Temidayo Ojo replaces Sunil Natraj as Jumia Nigeria CEO 

Jumia, Africa’s leading e-commerce platform, has appointed Temidayo Ojo as the new Chief Executive Officer for its pivotal Nigerian market. The move, effective immediately, sees Ojo succeed Sunil Natraj, who departs after a 19-month tenure.

Ojo steps into the role after heading Jumia Ghana. His appointment signals Jumia’s intention to empower local leaders and develop talent from within its organisation as it fights to regain profitability. 

“I am deeply honoured to be entrusted with the leadership of Jumia Nigeria, a market that holds immense potential and strategic importance,“ Ojo said while he accepted his appointment.

“As someone who grew up in Nigeria and understands the unique needs of our customers and partners, this role is deeply personal to me.”

Natraj, who previously served as CEO of Jumia Ghana, was appointed to head Jumia Nigeria in December 2023 following a broader leadership shuffle that aimed to consolidate the company’s African operations. His 19-month tenure was marked by efforts to stabilise Nigeria’s unit, especially amid inflation, rising logistics costs, and intensified competition from local players and global entrants. However, the group continued to report quarterly losses, with Nigeria remaining its toughest market due to persistent macroeconomic headwinds.

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“We are grateful for Sunil’s leadership, particularly in leading the turnaround of our largest operation. We wish him the very best,” said Francis Dufay,Jumia Group CEO

With e-commerce adoption in Nigeria still hindered by poor infrastructure and consumer trust issues, Jumia is betting that local leadership with strong execution may deliver better outcomes. Ojo’s prior success within the company suggests a focus on simplifying operations and doubling down on logistics and pay-on-delivery reliability.

Jumia’s struggles have been well documented by Condia. Once dubbed “Africa’s Amazon,” the company has faced mounting scepticism over its pan-African strategy, high burn rates, and slow path to profitability. Despite exiting loss-making markets like Cameroon, Rwanda, and Tanzania in recent years, Nigeria remains both its largest opportunity and biggest operational headache.

As Jumia Nigeria enters another leadership chapter, the spotlight will be on whether Ojo can steer the Nigerian arm of the business into a self-sustaining, scalable e-commerce engine before the 2027 deadline.