Applications open for TEF entrepreneurship programme

Applications for the fifth Entrepreneurship cycle of the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme 2019 will open on January 1.According to the Foundation, applications will be accepted on the digital networking platform for African entrepreneurs, TEFConnect – www.tefconnect.com and 1 000 selected applications will join the current 4 470 beneficiaries of the Programme. Since 2015, the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme – the only African-funded entrepreneurial catalyst of its kind – has empowered 4 470 African entrepreneurs, with seed capital of $5 000 each; twelve weeks of accelerated online business training; access to experienced mentors; and membership of Africa’s largest entrepreneurial ecosystem. Beneficiaries of the Programme have been profiled in global media, including the Forbes Africa 30 Under 30 list. They have attracted the attention of investors, as well as been recipients of awards such as the Google Impact Challenge and the Chivas’ “The Venture” Award for Social Entrepreneurs. The Entrepreneurship Programme has also facilitated exchanges between African entrepreneurs and local and global public sector leaders, investors and development partners, raising their business profiles, scaling their opportunities, showcasing their innovation and identifying ways to further strengthen the business environment in Africa. In June 2018, the Foundation convened a forum with President Emmanuel Macron of France and young African entrepreneurs. In October 2018, the Foundation was proud to have President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana and President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya address the gathering of young African entrepreneurs at the TEF Entrepreneurship Forum held in Lagos, Nigeria. The Foundation’s investment, impact and commitment to advancing entrepreneurship is predicated on the belief that Africa’s entrepreneurs hold the key to unlocking the potential of the continent and facilitating the transformation of Africa. With this objective, the Tony Elumelu Foundation launched the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme, its US$100 million flagship programme to identify over a period of 10 years, 10 000 African startups and entrepreneurs, with ideas that have the potential to transform the African continent. Its goal is to invest in businesses that together can generate at least one million new jobs and contribute at least $10 billion in new annual revenues across Africa. The TEF Entrepreneurship Programme is open to citizens and legal residents of all African countries, who run businesses based in Africa that are less than three years old. Business ideas that are yet to launch are also encouraged. One local entrepreneur, also a Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme 2018 Fellow, Omphitlhetse Botlhole told Business Trends that the Tony Elumelu Foundation has real results and has provided a lifeline for many. “Borrowing a leaf from the continental scheme can certainly benefit local youth and other disadvantaged groups,” Botlhole said, adding that “I feel that our people would have more to gain from less direct reliance on the government if they were to take up such opportunities.”