The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), the leading African philanthropy committed to empowering African entrepreneurs, Friday announced 3,050 African entrepreneurs, drawn from all 54 African countries, selected to join the 5th cycle of its $100million TEF Entrepreneurship Programme.
The announcement was made at the Transcorp Hilton Abuja, following a presentation of the selection process by Accenture Development Partners.
This year, over 216,000 applications were received, an increase from last year’s 151,000. Nearly 90,000 were submitted by female entrepreneurs, an increase of 45%, illustrating the Foundation’s strategy to achieve greater gender balance.
In Uganda, the number of selected applicants grew from 165 applicants in 2018 to 259 applicants in 2019 with entrepreneurs running businesses majorly in the agriculture and manufacturing industries.
The selected Entrepreneurs will each receive non-refundable $5,000 of seed capital, access to mentors, and a 12 – week business training programme, directly focused on the needs of African entrepreneurs. On July 26 – 27 2019, they will gather at the TEF Entrepreneurship Forum, the largest annual gathering of African entrepreneurs and the entrepreneurship ecosystem on the continent.
TEF Founder, Tony O. Elumelu, CON, who celebrated his birthday on the same day, said: “Every year, we face an almost impossible task – to select 1,000 entrepreneurs, from the hundreds of thousands that apply. Our entrepreneurs are hungry to effect change. We know we are only scratching the surface, we see the depth of entrepreneurial talent, that all of us – government, business indeed African society, must harness to transform our economies and livelihoods. We must rally together to empower them and accelerate the change we want on the continent”.
In her speech, Her Excellency, Mrs. Aisha Buhari, the wife of the President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, commended the Programme’s impact on the continent, charging the selected entrepreneurs to contribute to the advancement of the African continent.
“Indeed, I am confident that these Tony Elumelu entrepreneurs will inspire deep confidence and be of immense value not just to Nigeria but to the entire continent,” she said.
Speaking on the announcement, the incoming CEO, Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu, said, “The Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme has successfully empowered 7,520 entrepreneurs in its first five years of the 10- year programme.’’
Marking the fifth anniversary of the 10-year programme, this year’s selection includes 2,050 entrepreneurs, supported by the Foundation’s partners in addition to the Foundation’s annual commitment of 1,000, bringing the total number of entrepreneurs empowered by the Foundation to date to 7,520.
Last year, we launched TEFConnect – the digital networking platform for African entrepreneurs and open to all – to further democratize the access to opportunities for the thousands of entrepreneurs that cannot directly benefit from our Entrepreneurship Programme. This further demonstrates our commitment to empowering our entrepreneurs and our belief that entrepreneurship holds the key to unleashing the true potential of the African continent”, she said.
The Foundation’s growing list of partners includes the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Federal Republic of Benin (Seme City), the Anambra State Government, Indorama, the Government of Botswana and the African Development Bank (AfDB).
For a list of the selected 2019 Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurs and information on our applicants, please visit tefconnect.com.
Wife to Nigeria President, Mrs Aisha Buhari (4th left); Founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation(TEF), Mr. Tony Elumelu (5th right); Trustee, TEF; Dr Awele Elumelu (3rd Right); flanked from Extreme left by Incoming CEO, TEF, Mrs Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu; Outgoing CEO, Mrs Parminder Vir; Israel Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Shalom Ben-Shoshan; Deputy Ambassador of Kenya to Nigeria, Amb. Yvonne, Yamati; and Amanyanabo of Okpoama Kingdom, Chief Ebitimi Banigo during the announcement of 3,050 entrepreneurs of the 5th cycle of Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme held in Abuja on Friday
Wife to the President of Nigeria, Mrs Aisha Buhari(3rd right); Founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation(TEF), Mr. Tony Elumelu(5th right; and Trustee , TEF; Dr Awele Elumelu(2nd right) flanked from extreme left by the representatives of partners by Head Marketing and Communications, CEDA Botswana Mrs Anno Tshipa; Resident Representative of UNDP in Nigeria, Khardiata Lo Ndiaye; Director, Human Capital Youth and Skills, African Development Bank(AfDB), Mrs Olle Dibba Wadda; and Managing Director, Seme City Develiopment Agency, Claude Borna, during the announcement of 3,050 entrepreneurs of the 5th cycle of Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme held in Abuja on Friday
Founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation(TEF), Mr. Tony Elumelu; Wife to the President of Nigeria, Mrs Aisha Buhari; and Trustee , TEF; Dr Awele Elumelu, during the announcement of 3,050 entrepreneurs of the 5th cycle of Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme held in Abuja on Friday
L-R: Incoming CEO, Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), Mrs Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu; Outgoing CEO, Mrs Parminder Vir; Wife to the President of Nigeria, Mrs Aisha Buhari; Founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation(TEF), Mr. Tony Elumelu; and Trustee, TEF; Dr Awele Elumelu, during the announcement of 3,050 entrepreneurs of the 5th cycle of Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme held in Abuja on Friday
- Tony Elumelu Foundation directly funds 1,000 entrepreneurs and an additional 2,050 beneficiaries supported by Foundation’s partners.
- TEF Entrepreneurship Forum – Africa’s largest entrepreneurship convening – to be held on July 26-27.
