Market potential of Africa as a trade hub.

The category of Africans who buy foreign products would also love to patronize locally-made goods, but millions of local manufacturers are unknown. A number of them suffer invisibility due to lack of resources and avenues that’ll help them promote their goods on a large scale, within and outside the country.
This is why Cokodeal was launched to address the challenge, and expose locally manufactured goods in Nigeria to the rest of Africa and the world.
In this interview with Mike Dola, CEO of Cokodeal, he shares with Bossman, the solutions his startup is offering, local manufacturing in Nigeria, entrepreneurship and more.

Tell us about Cokodeal and the solutions you’re offering
Cokodeal.com is an advertising platform for SMEs and an international commodity trade advisory company for indigenous businesses in Africa.
Cokodeal solutions includes, accessibility to goods produced by manufacturers, farmers and indigenous businesses. The platform offers effective low cost advertising for businesses to reach wider audience with consistency that cannot be achieved on television, radio or billboards; ease of cross border trading of commodities produced in different countries to other African countries and global market and international trade advisory, to save international traders huge cost of un-informed cost and trade practices.
What social problems is Cokodeal solving?
Unemployment, increase in GDP through exports and economic value of traders in African countries.
The rate of unemployment is drastically increasing, and many people have low or no income. There are big job opportunities in the value chain network of trade across Africa, from logistics, sourcing agents, freight forwarders, production, and retailers to end users.
Increase in GDP will come as a result of increase in exports.
How does the Cokodeal platform operate?
Cokodeal.com is a marketplace where buyers and sellers connect to primarily trade products manufactured in Africa. Merchants and commodity traders create storefronts to advertise goods to prospective buyers. Cokodeal promotes goods globally, buyers from different region contact Cokodeal or manufacturer directly for supplies.
Cokodeal broker deals between both parties and ensure safe delivery, receiving funds through escrow to credit parties on successful transaction. The platform also operates personalized digital advertising for businesses to drive quick sales and targeted regions for export to get buyers. Cokodeal gives best of knowledge information through its advisory consultation to international businesses.

What inspired the idea to begin Cokodeal?
Africa cannot continually be a predominantly consuming continent as rich as Africa is.
Africa will not rise to 1st world through aid but trade.
Africa possesses some of the best human resources, intelligence and physical capacity that need to be properly channeled for the rise of the continent.
Since launch, how has the response been from Africans?
Its huge, as the informal trade unrecorded by statistics is very large. Lots of orders from different African countries majorly for raw materials, agricultural products, textile and leather product.
Currently, manufacturers trading on the Cokodeal platform are from which African counties?
Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa and Rwanda.
How would you rate the patronage level of locally-made goods in Nigeria, and how can this be further improved?
It is high, the untold truth is that many of the goods many of us use is produced locally and packaged differently, especially leather products, building accessories, foods and textile.
The way it can be improved is by ensuring manufacturers improve on their quality and massive promotion for the goods to increase demands.
Please share some success stories you’ve had with Cokodeal
Cokodeal has helped a handful of manufacturers’ link with US, UK retailers that sell their goods in stores abroad.
Cokodeal have Broker large trade deals between many manufacturers in Lagos, Aba and other cities with buyers within the nation and other African countries.
Cokodeal has opened up resources available in Nigeria and some other African countries to interested investors and procuring agents that have increased the value of the local business.

What are the future plans for Cokodeal?
To build a unicorn; over billions of dollar valuation company employing over 40,000 people with foots in every African country.
SMEs digital advertisement and intra-Africa commodity trade to global market is a $600,000,000,000 market. Cokodeal aims to be the company with the largest market share controlling commodity trade in Africa to global market.
