Nigerian startup, Harde Business School, is on a mission to bring quality education to learners across Africa through its online university platform.
Established in January 2021, Harde Business School is committed to tackling major educational challenges in Nigeria and across the continent. According to Dami Oguntunde, the co-founder and COO, these challenges include limited university spots, outdated curricula, high unemployment, and frequent school strikes.
At the heart of Harde’s efforts is Hardeverse, an online learning platform offering a range of courses, including short programs, expert-led courses, and a comprehensive 15-18 month MBA program.
Oguntunde highlighted a significant issue: “Each year, two million students take the JAMB exam, but only 600,000 secure spots in traditional colleges like polytechnics and colleges of education. This leaves over 70% of students without access to quality education, and the numbers keep growing.”
Recognizing the widespread internet access among young Nigerians, Harde Business School seized the opportunity to provide affordable and high-quality online education.
“We also noticed that many university graduates lacked the skills needed for available jobs,” Oguntunde added. “This spurred us to enhance our courses to meet global industry standards and ensure better learning outcomes.”
Harde’s offerings stand out in a crowded market, competing with local platforms like Nexford, Unicaf, and AltSchool, as well as global players like Coursera.
“However, none of these platforms offer the same interactive and engaging learning experience that Harde provides,” Oguntunde emphasized.
Despite being in its early stages, Harde Business School has already attracted over 35,000 learners from Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Zambia, the United States, and the United Kingdom within just 18 months of its launch.
“Our aim is to expand our reach to other regions within Sub-Saharan Africa over the next year,” Oguntunde revealed.
Harde generates revenue by charging for course access and certificates, as well as through partnerships with businesses and governments. While the company is bringing in revenue, it is not yet profitable.
“Developing our products takes time,” Oguntunde explained. “We are focused on enhancing our technology infrastructure and content development to ensure smoother product launches. Additionally, we plan to introduce the Hardeverse mobile app by the end of the year, which we believe will further bolster our presence in the market.”
