After losing her father in his early life, Mechi Amaah had to look after pigs and sell them under her mother’s supervision to provide for their necessities. Upon getting to the university, she did business selling various things to make ends meet and decided to settle on manufacturing and selling hair products solely. 

How Mechi started with the cosmetic business idea

Mechi founded Black and Natural Cosmetics, a 100% organic cosmetic manufacturing company aimed to encourage the consumption of organic hair cosmetics, initially and subsequently, skin cosmetics. To join environmental protection and sustainable development, Black and Natural Cosmetics derives all its ingredients from plants, some of which are organically processed.

Mechi Amaah was about expanding his business when COVID-19 pandemic hit the world and everywhere was under lockdown. However, the seed capital she got from the foundation enabled her to diversify and employ 2 more workers, thereby saving her business from liquidation. Coupled with the training received on the programme on business management, she has been able to take her business to another level and created a high level of impact in her community.

“The training the program offered, helped me to keep tabs on my mission, vison and most importantly, my finances. Ever since the program, I can proudly say the books of my businesses are in order.”

Funding for Mechi’s cosmetic business idea

Since getting the grant, she has employed 4 more staff to help with her business and now has 7 employees working directly under her. Also, her annual revenue has increased by 70%, with her opening two other companies and awards to her name.

“To give back to my community, i have created jobs and am currently working on an accelerator program to train young girls with vocational training skills that can enable them gain employment or start up their own business. This will go a long way to reduce unemployment in my community and country.”

Being a graduate of accounting, she helps budding entrepreneurs set their accounts straight and helps them plan their business. Currently, she has built a community of about 30 entrepreneurs. These will go a long way to reducing unemployment in her community and country.

ABOUT THE TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION


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 ensuring inclusive economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has trained over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFconnect, and disbursed nearly USD$100 million in direct funding to 18,000 African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs. The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.

The post Meet 2019 TEF Alumni, Mechi Amaah who is into production of organic and eco-friendly cosmetics appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

In Nigeria, the supply or provision of public drinking water is not reliable. Ground water and pipe-borne water are the major sources of drinking water. These sources are said to be unsafe sources of drinking water because findings indicated that groundwater sources contain trace elements, dissolved solids and pathogens in excessive quantities that may be dangerous to the health of the people.

Identifying the clean water problem

The realization of the renewed global commitments toward the millennium Development Goals (MDGs) required the development of locally sourced alternative low-cost drinking water schemes that will provide sustainable access to safe drinking water in both rural and urban settings in developing countries (UNDESA, 2004). 

Sachet water belongs to the lower consumption segment in the beverage and water sector. However, it accounts for about 70% of total packaged water sold in Nigeria and only about 18% of urban households in Nigeria depend on packaged sachet water as the primary source of drinking water.

Fund for his Clean Sachet Water Business Idea

This challenges and the need to address them prompted Olusegun to set up Dotsom Enterprise, a company that produces quality and hygienic sachet water.

Dotsom Enterprise is an approved firm that wants to solve the problems of clean water scarcity by providing unique, innovative, and wholesome sachet water with 20 percent extra value at same price with competitors to meet rising needs for wholesome and affordable water in satisfactory quantity.

“The rising demand for wholesome water particularly during hot weather in my locality and its environs is yet to be adequately met as many are always in search of clean and affordable water at every season. The present supply cannot meet popular demand. Hence, my firm is strategizing to meet these needs by introducing 70cl sachet water which represents 20% – 30% extra value to customers as against competitors’ 50cl/60cl that are currently available in the marketplace.”

Olusegun decided to be an entrepreneur for the passion he had for it and ultimately to meet the needs for wholesome sachet water in his locality. He was motivated by the inadequacy of quality sachet water in his community.

“I wanted to change the situation of shortage of good sachet water in my community with my business. This was so important because it has direct impact on the health situations of the people in my locality.”

Currently, he has 11 people under his direct employ and generates revenue ranging from $500 to $600 monthly, and the company’s market share has increased by 20%. With this, the transmission of diseases like cholera, diarrhoea, hepatitis A, typhoid, and polio, which causes the death of 100,000 children under the age of 5 in Nigeria yearly, is greatly reduced.

“The TEF programme has indeed helped me realized my dream of meeting the needs for wholesome and quality sachet water in my locality. Most importantly, the TEF training, funding and mentorship have made a   whole lot of difference and greatly changed my entire life.”

