The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) is excited that we have closed a key milestone – the selection and the announcement of the 2016 cohort of the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme, drawn from across Africa. It was an eye-opener and made us realize more than ever before, the brilliance and passion of young people across the continent and the confidence they have shown in taking a major step to actualize their dreams, by applying for this programme.
The selected entrepreneurs are eager to start the next phase, just as we are also eager to start the training with them. The twelve-week learning phase of the programme will commence on 1st of May. We are finalizing three major things:
One, we are updating the training content on the Mentor Learning Platform (MLP) so that it enriches the overall experience of each entrepreneur. Last year, we noticed that some of the entrepreneurs felt they needed more training in the area of financial literacy and so we have updated that, improving clarity and depth of the existing material.
The second thing we are doing is selecting more mentors. We now have a pool of additional seasoned intellectuals and dedicated professionals going through the screening and final selection process to pick the eventual mentors. Afterwards, we will then match them closely with the entrepreneurs based on various factors such as language, sector, gender, geographical location and a few other criteria to be specified. Mentors from last year’s cohort have been retained and the new ones who have joined, are also rearing to go.
Lastly, prior to the commencement of the training, we will do an on-boarding for the entrepreneurs as well as the mentors so that they are all familiar with the platform, they understand the demands and the requirements of the 12-week period and that going forward, they understand the converging relationship between both.
We are already positive that this year’s startup toolkit training will be beneficial to all entrepreneurs as well as the mentors who are eager to begin the programme.
We have gathered nuggets from last year and we’ve put together a documentary that highlights, the energy, the passion and some of the results that we’re beginning to have. It also shows the direction that the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme is channeling Africa’s potential into and encapsulates the remarkable journey that it has been, in transforming one idea into a giant oak that’s providing shelter and succor for the many brilliant ideas across Africa.
This documentary, which will soon be available for public viewing, is the story of one man’s vision to accelerate Africa’s transformation. It is the story of the work that we do at the Tony Elumelu Foundation, to make that vision reality.
Author
Abimbola Jimi-Adebakin is the Chief Operations Officer (COO) at Tony Elumelu Foundation. She is a versatile Organisational Design and Project Manager with over 17 years experience in the financial and healthcare services sectors. She has a passion for business sustainability, and human capacity development.
