Tizeti CEO talks about his company's new round of funding, expansion into Ghana, and lessons learned operating in Nigeria

With this outspread, Tizeti now joins Paystack, which made the decision to expand operations into Ghana last month, and Paga, which is going into Ethiopia, Mexico and the Philippines. I asked Kendall what the plan was for breaking into the Ghanaian market.

“There are more fibre cables in Accra than in Nigeria, he said. “The power supply in Ghana is also far better than in Nigeria. Both of these factors will allow Tizeti provide competitive prices and save a lot more than it currently does in Nigeria.” The money saved can then be used to spread into smaller cities across the country.

What then informs this decision to expand into Ghana at this time? Does Kendall feel the company has covered Nigeria well enough to warrant the new development? I asked him these and he replied that Tizeti already has a certain level of exposure in Lagos, its core market in Nigeria. “If you search on Google for ‘unlimited internet in Lagos’, Tizeti is the top result.” He explains that it is the top choice for unlimited internet within its coverage areas.

This level of exposure and reputation in Lagos took time to build. This is why the company has decided to move into Ghana at this time, to start on time and not take as much time as it did building up its brand in Lagos.

Doing business in Nigeria is tough and comes with some mighty challenges that could easily put off anyone. At the top of the list is the inadequate power supply. “50% of our capital expenditure goes into power,” Kendall tells me, not unimaginable given that Nigeria generates less than 5,000 MW of electricity for a nation of about 200 million people. However, a challenge more unique to running an internet service provider in Nigeria is wireless interference.

Operating an ISP could be likened to running a radio station. Each radio station transmits at a particular frequency which is licensed to it by the national regulator. However, should someone decide to operate at that same frequency, the radio station’s transmission will be disrupted. This is why sometimes when you’re listening to a radio station, there could be a sudden switch and you will get a completely different channel on the same frequency.

This happens to ISPs in Nigeria sometimes -- they are transmitting wifi signals at a given frequency, but the signals could very well be interrupted should another provider get on the same frequency, sometimes accidentally. To remedy this, Tizeti is obtaining a licence from the Nigerian Communications Commission.

Another challenge the company has faced operating in Nigeria is a scarcity of skilled personnel. “As you grow bigger, you start seeing a shortage of skilled personnel,” Kendall tells me. That is, a shortage of engineers who can work with wireless networks within an organisation. Tizeti plans to solve this challenge through a graduate trainee programme, where university graduates are brought in and are taught the skills they need in 6-12 months.

Looking at the many challenges it faces in Nigeria, I ask Kendall how the company will take the lessons learned and apply them to its new market. “The first two challenges (of power and wireless interference) are not that big of a deal in Ghana,” he says, “and the third will be dealt with through knowledge transfer.”

Two things Tizeti will focus on intensely going forward are marketing and equipment. The adoption of the Wifi.Africa domain name and brand means that Tizeti can modify itself per market and it will also position itself as the main WiFi domain in each country it enters. Tizeti will also start with next-generation equipment in Ghana for better service quality, 802.11AC WiFi which is much faster and more reliable than previous generations.

Tizeti CEO talks about his company's new round of funding, expansion into Ghana, and lessons learned operating in Nigeria

Earlier this month, Nigerian ISP startup Tizeti,

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