Olusegun has explored the opportunity of becoming a consultant to others in the field of water production. He is also tutoring potential entrepreneurs on how to kick start a successful business venture.

ABOUT THE TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION


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 ensuring inclusive economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has trained over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFconnect, and disbursed nearly USD$100 million in direct funding to 18,000 African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs. The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.

The post Meet 2019 TEF Alumni, Olusegun Ayodele who was funded for his sachet water business idea appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Identifying this problem

While growing up, Jonathan saw his mom engaged in petty trading in a bid to make ends meet, while his brothers were actively engaged in schooling with the aim of improving their chances in order to get good jobs. At the same time, he saw his mom and other traders make wholesome daily profits, as a result he decided to be an entrepreneur so that he will not only make money but provide jobs for the people around him.

Jonathan Azua owns a Luxuriant cleaning and maintenance company the company that aims at giving customers a higher cleaning experience, this clear promise of value helped to incentivize their first users, even today, this has remained their message and an integral part of their organizational culture. The nexus and common theme of the organization is how to make a difference in the lives of customers, users, and stakeholders.

Seed Capital for Cleaning and Maintenance Business

For Jonathan, the training and the seed capital provided by the programme was a turning point in his entrepreneurship journey.

“Two things stood out for me in the TEF program, the training and the seed capital. Before the training I was managing a business in the informal sector, while I was largely successful at that level, I never knew there were things I was doing wrong, for example, the training helped me to understand important concepts such as corporate governance and structure, it kind of covered something small about everything a business is all about, the training armed me with the knowledge I needed to succeed at scale.

Also, he believes seed capital was a huge leverage, which was a tool for him to achieve his dream. When he started out, he made up his mind that this may be the only business fund he may ever have, so he would not fail himself. He went about investing with that mindset, and as of today, he has about 5 companies in his group just from a single seed, and he believes that the future holds much more for his business in abundance in terms of revenue generation and impact.

“The seed capital changed my life forever, all that I will ever become in life is tied to that seed capital.”

The group makes in excess of $10,000 annually in revenue generation, with over 20 direct and indirect employees.

Currently, they are expanding beyond their primary geographic market segment (Yobe state), as they attempt to become a national player by opening outlets in strategic markets.

“We are proud to be an employer of labour seeing that our country is grappling with an unprecedented unemployment rate, while making money is good business, beyond that, we are proud of being able to gainfully employ people and taking them out of the street, as a result. We see our contributions to the country’s GDP as the hallmark of our work, while our ability to provide goods and services that solve customers’ problems daily has been resounding and encouraging.”

ABOUT THE TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION


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 ensuring inclusive economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has trained over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFconnect, and disbursed nearly USD$100 million in direct funding to 18,000 African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs. The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.

The post Meet 2017 TEF Alumni, Jonathan Azua Who is creating jobs through cleaning and maintenance business appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

The demand for African designs, textiles, and garments is increasing within and beyond the continent. Currently, in sub-Saharan Africa, the combined apparel and footwear market is estimated at USD 31 billion. The textile industry in Africa is estimated to grow at a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of ~5% over the forecast period of 2019–2024. 

Identifying this problem

Gladys is a young award-winning creative entrepreneur who is well known for her bespoke, eco-friendly, handmade Ankara notebooks and gift set. She has managed to use her love for art in an extraordinary way. In her quest to challenge the status quo, fighting against discrimination and stigma, Gladys successfully elevated the crafts industry, proving that it is a viable industry and that the craft business can be a profession. Having been raised in an entrepreneurial family, she implemented her experience and knowledge by starting her own business. She used her artistic abilities to develop a firebrand called Krafted Ink, innovative art and craft-oriented organization.

Specializing in African textile journals and gift packaging, mastered the art of combining colors in making gift packaging to ensure lasting smiles in the lives of people. The handmade products include journals, diaries, gift bags, and gift boxes using African print fabric. Gladys started her journey at the age of 21 out of her desire to uphold the African ideals of sharing presents. She has been crafting memories ever since.

Making Handmade Ankara Crafts

Gladys achieved this feat thanks to the TEF program, which helped in achieving her dreams as an entrepreneur.

