860.00 in unremitted PAYE
Counts 5–12: Various fraud‑related transactions, including ₦380 million from Kalsiyam Farm, ₦400 million from BYI General Ltd and $1.35 million in loans secured under false pretences.
All defendants pleaded not guilty once again. At the hearing before Justice Mohammed Umar, Echefu’s lead counsel, Senior Advocate Eyitayo Fatogun, informed the court of ongoing settlement discussions with the complainants.
“There are moves to settle this matter and there was a meeting on Saturday between myself and the Nominal Complainant as it is about investment,” Fatogun stated.
“The Defendants have paid some money and I was thinking that the matter be adjourned for report of settlement.”
EFCC counsel A.S. Tomwell confirmed receipt of those payments but emphasized the necessity of entering a plea before considering any adjournment. The court thus ordered the formal reading of the charges and adjourned the trial to October 15, 2025.
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