Speaking in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of the UNHCR 2024 Africa Roundtable on Private Sector Solutions to Internal Displacement, held in Lagos recently, Gumel shared insights into how TGI’s operations in rural communities have become a model for sustainable economic inclusion and development.

“We’ve always been in the food business, but we realized early on that ensuring consistent quality and supply for our factories meant more than just setting up processing plants. It meant investing in people—working with farmers in rural areas, many of whom have faced displacement, to empower them to be part of our value chain,” he said.

TGI Group employs an out-grower model where the company collaborates with smallholder farmers, providing them with farming inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, and agrochemicals, extension services by qualified agronomists to help monitor the process and guide them on good agricultural practices, and a guaranteed offtake at prevailing market prices.

Gumel elaborated on the significance of this partnership:

“We don’t own mega-farms or plantations. Instead, we work with local farmers who grow the produce and guarantee to buy everything they harvest. Sometimes, we even offer working capital to help them run their farms effectively. This approach ensures that our factories continue running while communities gain a reliable income stream.”

Beyond the economic aspects, TGI has invested heavily in building capacity within these communities. The company has set up training academies, working with Nigerian universities and institutions to provide certification programs to enhance the competence of beneficiaries.

“It’s not just about teaching someone how to farm better—it’s about giving them the tools, capacity, and recognition to thrive independently. We’ve developed rice and sesame production programs, and participants leave with certificates endorsed by academic institutions. This not only empowers them but also elevates the standards of the entire agricultural sector,” Gumel explained.

Addressing the supportive environment TGI has encountered in Nigeria’s rural areas, Gumel remarked:

“When you go into these communities, you’re welcomed with open arms. The people see the jobs, the opportunities, and the development we bring. It’s not just about formal policies; it’s about the genuine hospitality and mutual respect we share with them. They care for our staff and assets as if they were their own because they understand the value we’re bringing into their lives.”

Gumel also discussed how TGI’s integration into local communities goes beyond just economic partnerships. “You can’t go into a community and just take. It would help if you gave back. That’s why we see it as a corporate responsibility and a moral obligation. When communities see you investing in their future, they invest in you too.”

While lauding the current support from local governments, Gumel acknowledged the need for continued collaboration between the private sector and policymakers to scale such initiatives.

“The private sector can’t do it alone. We need a supportive framework that encourages more companies to enter these spaces. By working together, we can create an ecosystem that addresses the immediate needs of IDPs and builds resilience for the future,” he concluded.

Through its innovative approach, TGI Group demonstrates how businesses can bridge the gap between corporate growth and social impact, setting a benchmark for others.

I had to keep calculating possible traffic hours and escape times; sometimes, I could not escape. Imagine being in traffic for over 40 hours a week.

This has made me reminisce on some of Nigeria’s pressing issues that need to be solved to make this country a better place.

However, as these issues arise, technology keeps evolving. Principles and innovative concepts from User Experience design can help us find new solutions.

We’re discussing problems like terrible infrastructure, bad road networks, and insecurity.

This piece examines how the principles of User Experience (UX) Design (Thinking) could help us solve some of Nigeria’s toughest challenges.

Understanding Some of Nigeria’s Pressing Challenges

Has Nigeria improved over the years? Many people have different opinions, but we share common challenges.

• Inadequate Infrastructure:

In Nigeria, inadequate infrastructure presents significant challenges in public amenities and utilities, with unreliable electricity supply, limited access to clean water and sanitation, and substandard healthcare and education services.

Healthcare facilities often lack essential equipment and qualified personnel, while educational institutions face overcrowded classrooms and insufficient resources.

In particular, the unreliable power grid leads to frequent blackouts, hindering economic productivity and daily life. The IEA (International Energy Agency) reported earlier this year that Nigeria’s national power grid has collapsed 46 times between 2017 and 2023.

A country regarded as the giant of Africa should not have such statistics.

However, these collapses result from a significant reduction in generation capacity due to gas constraints, aged grid infrastructure, and ineffective regulatory frameworks.

• Violence and Insecurity:

Nigeria faces many violence and insecurity challenges. These include persistent jihadist threats from groups like Boko Haram, which exploit vulnerabilities to spread extremist ideologies.

Reports recently stated that suspected Boko Haram insurgents have razed down at least 25 newly constructed buildings for returnees in Dikwa Local Government Area of Borno State.

In the midst of the conflict, residents of Dikwa abandoned their houses and sought refuge as internally displaced people (IDPs).

Also, in Ekiti, Suspected herders have launched well-planned, methodical attacks on prominent Yoruba sons and daughters as well as traditional rulers.

Furthermore, we know of the robberies that have been happening for years in Lagos in places like Agege Pencinema, Jibowu, WAEC bus stop, Oshodi, Marina, etc.

