BEING A KEYNOTE ADDRESS PRESENTED BY PROFESSOR FRANCISCA OLADIPO, VICECHANCELLOR,
THOMAS ADEWUMI UNIVERSITY, OKO-IRESE, KWARA STATE, NIGERIA, ON THE
OCCASION OF THE LAUNCH OF THE BOOK – BEYOND ACCESS TO CAPITAL: VITAL BUSINESS
KNOWLEDGE FOR ENTREPRENEURS, BUSINESS MANAGERS, AND STARTUP INCUBATORS
AUTHORED BY MR. TUNDE OGUNJE
Date: Saturday 5th July 2025
PROTOCOL
Distinguished guests, esteemed leaders, fellow entrepreneurs, and future changemakers,
Opening:
Imagine walking into a bank today and asking for a loan, but instead of offering collateral in gold,
real estate, or securities, you place a single item on the counter: your knowledge. The banker
looks puzzled. “What’s the value of this?” they ask.
You smile and reply, “It is worth more than everything else in your vault combined.”
That banker might think you are dreaming. But in today’s economy, you would be absolutely right.
My assignment is simple, to emphasise knowledge as the new currency (Legal Tender) of Business
Success.
2. The Knowledge Revolution
We are living through the greatest economic transformation in human history. For centuries,
wealth was built on land, then on industrial machinery, then on financial capital. Today, the most
valuable companies in the world: Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Tesla, SpaceX, X (Twitter),
(and for those of us in Africa, Unicorns like Flutterwave, LemFi, Miva, etc) are not valued for their
physical assets, but for what they know and how they think.
Consider this: When Nokia dominated the mobile phone market, they had factories, distribution
networks, and billions in revenue. Yet they were overthrown not by a company with bigger
factories, but by a company with better knowledge: Apple’s understanding of user experience,
design thinking, and ecosystem integration. There was a time we had Yahoo dominate the search
engine space, then Microsoft Bing, but now Google Search Engine dominates our quest for
knowledge such that we now have regular phrases such as ‘google is your friend’, ‘Google it’, etc.
The lesson? Knowledge does not just create competitive advantage, it creates competitive
immunity.
But here is what is revolutionary about Mr. Ogunje’s message in the book, ” Beyond Access to
Capital: Vital Business Knowledge for Entrepreneurs, Business Managers, and Startup
Incubators”: He is not just talking about any knowledge but vital business knowledge, the kind
that transforms dreamers into builders, ideas into enterprises, and startups into success stories.
3. The African Context
This message resonates powerfully with us as Africans, especially those of us here at home in
Africa, where we have often been told that our primary challenge is access to capital. “If only we
had more funding,” goes the refrain, “we could compete globally.”
But look around the world. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs started with virtually no
capital. What they had was something far more precious: the right knowledge at the right time.
Jeff Bezos did not start Amazon because he had the most money, but because he understood the
knowledge that e-commerce was the future. Sara Blakely did not create Spanx, intimate apparel
company because she had venture capital, she created it because she had the knowledge of an
unmet market need.
In Africa, we have brilliant minds, innovative spirits, and pressing problems that need solving. What
we need is not just capital, but the knowledge currency that turns capital into exponential returns.
4. The Knowledge Currency Framework
So, what exactly is this knowledge currency? It operates on three fundamental principles:
First: unlike traditional money which depreciates through inflation, knowledge compounds and
appreciates through application. Every piece of business wisdom gained becomes the foundation
for the next breakthrough. When one understands customer psychology, it becomes easy to
predict market trends. When one masters financial modelling, it becomes easier to optimize
operations. Knowledge builds upon itself, creating compound returns that no bank account can
match.
Second: Knowledge Transfers Without Loss If I give you a dollar, I have one less dollar. But if I
give you knowledge, we both have it. This is why the most successful entrepreneurs become
teachers, mentors, and authors like Mr. Ogunje. They understand that sharing knowledge doesn’t
diminish their wealth; it multiplies it.
Third: Knowledge Creates Unfair Advantages In business, fair competition is actually inefficient.
You want unfair advantages: legal, ethical, but unfair nonetheless. Knowledge gives this. When
you know something your competitors do not know, when you see patterns others miss, when you
understand customers better than anyone else, you don’t just win, you dominate.
5. The Practical Application
The question is not whether knowledge is valuable, it is how we acquire, apply, and amplify it. This
is where Mr. Ogunje’s work in this book becomes invaluable.
His book doesn’t just celebrate knowledge; it provides a roadmap for acquiring the specific
knowledge that matters most: understanding markets, building teams, creating systems,
managing growth, and yes, even optimizing the use of capital when you do access it.
For the students in our audience: Your degree is not your destination, it’s your foundation. The
knowledge you build upon it will determine your altitude.
For the business leaders: Your past success is not your future security. The knowledge you acquire
today will determine your relevance tomorrow.
For the entrepreneurs: Your idea is not your competitive advantage, your knowledge about
executing that idea is.
The Call to Action
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, we stand at a remarkable moment in history. The barriers to
business success have never been lower, but the requirement for knowledge has never been
higher.
The good news? Knowledge is the most democratic form of currency ever created. It does not
discriminate by geography, background, or starting capital. It only asks one question: Are you
willing to learn?
Mr. Ogunje’s book represents more than insights, it represents investment in your knowledge
portfolio. It is a deposit in the currency that will determine your business success for decades to
come.
The question is not whether you can afford to invest in knowledge. The question is: Can you afford
not to?
Thank you, and congratulations to Mr. Ogunje on this remarkable contribution to our
entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Professor Francisca Oladipo, PhD, FBCS, FNCS, FASI, FPASRC