Nigeria’s president, Bola Tinubu, has praised businessman and philanthropist Tony Elumelu for his role in supporting young entrepreneurs across Africa.
In a statement issued by his special adviser on information and strategy, Bayo Onanuga, released ahead of Mr Elumelu’s birthday on 22 March, the president commended the impact of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, which he said has trained around 2.5 million young people in 54 countries.
According to the presidency, the foundation has also provided non-refundable seed funding of 5,000 US dollars each to more than 24,000 entrepreneurs, helping them to start or grow their businesses.
Mr Tinubu described the initiative as a “beacon of hope” for young Africans, highlighting its contribution to job creation and economic development across the continent.
The president further praised Mr Elumelu’s commitment to what he called “Africapitalism”, a philosophy that promotes private sector investment for Africa’s development.
He also described Mr Elumelu as “an African business icon” and a strong advocate for enterprise in Nigeria and across Africa.
Mr Elumelu, who chairs Heirs Holdings and is associated with major companies including United Bank for Africa and Transcorp, is known for celebrating his birthday with beneficiaries of his foundation’s entrepreneurship programme.
The president extended his well wishes, expressing hope for Mr Elumelu’s continued success and contributions to youth empowerment on the continent.
The Tony Elumelu Foundation is one of Africa’s leading philanthropic organisations focused on entrepreneurship, with a stated aim of driving economic transformation through support for small businesses.
