Quick snippets from my morning read on Tuesday, 04th May 2021
Reading this letter by Tony Elumelu to entrepreneurs from over 4 years ago, reminds me that the journey of entrepreneurship is one that shouldn’t be a lonely walk, yet it often feels that way. I hope this is letters shines some light into the seemingly lonely journey you as an entrepreneur or business owner are on.
To all of Africa’s aspiring entrepreneurs,
I commend your courage and determination to build a business in the face of limitations that inhibit the viability of your startup and significantly threaten its survival.
Last year, over 20,000 of you participated in a series of surveys we conducted to ascertain the key challenges you faced as you doggedly pursue your entrepreneurial endeavours. The results are revealing — 87% of you shared that you had no access to seed capital; 80% still sought business mentors after years of searching; 90% desired additional training especially in business management and accounting to build capacity; and 93% longed to be part of a network of entrepreneurs for support, encouragement and prospective partnerships. Despite the restricted availability of the aforementioned support systems, you continue to strive to transform your idea to reality, to convert your dreams to flourishing enterprises.
As an entrepreneur like yourself, I know what it feels like to yearn for a lifeline, to hope for a ‘big break’, to look forward to enjoying some luck. I am unashamed to share that part of my success is owed to someone that believed in me, and was prepared to invest in my talents and take a bet on my future. It is for this reason that the Tony Elumelu Foundation decided to institutionalize luck and democratize access to opportunity to empower more entrepreneurs to build sustainable businesses that eventually contribute to the economic transformation of our continent.
On January 1st 2015 when the Tony Elumelu Foundation launched the application portal for the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme (TEEP) to identify, fund, train, mentor and provide networking opportunities to 1,000 African entrepreneurs, the media hailed TEEP as “unprecedented”, “first-of-a-kind”, and a little too “audacious”. A few critics labeled our intent as “unachievable” because we were attempting to roll out at such a gigantic scale! But little did they understand the potential of Africa’s new generation of entrepreneurs — your ingenuity, your hunger for excellence, your dedication to results and your boundless capacity to constantly innovate.
In our first year, 1000 entrepreneurs from 51 countries were selected covering all of Africa’s geopolitical regions — North, East, Southern, Central and West Africa — and major language blocs — Anglophone, Francophone, Lusophone, and Arabic Africa. As a result of this diversity, TEEP has fostered cross country partnership and networking amongst African entrepreneurs and potential business collaborations for success.
As I have travelled across Africa to meet with TEEP entrepreneurs in their countries including: Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, Senegal, Zambia, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, South Africa, Benin Republic, Congo, Gabon, Egypt and Zimbabwe as well with TEEP entrepreneurs in Nigerian cities — Lagos, Calabar, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Kaduna, I am both humbled by their stories and invigorated by their passion.
Read the rest of the letter here.
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