For more than a decade, Sim Shagaya has operated at the intersection of technology, consumer behavior and market creation across Africa. His companies have not only introduced new products to the continent’s digital economy, they have forced investors, policymakers and corporates to rethink what is possible in African markets. From DealDey to Konga and now uLesson, Shagaya has built a portfolio of ventures that consistently challenge the limits of infrastructure while proving that African consumers will adopt technology when it is designed with precision and patience.
Shagaya’s entry into the entrepreneurial world began at a moment when Africa’s digital landscape was still fragmented. Internet access was uneven, payment systems were unreliable and logistics networks barely existed. Yet he recognized a shift in the behavior of urban consumers who were becoming increasingly comfortable transacting and consuming content online.
His first major play, DealDey, tapped into this emerging demand by offering curated deals and experiences at a time when online shopping in Nigeria was far from mainstream. It quickly revealed both the promise and the constraints of internet commerce in the country.
That insight shaped his approach to Konga, which became one of the most ambitious and technically complex e commerce companies Africa had ever seen. Rather than adopt a lightweight marketplace model, Shagaya chose a full stack strategy, building out logistics, warehousing, payment infrastructure and customer service capabilities from the ground up.
This decision placed Konga in a league of its own. It forced investors to confront the real cost of scaling digital consumer businesses in Africa and set a new operational benchmark for the ecosystem. Even as competition intensified and market pressures mounted, Konga remained a key training ground for talent and a reference point for what disciplined execution in African e commerce could look like.
His move into education technology with uLesson marked a shift in industry focus but not in ambition. Shagaya had become increasingly aware that African students were underserved by existing learning tools and that the continent’s young population represented one of the largest education markets in the world. uLesson was built to meet that need with content that reflected local curricula, interactive tools that matched student behavior and delivery methods suited to environments with inconsistent connectivity.
The rapid adoption of the platform across multiple countries demonstrated that a homegrown education product could achieve scale and cultural relevance simultaneously. It also placed Shagaya at the center of a new conversation about the future of learning across Africa.
What distinguishes Shagaya’s work is his ability to translate long term structural observations into operational strategy. He does not chase hype cycles or build for short term traction. He builds companies with the intention of reshaping consumer behavior over a long horizon.
His ventures often arrive before the market is fully ready, but his timing has repeatedly proven accurate as the ecosystem catches up. That pattern explains why so many founders, operators and investors cite him as one of the clearest thinkers in African technology.
Today, Shagaya stands as one of the most respected entrepreneurs on the continent not because his journey has been linear or without obstacles, but because his work has had measurable influence on how Africa’s digital economy has evolved. The companies he built, the talent he trained and the markets he helped shape continue to define the trajectory of African tech.
In an ecosystem where scale is difficult and patience is rare, Sim Shagaya remains a reminder that enduring companies are built through discipline, insight and a deep understanding of the continent’s realities.