Hosting the Largest Gathering of African Entrepreneurs

With sixty percent of its population aged under 30, Africa is the youngest continent in the world.

When we first conceived the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, it was borne out of an ardent belief that the private sector, and especially our young entrepreneurs – is the key to the economic and social transformation of Africa. This is rooted in my inclusive economic philosophy – Africapitalism.

Armed with this belief and the knowledge that transformation occurs at the sweet spot where enterprise meets luck, I made a $100 million commitment to democratize luck by empowering 10,000 African entrepreneurs across all 54 African countries over 10 years. The math was ambitious but achievable – by empowering these entrepreneurs, we would create one million jobs and generate $1 billion in revenue.

In its fifth year, the Programme has proven beyond doubt that when you empower African entrepreneurs, you transform an entire continent. Partners including African Countries, the International Red Cross and the UN – have identified our approach as a unique, tried and tested avenue to creating the change we need on the continent at the scale we desire. In collaboration with them, we have been able to onboard over 2000 additional entrepreneurs to the programme.

In my travels across Africa, I have been privileged to interact closely with these passionate young men and women who – empowered with USD$5000 seed capital, training and mentoring, and access to markets and networking opportunities provided by the Tony Elumelu Foundation – are at the vanguard of social and economic change. They are industry builders and job creators. In their respective countries, these entrepreneurs are pioneering conversations about the new face of Africa in the 21st century and bottom up development approaches that work for the continent, Through their businesses, they are proving beyond doubt the transformative power of entrepreneurship.

This July, at the Tony Elumelu Foundation over 5000 participants will engage in these conversations at the 5th edition of its Entrepreneurship Forum which will hold at the iconic Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.  The annual Forum is the largest convening of African entrepreneurs in the world.

I will moderate a Founder’s Presidential Dialogue with President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, President Macky Sall of Senegal and President Felix Tshisekedi of Congo, alongside the Presidents of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Export-Import Bank (AFREXIM). This dialogue is a platform for entrepreneurs to directly interact with and interrogate their presidents in an open environment.

Networking opportunities with policy makers at the highest levels of government and intergovernmental organisations, investors, civil society leaders, innovators and global leaders of industry asides; the Entrepreneurship Forum is where conversations on progressive governmental policies will be initiated and crystallised.

Entrepreneurs do not just need capital, they need the right enabling environment for success – conducive policies, no red tape and bureaucracy, and a transparent and fair system. They need aspiration and guidance, they need debate and mental stimulus. With insightful plenary sessions, master classes and ancillary events featuring global shapers and thought leaders, conversations from the Forum will establish entrepreneurship and Africapitalism as the guiding framework for transformative and sustainable development in Africa.

Whether you are a young entrepreneur living within or outside Africa, an executive interested in doing business here or a policymaker seeking a platform to engage directly with other policymakers and business influencers, I look forward to receiving you at this year’s Entrepreneurship Forum.

If you cannot make it, I encourage you to register to watch the entire session live HERE.

You can also join the conversation online using the hashtag #TEFforum2019.