Zinox chair urges entrepreneurs to build wealth

Chairman of Zinox Group, Leo Stan Ekeh, has urged young Nigerian entrepreneurs to focus on building lasting systems that drive national development rather than chasing quick wealth.

Ekeh gave this advice while addressing a gathering of young business leaders, where he shared insights drawn from his decades-long experience in building one of Africa’s foremost technology conglomerates.

Reflecting on his early career decisions, Ekeh revealed that after graduating from the University of Punjab in India, he proceeded to Cork City University in Ireland for a postgraduate programme in computer science.

At the time, he said, he received enticing job offers from global tech giants, including one from Silicon Valley-based Apple.

“But I chose to return home,” Ekeh explained in an email to The PUNCH. “I founded Zinox to create confidence and faith in our digital economy and to equip the next generation with the capacity to navigate the digital storm ahead.”

According to him, the decision to forgo a comfortable career abroad for the uncertainties of Nigeria’s fledgling digital economy was rooted in conviction and a desire to build systems that could outlive him.

He said his early efforts helped modernise the Nigerian media and advertising industries by introducing desktop publishing and computer graphics, transforming operations at major firms such as Daily Times, Vanguard, University Press, and Longman. These interventions laid the groundwork for Nigeria’s present-day creative and digital ecosystems.

Ekeh also recounted how, through strategic partnerships and relentless advocacy, he helped bring global Original Equipment Manufacturers like HP, Microsoft, Apple, Dell Technologies, and Amazon to the Nigerian market.

“This created a competitive, innovative technology environment that the current generation is now benefiting from,” he noted.

He highlighted his role in Nigeria’s democratic transformation, citing the 2010 digital deployment project with the Independent National Electoral Commission, which he described as the largest single ICT rollout in Africa at the time, adding that similar technology deployments had since been executed in Guinea-Bissau.
In the energy sector, Ekeh said his company pioneered the use of digital fuel dispensers and supported multinational companies such as Shell, Chevron and Total with critical technology infrastructure.

“In Gambia, we also delivered the largest single e-library and wireless cloud rollout project,” he said.

The Zinox Group, under his leadership, has since evolved into a global business empire with interests in e-commerce, real estate, pharmaceuticals, entertainment, and manufacturing.

Despite enduring personal losses, blackmail, and policy obstacles, Ekeh said he remained committed to his vision of building lasting value for Nigeria.

In his remarks, he warned young entrepreneurs against being distracted by short-term wealth or influenced by those he described as “respected but corrupt individuals acting against the country’s best interests”.

“True patriotism”, he said, “lies in building systems that serve Nigeria’s long-term prosperity, not individual gain.”

Ekeh also highlighted Nigeria’s rising digital footprint, noting that the country’s digital economy, which was practically non-existent in the 1990s, now contributes nearly 20 per cent to GDP, supported by 163 million internet users and a fintech sector that processed N611 tn in 2023.

To further deepen impact, he unveiled a plan to train 10,000 female tech professionals over the next five years.

“We’ve already graduated 400 women this year. Empowering women in tech is essential to closing the gender gap,” he said.

He concluded by calling on the next generation to build with discipline, vision, and purpose: “The future belongs to those who prepare for it. Build systems. Build people. And build a country you can be proud of.”