“Without the Tony Elumelu Foundation Programme, there was no way, not a chance that my business idea was going to take off. The program not only helped the business plan, but it also put me through how to evaluate customer acquisitions, and the business canvas helped me to break down where I was going to get resources. Furthermore, I learned how to establish smart partnerships with Entrepreneurs across Africa because I was exposed to the network during the program.”

“We had an increased visibility that helped our users from 50 per year to more than 50,000 users now and still counting with more than 10 distributors across the 36 states.”

She recently launched an impact project titled ‘Dignity for her product’ to provide a holistic approach to drive change through product, education, and Advocacy, bundled alongside comprehensive menstrual hygiene management and sexual reproductive health programming for adolescent girls. So far, 300 girls have been trained with the hope of training 2000 by the end of 2022.

A revenue model allowing these girls to earn commissions from the sale of Virtuous Reusable Pads was established, empowering them, and making them less vulnerable. The innovation is to assign the girls’ guardians as drop shippers for reusable pads in the community. The girls then sell these pads within their community, creating economic opportunities and helping break the poverty cycle.

She pitched for another grant and won an additional $15000, $5000 from AGS tribe Enterprise Challenge, winning first place during the pitch competition (Now Herconomy E), and $10000 from the funding space 2019   through the Rising tide Africa during the pitch competition.

ABOUT THE TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION


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 ensuring inclusive economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has trained over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFconnect, and disbursed nearly USD$100 million in direct funding to 18,000 African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs. The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.

The post Meet 2019 TEF Alumni, Gladys Chibanda Who is into the Production of handmade Ankara crafts appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Identifying this problem

Drawn to the need of adolescent girls, Tabitha Abimiku decided to become a social entrepreneur. She discovered that only one out of ten girls use a sanitary pad; others settle for more unhygienic options like rags and banana leaves which have serious adverse health effects, with some girls missing school during this period. Driven by the need to provide a lasting solution to this problem, she did her research and developed Virtuous core Reusable Pad in 2018.

Making Reusable Sanitary Products

Before her encounter with the TEF program, she never got the validation, support, or acceptance she needed; on the verge of giving up her dream, she got selected for the 2019 TEF program. She got visibility and validation for business; it gave her confidence that her company could transform Africa, which increased her confidence level and knowledge and capacity building during the program.

The seed funding has been very crucial in scaling her business by enabling her increase production.

“With the seed funding of $5000, she was able to purchase machinery and increase her turn out from 10 from 5000 pieces of pad per day; with this, she expanded the business and moved from producing at home to a NAFDAC-approved factory.”

Tabitha Abimiku has created 8 new jobs since funding and has increased her annual revenue from $6,000S to $47,000 since funding.

Furthermore, her business has gotten more visibility across the country and have produced sanitary products for reputable organizations like EHA clinic and Urban Shelter Limited.

“We had an increased visibility that helped our users from 50 per year to more than 50,000 users now and still counting with more than 10 distributors across the 36 states.”

She recently launched an impact project titled ‘Dignity for her product’ to provide a holistic approach to drive change through product, education, and Advocacy, bundled alongside comprehensive menstrual hygiene management and sexual reproductive health programming for adolescent girls. So far, 300 girls have been trained with the hope of training 2000 by the end of 2022.

A revenue model allowing these girls to earn commissions from the sale of Virtuous Reusable Pads was established, empowering them, and making them less vulnerable. The innovation is to assign the girls’ guardians as drop shippers for reusable pads in the community. The girls then sell these pads within their community, creating economic opportunities and helping break the poverty cycle.

She pitched for another grant and won an additional $15000, $5000 from AGS tribe Enterprise Challenge, winning first place during the pitch competition (Now Herconomy E), and $10000 from the funding space 2019   through the Rising tide Africa during the pitch competition.

ABOUT THE TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION


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 ensuring inclusive economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has trained over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFconnect, and disbursed nearly USD$100 million in direct funding to 18,000 African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs. The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.

The post Meet 2019 TEF Alumni, Tabitha Abimiku Who is Making Reusable Sanitary Products Accessible & Affordable to Girls appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Identifying this problem

Olabisi Akanbi decided to provide a solution by setting up a business that collects, reuses, recovers, and recycles waste products. EMSMAT uses branded metal drums, plastic wheeled bins, and cellophane waste bags as storage devices and to evacuate solid waste from their clients every 7 days interval. We have started operation on a pilot scale since September 2012 by using hired vehicles before procuring our own truck which are been loaded and offloaded manually. Every client gets registered by filling out our registration form with a registration fee of N3,000 and receives the waste bin in less than 24 hours.

