Grace Ashiru
Huawei Cloud has recently initiated a program in Nigeria, committing to provide $10 million in cloud credits to assist 100 Nigerian startups over the next two years.
Huawei announced its commitment at the Huawei Cloud Startup Summit in Lagos on April 3, 2024. The summit brought together over 150 industry startups, venture capitals, and partners to delve into startup innovation and digital transformation. This program is designed to drive innovation and expansion by granting startups access to cutting-edge cloud resources and cultivating a nurturing environment.
In his keynote address, Hugo Hu, Director of Huawei Cloud, urged Nigerian startups to collaborate on innovation and play a significant role in shaping the future of Nigeria’s digital economy. He emphasized the obstacles confronting startups, such as technology, funding, data security, and compliance, and underscored the importance of embracing cloud technology to expedite innovation.
Huawei Cloud is dedicated to creating an ecosystem that supports Nigerian startups by offering them easy access to cost-effective cloud resources and accelerated business opportunities. We firmly believe that Huawei Cloud is the optimal choice for Nigerian startups,” stated Hu.
Huawei Cloud is set to empower startups through its startup program by offering cloud-native infrastructure, professional services, and up to $150,000 in cloud credits to each participating startup. This initiative is designed to significantly reduce the cost of cloud services by 40 percent for startups in Nigeria and provide them with access to potential clients and investors in 177 countries.
Dotun Adekunle, Senior Vice President of Flutterwave, underscored the critical role of cloud services in empowering companies to compete on a global scale.
Adekunle emphasized that our efficiency in running Flutterwave would be compromised without utilizing cloud technology.
Huawei Cloud is targeting to onboard 10,000 startups globally by 2025. The platform has already successfully enlisted over 3,000 startups, with a significant number originating from the African continent.
Paul Adigu, the Ecosystem Director of Huawei Cloud Nigeria, has outlined three key initiatives to achieve the startup program objectives: leveraging an advanced cloud platform, nurturing startup talent, and providing essential business resources.
Huawei Cloud is committed to creating a robust cloud infrastructure for an interconnected world. The company has set its sights on introducing a local cloud in Nigeria by 2024 and has already set up 88 Availability Zones across 30 global regions.
