African presidents, global leaders tackle job creation, youth empowerment at 2019 TEF Entrepreneurship Forum

…150 African SMES exhibit at UBA Marketplace

At the recently concluded 5th edition of the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) Entrepreneurship Forum, 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.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation, which has been at the forefront of advocating for entrepreneurship as the catalyst for the economic transformation of Africa, convened the two-day Forum on the 26th and 27th of July at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, Nigeria’s seat of government. The event convened over 5,000 participants from 54 African countries, including representatives of the 7,521 beneficiaries of the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme.

More than 60 global speakers from the public and private sectors across three continents participated in interactive masterclasses, plenary sessions and debates geared towards generating ideas and defining concrete steps Africa must take to empower its youth and accelerate the continent’s development. 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 twoday 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 Rwandan President Paul Kagame, President Macky Sall of Senegal, President Félix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and Ugandan Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, representing

President 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, Nigerian First Lady Aisha Buhari, Guinean First Lady Djena Kaba Condé, Malian First Lady Keïta Aminata Maiga, WHO Director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Gilles Carbonnier, vice president, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and Oulimata Sarr, regional director, UN Women Central and West Africa.

At the Forum, Tony Elumelu, founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, reiterated the urgency in creating jobs on the continent to catalyse Africa’s development.

“Extremism is a product of poverty and joblessness. Poverty anywhere is a threat to everyone everywhere. If our leaders understand the reason and rationale for our youths to succeed, they will do everything they can to support them,” he said.