(Business in Cameroon) - 213 Cameroonian entrepreneurs were selected out of 4,949 laureates in the 2021 cohort of the TEF entrepreneurship program to benefit from a US$5,000  (about XAF3 million) grant. Compared to the 248 entrepreneurs selected during the previous edition, this number is down by 14.11%. 

The beneficiaries of the 2021 edition were selected from over 400,000 applications. The selection criteria are innovation, performance, poverty reduction, and growth potential.

The winners include new startups and already established businesses. They have undergone world-class training, mentoring, and coaching. As selected winners, they will have lifetime access to the Tony Elumelu Foundation's alumni network.

“To you, young African entrepreneurs – work hard, dream dreams, and be very disciplined. You must continue to think of the impact. The entrepreneurship journey is not linear – there are ups and downs, but by staying focused and resilient, ultimately success will come your way. The future of our continent is in your hands. What you do as an entrepreneur will go a long way in lifting Africa out of poverty. I am happy that our female entrepreneurs are doing very well, with 68 per cent representation this year,” said M. Tony O. Elumelu, founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation. 

Acknowledging that entrepreneurship is the only way to achieve development goals, the foundation’s ambition is to empower 100,000 young entrepreneurs over the next ten years across Africa. It claims that it has already funded a total of 15,847 entrepreneurs. Those entrepreneurs have created more than 400,000 direct and indirect jobs, we learn. Through its proprietary digital platform, TEF Connect, it has provided capacity-building support, aching, and business connections to more than 1.5 million Africans.

Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Program in 2015, 497 Cameroonian entrepreneurs have so far benefited from training, 250 have received seed funding totalling $537,500 (XAF312.65 million), the foundation explains.

S.A.