Uche Usim, Abuja
In an effort aimed at grooming African youths for leadership roles, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and various African leaders are pushing for the establishment of entrepreneurship and development banks to make self-reliant.
Speaking at the weekend at the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme in Abuja, the President of AfDB, Dr Akinwumi Adesina said concerted efforts must be made towards empowering young African entrepreneurs.
“Look at the young people, we can’t keep postponing their future into the future. Everybody sees risks among young people. We must change that. We have a growth rate that does not create jobs. Governments are not playing their roles. Poverty is not an asset.
“We need youth entrepreneurship and investment banks; where you walk in and present a bankable proposal and get help.
“We need to de-risk investments for our youths. Africa will fly and fly high. We have to start investing in them today”, he stated.
He added that African Presidents and global leaders should help tackle job creation challenges.
Sidi Ould Tah, President, Arab Bank for Development said the focus for African leaders should be youth empowerment and evolving enduring partnerships across the continent.
“No country alone can fight poverty in youth and women. It’s about partnership. We should be working on capacity building. It’s paramount,” he said.
Koens Doens, Deputy Director-General, European Commission said Africans have young entrepreneurial spirit that should be well harnessed.
He noted that the time has come to move from complaining to providing solutions.
“We want to support this enormous spirit with expertise. We’re looking at partnerships for job creation. We want to heavily invest in vocational programmes and skill development,” he said.
He assured that the commission will earmarks huge funds for TEF to scale up this business and scale-up entrepreneurs.
At the event, more than 5,000 participants and 60 speakers across three continents converged on Abuja.
It also attracted 150 Small and Medium Enterprise owners from across 20 African countries exhibit at the UBA Marketplace.
Five African presidents and thousands of young African entrepreneurs converged at the most influential gathering in the African entrepreneurship ecosystem. Job creation and youth empowerment were the key themes tackled at the forum.
Guests interacted directly with young budding entrepreneurs from across the 20 African UBA-present countries who exhibited their innovative products and solutions at the UBA Marketplace, powered by Africa’s global bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA).
Moderated by American journalist and host of CNN’s show, Fareed Zakaria GPS, the Presidential Debates, which formed the highlight of the two-day event, focused on charting the way forward towards the eradication of poverty in Africa through job creation. The public sector leaders on the panel include H.E. Paul Kagame, President, Republic of Rwanda; H.E. Macky Sall, President, Republic of Senegal; H.E. Félix Tshisekedi, President, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC); H.E. (Prof.) Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria; and Hon (Dr.) Ruhakana Rugunda, Prime Minister, Republic of Uganda, representing the President of Uganda, H.E. Yoweri Museveni.
Healthcare played a dominant role in the conversations as healthcare leaders in the public and private sectors tackled this theme on the plenary session “The Role of Healthcare in Economic Transformation”. Speakers on this panel included Dr. Awele Elumelu, Trustee; Tony Elumelu Foundation and Founder/CEO, Avon Medical Practice; Mrs Aisha Buhari, First Lady, Federal Republic of Nigeria; Djena Kaba Condé, First Lady of Guinea; Keïta Aminata Maiga, First Lady, Mali; Gilles Carbonnier, Vice President, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC); Oulimata Sarr, Regional Director, UN Women Central and West Africa and Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organisation.
At the forum, Tony O. Elumelu, reiterated the urgency in creating jobs on the continent to catalyse Africa’s development.
He said: “Extremism is a product of poverty and joblessness. Poverty anywhere is a threat to everyone everywhere,” he said. “If our leaders understand the reason and rationale for our youths to succeed, they will do everything they can to support them.”
Elumelu also reiterated the role of technology as a key enabler in accelerating development, citing TEFConnect, the digital networking platform for African entrepreneurs launched by the Tony Elumelu Foundation in 2018. With over 500,000 registered users, the hub provides a platform for entrepreneurs to network and forge business partnerships regardless of their location.
Giving the keynote speech, Vice President of Nigeria, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, commented on the impact of the Tony Elumelu Foundation. “By birthing this particular intervention, Tony Elumelu has compelled us to focus on what really matters, our youth and their dreams. The message to Africa’s emerging business giants is a clear one: How and what can you contribute, like Tony Elumelu, to empowering the next generation, helping them to realize their own dreams?”
The forum ended with a tour of the UBA Marketplace, where entrepreneurs across the continent exhibited their products, as a pitching competition saw the winner walk away with a $5,000 grant from the United Bank for Africa (UBA).