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From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) has said agriculture, fashion, and information and communication technology (ICT) emerged as the leading sectors in its 2026 entrepreneur cohort funded under a $16 million grant.
The foundation also disclosed that women account for the majority of the new beneficiaries, while 30 per cent are drawn from rural areas, reflecting a push for gender inclusion and wider access to opportunities.
The announcement was made during the unveiling of the 2026 cohort in Abuja at the weekend.
Speaking at the event, Founder of TEF, Mr Tony Elumelu, said Africa’s future depends on empowering entrepreneurs, stressing that governments alone cannot drive the continent’s development.
He noted that the foundation’s philosophy of Afrocapitalism is centred on creating economic opportunities, reducing poverty, and spreading prosperity through enterprise.
According to him, “No one but us will develop Africa. The future of our continent is in your hands. The greatest betrayal of our young generation is if we fail to create jobs for them.
“What we do is not because we have so much, but because we believe in creating opportunities for others to succeed.”
In her remarks, Chief Executive Officer of TEF, Somachi Chris-Asoluka, said the 2026 programme will support 3,200 young entrepreneurs across Africa, with each beneficiary receiving $5,000 in non-refundable seed capital, alongside business training, mentorship, coaching, and access to networks.
She disclosed that the initiative will be implemented in four cohorts throughout the year in collaboration with global partners including the IKEA Foundation, UNICEF’s Generation Unlimited, the Dutch government, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Rwanda Ministry of Youth and Arts, the European Union, and German development agencies.
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Chris-Asoluka noted that the programme attracted over 260,000 applications, demonstrating the growing entrepreneurial drive among young Africans, while a rigorous five-stage selection process combining technology and expert review ensured transparency and fairness.
According to her, after multiple screening stages, the final cohort represents all 54 African countries, with about 75 per cent aged between 18 and 35.
She added that the cohort spans key sectors including agriculture, ICT, fashion, food and beverage, as well as emerging areas such as green economy, healthcare, and education.
Chris-Asoluka further revealed that the foundation has strengthened its training modules to include artificial intelligence, stressing that African entrepreneurs must embrace innovation to remain competitive globally.
She emphasised that small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) remain central to solving Africa’s unemployment challenge, noting that entrepreneurship is critical to achieving large-scale job creation.
The TEF CEO also highlighted the foundation’s impact since inception in 2015, stating that over $100 million has been disbursed to more than 24,000 entrepreneurs, who have collectively generated over $4.2 billion in revenue and created about 1.5 million jobs, while positively impacting more than 4.2 million households.
She said: “We received over 260,000 applications from across the continent. 260,000 visions for a better, brighter future. Our selection process is built on structured criteria, blind scoring, and multiple independent reviews to ensure fairness and transparency.
“Only entrepreneurs can create the jobs at the scale Africa needs. It is not governments or big businesses that will create the millions of jobs our continent desperately needs.
“We are equipping our entrepreneurs not just with funding, but with business management training, AI knowledge, mentorship, and access to networks to help them succeed.”
