Project:Sandbox

Jonpaul Nnamdi Opara was born on August 18, 1990, and hails from Imo State, Nigeria. He is currently a doctoral student at Ehime University Japan and a board member of the Nigerian Chambers of Commerce and Industry Japan. Previously, he was the coordinator of the Japanese division of Kakehashi Africa, a network of African professionals who studied in Japan with the sole purpose of connecting the Japanese and African markets. He holds a diploma in Japanese development strategies from the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS). Jonpaul has served as chairman of the Ehime University International Students Association and has received awards for his work in entrepreneurship and academic research. He has been certified by the African Management Institute and is a trained entrepreneur with the Nigerian Bank of Industry under the Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme, a program that trains young Nigerians with great entrepreneurial potential.

Career
Jonpaul is also the co-founder of an emerging tech company 'AFRITS' (African IT Solutions), a tech company that aims to use information technology to find solutions to Africa's pressing challenges. One of their apps 'DAP' (Delivered as Promised), an app designed to eliminate rampant fraud in the online marketplace and enable flexible payments for goods and services, will launch later this year (2021).

Prior to founding AFRITS, Jonpaul was active in the local business scene in Nigeria, achieving numerous successes in various sectors such as agriculture, education, construction, mining, information technology, etc. He has a knack for finding solutions to pressing challenges.

Early Life
During his time at the university, he and his team authored a book titled Essentials of General Studies, a book tailored to address the massive failure in general studies programs. He also single-handedly organized the Sleep Aid Project, a project that helped students buy mattresses and mosquito nets at very affordable prices. While studying in Japan, he managed to secure a 5 million yen investment for an agricultural development project in Nigeria to grow and process corn, as well as a potential technology transfer with Telefarms Japan. He also initiated the sale and shipment of over 70 vehicles to Nigeria as test runs for the establishment of a logistics company in Nigeria. He is also the lead consultant for the ongoing land reclamation project in Lekki, Lagos Nigeria where the "little city of Tokyo" is to be built.