After five years in charge, Adewale Yusuf is handing over the top job. His co-founder will lead the edtech into a new phase.
Adewale Yusuf has stepped down as CEO of AltSchool Africa. Co-founder Akintunde Sultan takes over at once. Yusuf says he will stay involved in a leadership role. The shift in focus is clear: the firm will now put more weight on the value it gives its users than on how many it signs up.
Yusuf founded the company in 2021 with Sultan and Opeyemi Awoyemi. He says the time was right to hand over. “It’s time for me to move away and actually support the team from maybe the director and leadership point,” he told Techpoint Africa. “I just realised that it would be good for my co-founder to take over, and I can now spend more time with my family here in the US.”
AltSchool Africa has reached more than 200,000 users under Yusuf. Sultan says the next phase will focus less on growing that number. It will focus more on giving existing users greater value.
One project to drive that shift is Degree. Through it, AltSchool Africa works with universities to offer degree paths, in the way platforms such as edX do. Today, the firm offers courses through the American Open University of Nigeria and Germany’s Tomorrow University. Students can study fields from cybersecurity to information technology.
Degree builds on a long-held goal. AltSchool Africa wants to close the gap between alternative learning and formal university qualifications. In 2022, it explored a partnership with Michael and Cecilia Ibru University. With Sultan now at the helm, the firm plans to grow beyond skills training and make its offers more valuable.
Why it matters: Many young Africans learn tech skills online, but employers and families still value degrees. AltSchool Africa is trying to bring both together. A handover between co-founders also suggests the company wants a steady path, not a sharp turn. The test is whether deeper value for 200,000 users can matter as much as growing the number.
What to watch next: how fast Degree adds partner universities and students, any new course areas, and whether Sultan sets out targets for the next phase.
Sources: The Condia on AltSchool Africa’s new schools; AltSchool Africa, degree pathways; TechCabal on AltSchool’s $1 million pre-seed round; quotes from Yusuf were first reported by Techpoint Africa.
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