The Integrated Waste Business Solution

Our price range according to a major market segment in our customer base is as follows: Single Household/family dwelling (N500), Multifamily dwellings (N1,000), Light industries like bakeries, eateries, etc (N2,000), Small Hotels, banks, mini estate (N5,000), Big Hotels, Hospitals (N10,000) and among others. There are 4,197 clients in the area.

At full capacity by procuring at least two (2) numbers of fairly foreign used (Tokunbo) waste compacting trucks at (N4,900,000) each totalled (N9,800,000) to evacuate at least 1,200 Clients on weekly basis with the support of TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION PROGRAMME, the company will realize a monthly turnover of (N4,111,200) with about 15 employments will be newly created.   

“My business is changing the attitude of indiscriminate dumping of refuse on waterways, drainages, uncompleted buildings and even on roads by the citizens of Keffi Nasarawa State Nigeria. We offer waste bins to Keffi community to curb the menace caused by the indiscriminate dumping of refuse, we collect this waste on weekly basis from individual premises, sorting, processing the recyclable waste materials and dispose non-recyclable materials for farmers as fertilizers.”

Although his business operation started on a pilot scale in 2012, there was need for funding to scale up his business and increase his revenue. The $5000 TEF grant has been the beginning of his business success. He has created 6 new jobs and has increased his revenue to $4500. His waste management business has also been beneficial to the environment as the child mortality rate has been reduced as over 10,000 people in the communities where they work now have access to a safe, clean and healthy environment. He also conducts public sensitization about how to maintain personal hygiene and safe environment.

ABOUT THE TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION


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 ensuring inclusive economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has trained over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFconnect, and disbursed nearly USD$100 million in direct funding to 18,000 African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs. The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.

The post Meet 2015 TEF Alumni, Olabisi Akanbi Who is Improving the environment through integrated waste management practice appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Oluwaseyi Akanbi took the initiative to change the narrative of indiscriminate dumping of refuse on waterways, drainages, and roads in Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria by establishing his waste management company Zero-Waste Management Konsult.

“I am motivated to be an entrepreneur today because of the need to solve environmental problems, creating jobs for unemployed youth populations and to be financially independent.“

He offers waste bins to the Keffi community through his company to curb the menace caused by the indiscriminate dumping of refuse. He collects this waste weekly from individual premises, sorting, processing the recyclable waste materials, and disposing of non-recyclable materials for farmers as fertilizers.

“My business is changing the attitude of indiscriminate dumping of refuse on waterways, drainages, uncompleted buildings and even on roads by the citizens in my community.”

His business generates USD 550 every month. With the collaboration of the Nasarawa State Waste Management Bureau (NASWAMB), the agency in charge of waste management in Nasarawa state, he has acquired up to 180 customers with a team of 8, which he currently employs. More than 20,000 people have access to a clean, safe, and healthy environment through his intervention and the support he got through the TEF entrepreneurship program.

“Through TEF entrepreneurship program, my business has been standardized through the training I have received and also the networking opportunity I have been exposed to.”

About The Tony Elumelu Foundation


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 ensuring inclusive economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has trained over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFconnect, and disbursed nearly USD$100 million in direct funding to 18,000 African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs. The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.

The post MEET 2017 TEF ALUMNI, OLUWASEYI AKANBI WHO RUNS BUSINESS IN THE WASTE MANAGEMENT SECTOR appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

I always had a passion for imparting knowledge, so I decided to go through the business-as-usual way of graduating, getting a masters or Ph.D., and then securing a job as a lecturer. I initially did a masters in banking and finance, before I obtained an MSC in economics. Then, I went further to get a Ph.D. in economics, and finally in 2006, I started my career in lecturing. 

While lecturing at the university, I had all the feelings I hoped I would get from the experience, like realising my passion, being able to establish intellectual connections, and being able to impact lives, but it wasn’t 100% what I wanted, until I stumbled on a teaching role at a nursery/primary school.  

When I taught little kids, I felt more connected to them. I began to nurture this idea of marrying my university job with teaching pre-school kids, and eventually the idea came to life. 

