The Tony Elumelu Foundation opens applications for 2025 Entrepreneurship Programmes

The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), Africa’s leading champion of entrepreneurship, has announced the opening of applications for its 2025 Entrepreneurship Programmes.

A statement from the foundation sais aspiring and existing entrepreneurs from across Africa are invited to apply for a chance to receive world-class training, expert mentoring, and non-refundable seed capital funding to scale their businesses.

The statement explained clearly that the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme is open to all entrepreneurs across Africa with innovative business ideas or existing businesses not older than five years.

It adds that this year, there is a special emphasis on businesses leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) and green initiatives, emphasising that applicants must be at least 18 years old.

The foundation also said  the IYBA-WE4A Entrepreneurship Programme launched by the Tony Elumelu Foundation in partnership with the European Union (EU) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), IYBA-WE4A “stands for Investing in Young Businesses in Africa – Women Entrepreneurship for Africa and is exclusively for women entrepreneurs with green business ideas or existing green businesses in Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, Cameroon, Kenya, Mozambique, Malawi, and Togo.

“Applicants must be at least 18 years old, with businesses not exceeding five years in operation.

It announces Aguka Ideation Programme which in partnership with the Tony Elumelu Foundation, UNDP Rwanda and the Rwandan Ministry of Youths and Arts to support young Rwandan entrepreneurs between 18 -30 with business ideas with a seed capital of $3000, with the aim of nurturing and developing innovative concepts into viable enterprises.

TEF platform said applications are to be submitted through TEF’s proprietary digital hub, TEFConnect, between January 1, 2025 and March 1, 2025.

The foundation stressed that the only African entrepreneurs with scalable business ideas or existing businesses not older than five years will be considered.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation is the leading philanthropy empowering a new generation of African entrepreneurs, driving poverty eradication, catalysing job creation across all 54 African countries, and increasing women economic empowerment.

Founded in 2010, the Tony Elumelu Foundation is committed to empowering African entrepreneurs as a catalyst for the continent’s economic transformation.