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The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) on Sunday, March 22, unveiled 3,200 new beneficiaries in its 2026 cohort with $5,000 empowerment grants for young African entrepreneurs.
The foundation said the entrepreneurs will be funded through Heirs Holdings Group companies, the European Commission, Semey City Development Agency, DEG, the German Development Agency and the IKEA Foundation.
It lists other partners to include UNICEF, the Dutch Government, UNDP and Rwanda's Ministry of Youth and Arts.
TEF Founder, Mr Tony Elumelu, said the Foundation's work was vital in providing access to funding, mentorship, coaching, training and resources to catalyze entrepreneurial businesses.
Elumelu said the idea was to advance job creation, poverty alleviation and inclusive economic empowerment across the African continent.
“We are doing this because we want to live up to our mantra and our love of democratizing love, democratizing prosperity and most importantly being a vital part of the communities where we operate.
“The more prosperity we spread and share, the more we unite young Africans, realizing that one person alone cannot change Africa. At the end of the day the money in our bank account does not matter.
“The better thing to do is to help, to set up a mechanism to spread prosperity, to ensure that some people do not suffer.
“The best thing we can do is support young entrepreneurs. So, I congratulate our 3,200 beneficiaries. But more importantly, we need your success. Your success will make a difference,” he said.
He commended President Bola Tinubu for creating the enabling environment for economic empowerment and his commitment to young entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Also speaking, TEF Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Somachi Chris-Asoluka said the foundation has distributed over $100 million since its inception in 2015 to 24,000 young men and women who have started and grown businesses across Africa.
Chris-Asoluka said the entrepreneurs collectively created 1.5 million jobs, and generated $4.2 billion in revenue, lifting 3.1 million Africans above the poverty line.
According to him, 4.1 million families have been positively impacted.
“We've seen entrepreneurs become employers; we've seen founders become leaders who are bringing innovation and prosperity to diverse communities.
He said, “We all know that entrepreneurship is a difficult journey. We know that entrepreneurs will need mentors who can advise, nurture and guide them.”
The TEF CEO thanked Tokyo Web Foundation for providing mentors who use their knowledge, insight and intelligence to support young entrepreneurs.
He said TEF will distribute more than $16 million to support, train, fund, coach and mentor 3,200 selected young African entrepreneurs from across the continent.
He said agriculture remains a big sector in which entrepreneurs have invested.
“Another big area is retail. It also has AI, ICT and technology. So, entrepreneurs are already thinking about how to build a large-scale business in artificial intelligence.
“We also see huge interest in the green economy, waste recycling and obviously education and healthcare,” he said.
The highlight of the program was the introduction to the audience of six of the program's highest-flying alumni from the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Kenya, Algeria, Mali and Nigeria.
He is said to have transformed funding, training, mentorship and coaching into leading businesses across the continent.
By Qadiri Abdulrahman