The Chief Operating Officer of Apex Network, Joy Alabi-Hundeyin, has said that fewer than 10 companies in Nigeria have been able to stay in operation for more than 100 years.
She made this known while speaking at the Apex Tech Summit held recently at the Landmark Event Centre in Lagos. Alabi-Hundeyin compared Nigeria’s situation to other countries, noting that Japan has more than 60,000 century-old companies, Germany has over 20,000, and France has over 10,000. In Africa, she said there are just a little over 200 companies that have been in business for 100 years and are still running, despite the continent having 54 countries.
“In the whole of Nigeria, we have just about seven companies that have lasted more than 100 years. This is not because we lack intelligence or commerce, but because of deep structural, economic, and socio-cultural challenges,” she said.
According to her, many African companies struggle to survive across generations because they operate in unstable political environments, face weak institutional frameworks, inconsistent policies, poor access to long-term funding, and lack of infrastructure. She added that these issues make it hard for businesses to grow strong enough to last over a century.
Alabi-Hundeyin also pointed to historical and economic factors, such as colonialism, post-colonial hardship, economic instability, currency devaluation, and changes in ownership, which have affected the ability of businesses to remain sustainable over time. She said countries like Germany and Japan have been able to maintain stable policies, plan for leadership succession, and provide strong support for family-owned businesses, which has helped tens of thousands of them survive for more than 100 years.
“Longevity is less about innovation capacity or market size and more about the enabling environment that supports businesses through different economic and political cycles,” she explained.
She stressed the need for African businesses to separate the concepts of business ownership and business leadership. “Owning a business does not mean you must be the one to lead it, and leading a business does not mean you must own it,” she said. “You can be leading a company in one industry while being the fourth-generation owner of another. This is the type of business reality Africa must embrace.”
Alabi-Hundeyin said it is important to start planning for leadership succession from the beginning of a business. She emphasised that identifying the right successor is just as important as generating revenue. According to her, this should be treated as a key business performance metric.
She also highlighted the need for futuristic delegation, which means assigning responsibilities that may be beyond current capabilities to prepare people for future leadership roles. “Delegation has been misunderstood in African business culture, where power is often seen as control. We need to change this mindset if we want sustainable business growth,” she added.
Alabi-Hundeyin noted that a positive shift is already happening, as more leaders are now adopting agile leadership approaches. She used the banking industry as an example of how quickly things can change. “When was the last time you went into a banking hall? Banking halls are becoming like the post offices of our parents’ time. Technology is moving fast, and leadership has to be just as dynamic,” she said.
She concluded by urging Nigerian business leaders to drop the “survival mode” that was common after colonialism due to economic hardship and lack of infrastructure. She called for a “legacy mindset” that focuses on building businesses capable of lasting for multiple generations.