But there was a problem – I was not cut out for a regimented life. Yes, being a lecturer who is working day and night to grow through the ranks to become a professor can be interesting, but within a short while I began to feel bored. 

All I was doing was ticking the boxes to achieve what was needed to be promoted to the next level, but it was not exciting. Soon, it dawned on me that I was not a nine-to-five person after all. I needed the freedom to do other things and live my life the way I wanted to.  

At that point, I decided to start a number of side-hustles. I travelled between Lagos and Kano buying and selling items like shoes, and even cars (I was a bus driver at this point).  

Lecturing gave me a steady income, but I didn’t have the ability to freely express myself, and I think that was what made me begin to venture into entrepreneurship.  

Being an entrepreneur came naturally to me. I continued running my school, my lecturing role and my side-hustles concurrently, from 2012 till 2020 when I voluntarily disengaged from my service at the university. 

Brilliant Footsteps International Academy was setup as a solution to an obvious problem.  

When we started in 2012, we looked at the Nigerian, educational system especially up here in the North. We saw that there were numerous schools around but so many things were missing, especially in terms of standards and quality. We also observed a prevalent problem that I call futuristic terrorism, which refers to the mindset of our youth that so easily resorts to extremism.  

We wanted to build a one-stop shop school that would solve the problem of quality education, while building a growth mindset in the young ones living in this part of the country.  

Our school exposes our students to the aspect of Islam that grooms them to become adults that will desire to contribute to nation-building, as against a raw kind of Islamic curriculum that blindly focuses on scriptures without looking at the other side of tolerance. We are driven by three principles: conventional standards, Islamic curricula, and skill acquisition for entrepreneurship. We blended these three things together in a way that will disrupt the status quo.  

As part of the steps, we took to evolve and stay on top of our customers’ needs we observed some inconveniences that were already attached to parents and had become the norm. In response, we provided lunch daily for our students, they observe one hour of siesta daily, they prayed in the school at the appropriate times, and they had adequate space and facilities to play in the school. 

There was a boom for our services amongst Sokoto parents when we set up because of the level of convenience that our services provide. We helped relieved a lot of their stress and they felt safer. They were able to save more money and commuting was less risky. Also, the kids were doing better because they didn’t have to go through the stress of going back home, changing a uniform, and taking a very fast lunch and coming back out for other activities. 

Even after 11 years, and all the expansion to the school, I still teach – alongside being the owner/ MD of the school, I am also the acting HOD of the Arts and Social Sciences department.  

I have remained very active in the field, so as to set a pace of standards and to create a sterling service that is nationally competitive and emphasizes Islamic knowledge. This helps to ensure that our students are always plugged into society with a developmental mindset.  

We incorporate different aspects of technology into what we do. All our students are enrolled in computer programming and artificial intelligence classes. They also take vocational skills classes like bag making, bead making, and so on. We also fly in professionals who teach them diction. We are intentional in creating a world-class institution for our students. 

Today, we have 6 branches across the state, with 3000 students and almost 600 staff.  

I would not say we have gotten to where we want to be, because it has always been my dream to build a university and I hope to actualize this dream.  

 
My story may seem inspiring, but trust me, what we see now did not happen overnight, and I must say it has not been easy. The toughest challenge I face every day is to ensure that I am constantly making the right decisions to build a legacy that continues making an impact even 100 years after I am gone.  

I foresaw this moment in time 10 years ago. Back then, when I will talk to people, I would tell them that I would build a school that is the first choice of every parent in Sokoto State.  

A most memorable moment at positively and permanently impacted  my life was when Mr. Tony Elumelu said; “you become successful when you don’t have to micromanage.” There was a time where I had to be in everyone’s business across the school, but today I can tell you that I often go a whole month without visiting any of our 6 school branches, because I have been deliberate in capacitising our staff and empowering them to take ownership of their roles. I have built a financial accounting system where I am not the signatory – I don’t control the accounts, I just receive a salary. We also have equity system that allows me to share profits with my managers.  

In building this governance structure, it remains top-of-mind to prioritise the welfare of my staff, their families and my household level, because a school is beyond the building, the infrastructure, or the plan, it is also beyond the system. A school is the teacher.  

We are intentional about training and connecting our teachers across the globe. We recently liased with Kent State University in the United States to train our teachers, and that is just one of the opportunities that we have been able to provide them with outside of Nigeria. We do not compromise on investing in areas that directly affect our quality, from manpower, to the infrastructure to everything that we do. 

