The founder and Chief Executive Officer of Risevest, Eleanya Eke, has thrown his weight behind efforts to strengthen innovation and entrepreneurship in Nigeria’s South-East region, describing access to capital, mentorship, and support systems as critical to unlocking the region’s economic potential.
Eke spoke after being unveiled as one of the judges for the South-East Development Commission’s Venture Capital Programme Pitch Competition, an initiative designed to support startups, entrepreneurs, and emerging founders across the region.
The programme, organised under the broader economic development agenda of the South-East Development Commission, seeks to identify promising startups and connect them with funding opportunities, investor networks, mentorship, and long-term venture support.
Eke joins a lineup of entrepreneurs, investors, and ecosystem leaders participating in the initiative, including Ndubisi Ekekwe of Tekedia Institute, Eliezer Ajah of 3MTT, Yemisi Ajeoo of Ideas to Funded, and Nkem Nweke of Lagos Business School/Pan-Atlantic University.
The competition comes amid growing conversations around the need to decentralise Africa’s startup ecosystem and expand venture capital access beyond traditional commercial centres such as Lagos.
Speaking on the initiative, Eke said one of the biggest challenges facing many young innovators in the South-East is not the absence of ideas or talent, but limited access to opportunities capable of helping businesses scale.
“One of the most expensive things a society can do is allow brilliant people to remain undiscovered. Across the South-East, there is no shortage of intelligence or ambition. What has often been missing is access: access to capital, mentorship, networks, and the kind of visibility that allows great ideas to move beyond survival mode,” he said in a statement on Thursday.
According to him, many entrepreneurs in the region have continued to build businesses despite structural limitations, adding that creating the right environment for founders could significantly improve economic outcomes.
“If people can build despite constant limitations, imagine what happens when they finally have access to the right environment,” Eke added.
He further noted that supporting entrepreneurs at the early stages of business development would play a major role in shaping Africa’s economic future, especially as technology-driven innovation increasingly becomes central to job creation and wealth generation.
“The future of Africa’s economy will be shaped by people building practical solutions to real problems. Programmes like this matter because they create room for innovation to be taken seriously before it is forced to leave the continent to survive,” he said.
Beyond the technology and investment ecosystem, Eke has also been associated with several youth and education-focused interventions in recent years. These include support for Chess in Slums Africa, the South-East Olympiad, and academic infrastructure projects aimed at improving learning and research environments in Nigeria.
Initiatives such as the SEDC Venture Capital Programme could help deepen entrepreneurial activity in the South-East by providing founders with exposure to investors and business support structures that are often concentrated in a few urban centres.
The programme also reflects wider efforts to position the South-East as a growing hub for innovation, enterprise development, and technology-driven economic growth.