Bags and cars are snatched in broad daylight and at night, and those who resist are attacked, injured, and sometimes killed.

• Bad Road Network:
  

At least 4,387 people lost their lives in traffic accidents across the nation between January and the end of June of last year.

This was due to bad roads, amongst other things like fake tyres and reckless driving. In as much as we can blame drivers for not being as careful as they should, wouldn’t it be better to have motorable roads and enough road networks?

At the end of 2023, Traffic Index released its annual report on global traffic congestion ranking for 2023, with Lagos State emerging as the city with the worst road traffic globally.

For instance, how won’t traffic be so dense in a place like Lekki, where there is only one major road in and out?

We even find out that bad road networks and insecurity intertwine, leading to a lot of traffic. Places like Oshodi and Mushin are notorious for robberies and street fights, discouraging many people from passing there at night. This leaves alternative routes with many cars, leading to more traffic.

How User Experience Design Can Solve These Problems

Nigeria has more challenges than the ones listed above. However, we will focus on how User Experience designers and engineers can directly and indirectly solve the listed problems.

Inadequate Infrastructure

Addressing Nigeria’s infrastructure challenges, particularly in electricity supply, requires a collaborative effort between the government, citizens, engineers, and other stakeholders.

In User Experience design, there is something called “Design Thinking.”

Design thinking is a methodology that provides a solution-based approach to solving complex problems. There are five stages: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test.

All these stages are very useful and can be used to solve Nigeria’s power grid problem effectively.

Firstly, the engineers, government officials, and all stakeholders involved in providing this solution must effectively understand the experiences of Nigerians affected by these frequent blackouts.

Interviews and surveys should be combined with speaking with community representatives to understand the situation properly.

Secondly, all stakeholders need to analyze the information gathered during the empathize stage and develop a core problem statement.

This problem statement should not be defined by a wish but by how they perceive the citizens’ needs. A good example could be “Inadequate infrastructure and frequent blackouts in Nigeria’s national power grid severely disrupt economic productivity, essential services, and daily life for millions of citizens.”

Next is the ideation stage. Here, each stakeholder needs to propose user-centric solutions. For example, the government can review policies that may affect getting gas for power generation.

Electrical engineers can check the grid facilities for outdated facilities, and then the government and other stakeholders should invest in newer facilities.

Then, we have the prototype stage. In this stage, the collaborative team returns to the drawing board and develops a prototype based on what policymakers, engineers, and stakeholders have proposed.

The last stage of the design thinking process is the Test stage. This stage is similar to FEA (Finite Element Analysis) for engineers and usability testing for User Experience designers.

Prototypes are tested in real-world settings with active involvement from stakeholders and communities affected by unreliable electricity. Engineers assess the technical feasibility (if it is sustainable over a period of time without significant damage to the facilities) and performance of the solutions while the government evaluates their policy implications and social impacts.

Feedback from end-users (citizens) and community representatives is solicited to refine the prototypes/ solutions iteratively.

Violence and Insecurity

Violence and insecurity pose significant challenges to Nigeria’s stability and development, affecting the safety and well-being of its citizens.

The stages of design thinking can also be leveraged for solutions to this challenge. For instance, in the case of robberies and violence in some areas in Lagos, the government need to engage with communities facing this violence and insecurity.

An interview could be conducted via Google Meet with key stakeholders situated in the affected states to potentially gain a profound understanding of their needs.

The primary objective would be to ascertain how the Early Warning System could effectively address their challenges, identify potential pain points, and comprehensively understand the platform’s user base.

Through such a session, valuable insights could be gathered, needs could be identified, and distinct user categories could be delineated, potentially contributing significantly to the project’s direction and objectives.

Next, government officials must work with law enforcement agencies and community leaders to define the problem statement. They need to identify specific locations and specific types of incidents (assaults, robberies, street clashes) and then prioritize them based on frequency and severity.

After identifying these areas, LEAs (Law Enforcement Agencies), policymakers, and other stakeholders can brainstorm ideas. LEAs can suggest increased and more vigilant patrols.

Policymakers may put laws in place that require everyone (including NURTW officials, commercial bus drivers, and conductors) on the street past 6pm to have a valid ID card on them.

Engineers and product designers can develop an early system warning app for anonymously reporting live violence cases.

The next step is to develop prototypes of the proposed solutions, drawing on input from all stakeholders and experts in security and law enforcement.

Pilot initiatives in high-risk areas should be tested to assess their effectiveness in reducing violence and improving residents’ sense of security. Key metrics such as crime rates, response times, and community perceptions should also be measured over time to evaluate the impact of the app prototype.

Lastly, prototypes should be fully implemented in identified areas of need, and feedback from community dwellers should be monitored.

Feedback from LEAs would also be needed to build on solutions and tackle new problems arising from these solutions until a steady and secure stage is reached.