I see myself more like a social entrepreneur. The Foundation provided me with global exposure. Being an alumni of the Tony Elumelu Foundation got me into the White House, it also took me to the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, where I spoke and got so many opportunities. I have expanded my international network and spoken to people across the globe and gained so much.  

Being an alumni also gave me mentorship opportunities. I have made connections with different CEOs from the Foundation. I remember Parminder Vir (Tony Elumelu Foundation CEO 2014 – 2018) once telling me to stop flying around and work on my business. I assure you that till today I have not travelled out twice because I keep on recalling what she said.  

The Foundation has put me on the map and given me a lot of visibility. People know who SHADI is. I have a video where Barack Obama mentions my name and mentions the name of the school. 

Through the Foundation I have created a CV in waiting for my would-be graduates because they have video evidence to tell anybody in China, in Japan, in any part of the world that Barack Obama knows of the existence of their school, even though it is in one corner of Nigeria called Sokoto. People ask me, how much I got from the Foundation? I tell them I received a seed capital of N500,000 and they’re surprised. 

It is not about the money. There are other things that mean more than money in a business. For me, I am proud when my kids go to the American Embassy, and with just a Google search of the name Brilliant Footsteps, my school appears everywhere. It might not be quantifiable to others but to me, it means a lot. It is an asset.  

I would end this by reminding us that as an entrepreneur, an important factor is funding, but you must have the two “I” s. The two “I” s mean idea and integrity and they guide me.  

So, ask yourself, do you have a workable idea? Do you have the integrity to push out that idea if you get the right investment?  

African entrepreneurs, my story is proof that when you have the idea and the integrity, the investment would come.  

The post <strong>ON A MISSION TO REVOLUTIONIZE EDUCATION, BREAK STEREOTYPES, AND BUILD FUTURES.</strong> appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Moses Blessed Mutabaganya, founder of Glory to Glory Food Industries a registered company operating in Kampala Uganda, is producing a wide range of nutritional foods to combat the high rate of malnutrition in the country.

The company produces foods that will contribute to the fight against malnutrition. Our products are highly nutritious, appetizing, medicinal, delicious and made out of the following soy, millet, maize, corn, avocado seed, rice, jack fruit seeds, plus many other spices and additives and they include the following soy sauce, soy rice, high protein, protein boaster, pure soy, corn flour, cassava flour and they are good for food and beverages.

How long have you been running your business

Over 36 months.

What led him to be an entrepreneur

He was compelled to start this business in order to solve the high rate of malnutrition problem of which 2-2 million (29%) Ugandan children are affected. Today, he is the founder and the CEO, also an author and pastor holding a diploma in business administration.

Jobs

Before the intervention: He had five workers. After the intervention: He now has ten workers. Revenue:

Before the intervention: He was making 120 millions Ugandan shilling per annum

After the intervention: He now generates an average of 150 million Ugandan shilling per annum

Milestone achieved after the intervention

He has trade marked the business name, sales have increased because he invested more money and the scale of his operations have increased as he now has customers in Canada and Dubai.

The post Moses Mutabaganya is producing a wide range of nutritional foods to combat the high rate of malnutrition in the country appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

TEF Alumi, Msindazwe Ndhlovu started, The Noble Savage (pty) Ltd. A company which recycles waste plastic to manufacture building materials which are lighter stronger durable and affordable we make roofing tiles ridges and paving blocks.

How long have you been running your business

12 months or less.

What led him to be an entrepreneur

Due to the challenges that Msindazwe Ndhlovu had faced, he continues to see opportunities. He believes that Africans face a lot of challenges and that means we have plenty of opportunities and he sort to transform Africa one piece of plastic at a time to solve housing shortage and help the most vulnerable members of society.

Jobs

Before the intervention: He had five workers. After the intervention: He now has eight workers. Revenue:

Before the intervention: He was making 10,000 dollars per annum

After the intervention: He now generates 20,000 dollars per annum

Milestone achieved after the intervention

Have won 2 awards came out second in Zimbabwe for the most innovative green business and is currently under due diligence with a Venture capital firm called ‘Earth capital’ to raise $1 million.

He was recently selected for the Vinci energies with total to come pitch and exhibit in France.

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