The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), the leading philanthropy empowering young African entrepreneurs from all 54 African countries, has announced the successful entrepreneurs in its tenth selection for the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme.
37 Kenyans among the 1,104 African entrepreneurs are set to receive non-refundable USD 5,000 seed capital as beneficiaries of the Foundation’s Entrepreneurship Programme in 2024.
This new cohort brings to 20,000, the number of young African entrepreneurs who have received funding, mentoring, and capacity-building support from the Foundation. The Tony Elumelu Foundation has disbursed US$100,000,000 directly to young African entrepreneurs, who have created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs, contributing significantly to Africa’s economic growth and development.
45% of these beneficiaries are women, reiterating the Foundation’s commitment to gender inclusion and equity.
Tony Elumelu Foundation beneficiaries in Kenya include Stella Sigana, founder of Alternative Waste Technologies from Kenya, which produces fuel briquettes by converting organic and charcoal waste from slum settlements, and dedicates a portion of the revenues to providing education, skills training, and job placement for adolescent girls and young women aged 18-24.
Since her selection, Stella has created over 12 jobs and recycled over 500 tons of waste into fuel briquettes for cooking. Her business model has also empowered hundreds of women entrepreneurs in slum settlements in Kenya, enabling them to build businesses by selling her products directly to their communities, thus significantly increasing household income and well-being.
Since its inception in 2010, the Tony Elumelu Foundation has pioneered an innovative approach to seeding, capacitising and networking young entrepreneurs across Africa. Drawing directly from Founder Tony Elumelu’s entrepreneurial journey, the Foundation democratises luck, spreads opportunity and has developed a bespoke infrastructure that reaches every country in Africa.
The robust ability of the Foundation to reach entrepreneurs across geographies and sectors has enabled it to conduct innovative partnerships with the European Union (EU), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the US Government via the United States African Development Foundation (USADF), the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), the French Development Agency (AFD), the German Development Finance Institution (DEG), the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the African Development Bank (AfDB).
“As we mark a decade of impact, I am immensely proud of the incredible journey we have embarked on. Our entrepreneurs represent the driving force behind Africa’s economic transformation, and their resilience, determination, and innovation continue to inspire us all. The future of our continent is brighter because of their efforts,” Tony Elumelu said.
Ms Mary Mulili, Designate MD/CEO UBA Kenya speaking at the announcement event in Nairobi Kenya emphasized, “In Kenya, a total of Seven hundred and eighty-two entrepreneurs have been beneficiaries of the seed capital. The entrepreneurs represent diverse sectors such as Agriculture, waste management, ICT and Manufacturing. This reflects our commitment to nurturing the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Kenya and Africa as a whole. At UBA Kenya, we are committed to continue supporting these Entrepreneurs to grow their businesses even beyond the seed capital investment.”
As part of the Tony Elumelu Foundation’s commitment to supporting young Africans, the Women Entrepreneurship For Africa (WE4A), a partnership between the European Union, GIZ and TEF, is currently open.
African entrepreneurs are encouraged to apply to these initiatives to receive training, mentorship, access to networks, and funding.
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