Government officials and community representatives must continuously engage with the community residents to ensure the solutions (in this case, the early system warning app) remain responsive to their evolving needs and concerns.

Bad Road Network

The design thinking process works for bad road networks, too. Firstly, government officials need to engage with residents and drivers (both private and commercial car drivers) and note the specific pain points, such as long traffic times, safety concerns, and road hazards they encounter.

Traffic Officers can also be interviewed to get their perspective on perpetual issues that occur on the road.

Secondly, stakeholders, including government officials, urban planners, civil engineers, road construction workers, and transport authorities, should collaborate and define a core problem statement.

The problem statement needs to identify key areas of concern, such as inadequate road infrastructure, limited transportation options, and security issues, and prioritize them based on their impact on residents’ mobility and quality of life. The need for broader road networks could be recognized.

Thirdly, the ideation stage. The introduction of more railway systems in particular places or introducing railway systems to the island could be recognized.

Also, the introduction of a proper water transport system for going to and fro Lekki and its environs could be identified.

Engineers could suggest having another major road that leads in and out of major cities in Lagos state. Also, to reduce accidents, product engineers and designers can suggest an app that would allow motorists to report ditches and the exact spots where accidents happen(ed).

The app can have maps that are very accurate to enable government officials to get rid of the road hazard that may be causing such accidents.

Then, prototypes need to be made and tested in high-traffic areas. Engineers need to ensure that symbols are used appropriately and understood by all road officials and users.

Just like symbolism in the case of engineers, designers need to use iconography for their apps and communicate its meanings to prospective users.

Civil engineers and road workers also need to ensure that their dimensioning aligns properly with the aim of the solution. The aim of dimensioning and alignment for both engineers and designers is to specify the location and size of infrastructures and features on the road or within a digital interface.

Whether it is new transport systems or smarter traffic lights and systems, they must be tested in areas previously identified as notorious for extensive traffic. Also, they need to be tested at high-traffic times during the day to see the effect.

Lastly, the team needs to implement these solutions in real-world settings and gather feedback from residents, drivers, and traffic wardens.

The government and other stakeholders need to evaluate the outcomes of the interventions and iterate on the solutions based on lessons learned and emerging challenges.

Continuously engaging with the community ensures that the solutions remain responsive to their needs and preferences and that policies and investments are adjusted accordingly.

How We Can Take Advantage of The Design Thinking Mindset In Nigeria

Embracing the design thinking mindset in Nigeria can offer solutions to Nigeria’s multifaceted challenges. By prioritizing empathy, innovation, and collaboration, we can develop tailored solutions that align with citizens’ needs in various communities in the country.

Through iterative problem-solving and user-centric solutions, we empower individuals and organizations to drive positive change and foster sustainable development in Nigeria.

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About the Writer:

Oluwaseyi Olowu is a product designer crafting tomorrow: designing solutions today.

Five thousand, seven hundred and seventy-six (5,776) internally displaced people (IDPs) from 897 households, from Borno, Yobe and Adamawa state occupied 2,000 units of houses at Abundance Resettlement in Wassa district, Apo Area, Abuja. After fleeing the decade-long insurgency ravaging Nigeria’s North-East.

I was received into the community along with my team at about 9 am by Geoffrey Bitrus, a 42-year old farmer who has been displaced since 2014.

Bitrus, originally from Gwoza Local Government of Borno State, gave insight on health challenges women and children are facing in the community.

Residents of Abundance Resettlement rely solely on patent medicine stores popularly known as chemist stores for their healthcare. Ruth Paul, a 25-year-old fashion designer said she lost her daughter in April 2021 because she did not immediately have access to quality healthcare. 

“She stopped eating and I took her to the chemist, but it only got worse and I was referred to a hospital in Apo and later to another one in the city where she finally died,” an emotional Paul said.

Geoffrey narrated how a  young girl in the community died recently because of the same problem. Ruth, the mother of the girl, is married.

She speaks only Hausa and her husband is a commercial motorcycle rider popularly known as “okada” in farway lagos. She has been living alone on her own with their newly born 2-year old girl.

“On this day just like every other day, I came back from the farm, since the only source of energy for cooking here in the camp is firewood, I do go to the farm in the morning to get firewood.

“On that evening after we returned, I gave her food and she refused to eat. I observed her body is hot and I bathed her with cold water. The high temperature persisted and it only got worse as she became very weak. The next day I took her to the chemist on the opposite side of the road where I purchased some drugs she prescribed. I forced food down her throat since she refused but she will need to swallow the drugs prescribed for her. Few hours later around 2pm in the afternoon, she vomited and she was extremely weak at this point.

