The Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation, an affiliate of Erth Zayed, and the United Arab Emirates Office of Development Affairs have inked a $6 million partnership agreement with the Tony Elumelu Foundation to offer another 1,000 young African entrepreneurs non-refundable $5,000 seed capital, business training, mentorship, and network access.
The deal demonstrated the partners’ shared commitment to promoting economic development and entrepreneurship throughout Africa, according to a statement signed on Wednesday by Moyo Awotile, Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications, TEF.
Tony Elumelu, the founder of TEF, and Mohamed Haji Al Khoori, the director general of the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation, signed the deal during the World Governments Summit.
While the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation focusses on humanitarian and developmental projects, including healthcare, education, enterprise development, and economic empowerment, the Tony Elumelu Foundation is a philanthropic organisation that empowers young African entrepreneurs from all 54 African countries.
The Tony Elumelu Foundation’s experience and execution skills in promoting entrepreneurship through the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Program, which has led the way in business management training, mentorship, and capital funding for African entrepreneurs, will be utilised by the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation as part of this collaboration, the statement said.
“Encouraging businesses is a calculated investment in Africa’s future as well as a moral obligation. Africa’s entrepreneurial genius is being unleashed, poverty is being eradicated, self-reliance is being encouraged, and the path to inclusive progress and prosperity on the continent is being cleared by giving them the required access to resources, financing, and mentorship.
“This collaboration between the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation and the Tony Elumelu Foundation not only embodies our common goal of empowering Africa’s next generation of business leaders, but it will also hasten economic change throughout the continent,” Elumelu said.
Young entrepreneurs in Africa who have creative company ideas or who have already established a business that is no more than five years old are encouraged to apply to the Tony Elumelu Foundation in order to get funding, networks, mentorship, and training.
