Microsoft Considers Closure Of West Africa Operation In Nigeria

Microsoft Considers Closure Of West Africa Operation In Nigeria

In what could signify a significant setback for Nigeria’s technology sector, reports indicate that Microsoft is contemplating the closure of its African Development Centre situated in Lagos…..READ ALSO Tinubu Engages In Talks With Microsoft’s Bill Gates In Saudi Arabia

Should this decision be finalized, it would result in the displacement of approximately 200 employees, dealing a blow to the country’s technological ecosystem and potentially stunting innovation and job prospects within the sector.

Insiders within the industry, speaking to The Guardian newspaper on Tuesday, May 7, revealed that Microsoft apprised its workforce of the closure plans on Monday, May 6. Affected employees are slated to receive salary payments until June and will maintain health insurance coverage during the transition period.

Sources suggest that Nigeria’s challenging economic climate may have factored into Microsoft’s decision-making process. Notably, the closure is anticipated to impact solely the ADC’s operations in West Africa, specifically in Nigeria, with its East Africa facility in Nairobi, Kenya, remaining unaffected.

Microsoft’s African Development Centers initiative, launched in 2019 with a $100 million investment, aimed to bolster technological advancement across the continent. The Nigeria center, inaugurated in 2022, initially employed over 120 engineers, a figure that had grown to exceed 200 by the time of the closure announcement.

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