“I rushed her to the chemist who later told me to take her to one hospital along Apo road. Getting to the hospital she was admitted and examined. But instead of her health  to improve the case was just the opposite. Later the hospital discharged us and referred us to another big hospital in Abuja Central District.

“When we got there, they asked us to make an initial deposit which I could not afford before treatment could commence. We were just in the hospital unattended to. Few hours after getting to the hospital she became unconscious and the doctor and nurses could not bring her back. Few minutes later they told me my daughter was dead.”

Ruth is a very industrious young lady, she is a fashion designer, a skill she acquired before her village was invaded by Boko Haram terrorists five years ago.

She has been supporting herself and her young child before her demise with the proceeds from sewing for the community.

The same fate as Ruth awaits the rest of the women in the community. Here is another woman who is pregnant and will be delivering her child at home with support from women in the camp.

There is no telling whether she will have a safe delivery and her newborn in good hands in the absence of reliable healthcare facility.

The absence of an accessible healthcare facility exposes the people of Abundance Resettlement to great health challenge.

There is no better time than now to be their voice by telling their stories, bridging the gap between them and government intervention.

In 2021, the Nigerian refugee crisis will be going into its seventh year. Since violent attacks of the Islamist group Boko Haram started to spill over Nigeria’s north-eastern frontier in 2014, Cameroon, Chad and Niger have been drawn into what has become a devastating regional conflict.

To date, the North-Eastern part of Nigeria accounts for over 2.9 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), the largest in Sub-Saharan Africa and the third largest globally. If IDPs were a Nigerian State, they would be the 20th most populous state in Nigeria ahead of Kogi, Zamfara, Enugu, Kebbi States and Abuja’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

This crisis has been exacerbated by conflict-induced food insecurity and severe malnutrition, which have risen to critical levels in Nigeria.

The challenges of protecting the displaced are compounded by the deteriorating security situation as well as socio-economic fragility, with communities in the conflict zones facing chronic poverty, a harsh climatic conditions, recurrent epidemics, poor infrastructure and limited access to basic health services.

In 1985, Professor Olukoye Ransome-Kuti was appointed the Minister of  Health and adopted Primary Health Care (PHC) in 52 local government areas as model based on the Alma Ata Declaration of 1978.

In 1992, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency was established to ensure that the PHC agenda is Continued and sustained. Today, Nigeria has 28,276 public PHCs across 774 LGAs and FCT.

However, only 20% of these PHC facilities are functional. Studies have shown that health systems based on strong PHC improve the management of NCDs, reduce mortality from NCDs, reduce infant and under five mortality, reduce maternal mortality and increase life expectancy at birth.

However, forty three years after the declaration, Nigeria remains the second largest contributor to the maternal and child mortality globally, losing estimated 2,300 children and 145 women everyday.

Recall, On Thursday, December 30, President Muhammadu Buhari, signed the N17.16 trillion appropriation bill for 2022 into law. A sectoral breakdown of the budget indicated that N821.4 billion (5 percent) was allocated for healthcare across the 36 states of the federation including the Federal Capital Territory.  

This fractional proportion shows this administration has once again failed to meet its Abuja Declaration commitment which requires the nation to ensure that 15 percent of its annual budgetary allocation goes to the health sector.

To appropriate a paltry 5 percent of the budget to the entire country’s health sector to carter for over 200 million people at a time the nation is facing numerous health challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, cholera, malaria and other infections is a sad commentary not just on the state of the health sector, but also on how the Federal Government view the needs of the sector.

Using a per capita breakdown, it shows that only N3,987.38 was allocated to each citizen based on the current estimated population of about 206 million.

This amount sadly is not enough to cover the cost of common ailments like malaria or typhoid. It must equally be emphasised that allocating such a meager amount to the sector explains the premium placed on human lives by this administration.

“The Federal Capital Territory will spend N64,861,604,695.00 for its 2022 National Priority Projects says FCT minister Mohammed Bello with no clear amount earmarked for the health sector. Some of these priority projects include the installation of solar street lights along various roads in the satellite towns; provision of roads, water and electricity supplies to the resettlement site of Galuwyi Shere (Phase II),” stated Mr Bello. “Rehabilitation and upgrading of street lighting facilities within the FCC; Design/ construction of a dam, treatment plant, tanks and other bulk water supply infrastructure to Karshi; Abuja Light Rail Transit Phase II Addendum 1-2 (2) and the rehabilitation of federal government buildings, amongst others”.

The Greater Abuja Water supply project, he said, was a bilateral initiative to enhance water supply in the FCT, and its implementation would extend the supply of potable water to 33 districts covering Gwarimpa, one and two Utako, Dutse, Gudu Kaura, Wuye, Mabushi, Jahi, Kado, Karmo, Lokogoma, Kabusa, Dape, amongst others.

*This story was supported by the Africa Data Hub Community Journalism Fellowship.