A start-up in Nigeria, Harde Business School, focusing on educational technology, is in the process of creating an innovative Online University that will offer students throughout Africa a high-quality learning experience similar to that of a masterclass. Established in the beginning of 2021, Harde Business School aims to address educational obstacles not only in Nigeria but also across the entire continent of Africa. The obstacles that they aim to address encompass restricted enrolment availability in tertiary institutions.
Others include a Curriculum that doesn’t align with industry demands resulting in rising Unemployment figures, and university schedules that are constantly disrupted by labour strikes, explained Dami Oguntunde, one of the founders and Chief Operating Officer of the start-up. Hardeverse, the leading product from Harde, is an online educational platform that functions as a learning management system. It features various options including short courses, courses led by experts, and the Harde MBA program, which usually requires 15-18 months for completion on average.
Over 70% of students are left out with no access to higher education.
According to Oguntunde, out of the two million students taking the JAMB Exam each year in Nigeria, only around 600,000 are able to gain admission into the conventional Higher Education institutions like polytechnics and colleges of education. The main reason for this is the lack of space for new students and inadequate infrastructure. As a result, more than 70 percent of students are left out and cannot get a good higher education. This situation worsens every year as the number of affected students continues to grow.
The Harde team saw an opportunity in the high internet usage among young Nigerians. They aimed to offer cost-effective and high-quality educational programs through online platforms due to the widespread access to the internet. Additionally, they noticed a disparity in the quality of Education provided by universities, as shown by the high rate of unemployment. There is a surplus of job opportunities, yet the graduates produced by the higher education system lack the necessary skills to successfully vie for these positions.
Majority of Harde’s students originate from within Nigeria.
Oguntunde stated that this has also influenced the enhancement of their approach to teaching and learning methods in order to conform to international industry benchmarks and achieve superior and lasting educational results. Harde’s diverse range of programs positions it in direct rivalry with local institutions such as Nexford, Unicaf, and AltSchool, as well as the international giant Coursera, which sets the standard for online courses and offers a wide array of products. Oguntunde mentioned that Harde stands out from other platforms by providing gamified and interactive courses for soft skills and proficiency, a feature not offered by any other platform.
Also, the start-up has received funding from multiple individual investors, as well as an institution, and is in the early stages of development. Despite this, it has already attracted more than 35,000 users to its platform within the first year and a half of launching. The majority of students come from Nigeria, however, Harde also has a small presence in Kenya, Ghana, Zambia, the United States, and the United Kingdom according to Oguntunde. He mentioned the goal is to reach into new areas across Sub-Saharan Africa in the coming year.
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Additionally, Harde generates Revenue by offering courses and certificates to learners for a fee, as well as obtaining revenue from businesses and government organizations. While the company is bringing in a decent amount of money, it has not reached a profitable stage yet. Oguntunde mentioned that the process of developing a product can be time-consuming. The focus is on improving the Technology Infrastructure and content development timeline to ensure a more streamlined deployment cycle. Additionally, there are plans to release the Hardeverse mobile app by the end of the year in hopes of increasing market traction and adoption.