Teesas, a Nigerian edtech company, raises $1.6 million in a pre-seed round to fund pan-African expansion
Teesas, a Nigerian edtech company, raises $1.6 million in a pre-seed round to fund pan-African expansion
Teesas, a Nigerian educational technology startup, has raised $1.6 million in a pre-seed round of funding. Among those who participated in the round were Haresh Aswani, Tolaram Group's Africa managing director, as well as Olivegreen Advisory Partners, an Africa-focused venture studio, and a number of angel investors.
Teesas, a two-month-old startup, is a subscription-based learning platform that delivers lessons in both live and recorded video formats.
During a presentation on the investment, Haresh Aswani, managing director of Tolaram Group's Africa division, expressed confidence and belief in Teesas.
Teesas, the brainchild of Osayi Izedomwen, was officially launched less than two months ago as the culmination of his efforts. Development of the platform's products began in March of last year, with beta testing beginning in August of that year, and the full launch of the platform's Android-based mobile application taking place in November of that year.
The decision by Osayis to study the edtech space using India as a model can be attributed to the difference in time between product development and official launch. According to the startup, it has already received 150,000 downloads since the launch of the mobile app, with a weekly growth rate of 20%.
Teesas, which is currently based on the Nigerian educational curriculum, operates on a subscription model with a starting price of 6 dollars, or approximately 2,500 Naira. Students learn from the comfort of their own homes through live and recorded lessons.
Additionally, the startup provides local language classes in addition to the regular schoolwork. The indigenous adaptations on the app include the use of local art, food, animals, cultural practices, and languages to supplement the learning process, as well as the use of indigenous languages and cultural practices.
Teesas also has a companion app for parents called the Teesas Parents, which provides personalized content recommendations as well as real-time feedback on their child's performance in the Teesas environment.
New markets in East, Francophone and Southern Africa
Teesas plans to use the funds from the new investment to launch a marketplace that will connect learners with tutors for private lessons, as well as to broaden the range of products available in its portfolio.
Teesas will offer full-curriculum modules for learners aged up to 12 years in the future, which will assist them in studying enough to be ready for their secondary school entrance exams in the near future.
Aside from that, Teesas plans to introduce life skills training classes in the first half of next year to better prepare students for their own personal discovery. This is in addition to anti-bullying lessons, which were inspired by reports of an increasing spate of bullying in Nigeria, some of which resulted in fatalities, and are being taught.
The CEO, Osayi, also confirmed that the company's next phase of expansion will include expansion into new markets in Francophone, East, and Southern Africa, among other regions. Furthermore, he is optimistic about the future of the startup, which competes in the same market as established players such as Edukoya and ULesson.
