Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Africa
AfricaNewsWorld

African Entrepreneur Tony Elumelu Pledges to Create a Million Jobs in Africa Over Next Decade

Posted byBy Megan Reed | Published on: CommentsComments (3)

Africa’s drive to tackle the crisis of youth unemployment and discourage the continent’s teeming youths from being ready tools in the hands of war mongers and troubleshooters received a boost yesterday as top Nigerian entrepreneur and philanthropist, Tony Elumelu, announced plans to create an initial 1,000,000 jobs over the next ten years in all 54 countries in the continent.

Addressing a world press conference yesterday in Lagos, Elumelu said the $100 million Pan-African entrepreneurship initiative is “aimed at laying the groundwork for thousands of businesses to grow and flourish across the continent,” while “creating new partnerships and trade routes both within Africa and internationally.”

According to him, “the program represents a decade-long commitment to support 10,000 African entrepreneurs and startups,” stressing that it is open to entrepreneurs from all 54 African countries. “Over the next 10 years, our goal is to create 10,000 African-owned businesses, generating 1,000,000 jobs and contributing $10 billion to revenues across Africa,” he added.

There are no bounds regarding the categories of entrepreneurs to sponsor. Rather, the program will seek out and support the growth of African entrepreneurs in any sector or field. “We are building an ecosystem to identify and cross-pollinate grassroots innovation across Africa, sparking intra-African trade and accelerating success,” he explained.

Elumelu is confident that the program will also promote the role of African entrepreneurs within the global chain and put African innovators front and center on the global stage.

Beneficiaries of the program who will be drawn from across the continent will be given $10,000 dollars each to start a business, in addition to skill acquisition training provided by the Tony Elumelu Foundation.

The online application portal for the 2015 round of entrees will open on 1 January and close on 1 March. Prospective entrepreneurs (applicants) are advised to access: www.tonyelumelufoudation.org”

Source: sunnewsonline.com

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top