The Tony Elumelu Foundation is set to announce the 2025 Cohort for its flagship TEF Entrepreneurship Programme.

A statement from the foundation revealed that the selected participants for the programme will be announced on Saturday, March 22, 2025.

Since its inception, TEF has disbursed more than $100m in direct funding to thousands of African entrepreneurs who have collectively created 1.5 million jobs and generated $4.2bn in revenue, with over two million Africans lifted out of poverty.

Each selected Tony Elumelu entrepreneur will receive $5,000 non-refundable seed capital, world-class business training on TEFConnect, one-on-one mentorship, and access to global networks and investment opportunities. The selection process is being conducted by Ernst & Young to ensure independent assessment.

Ahead of the upcoming announcement, Founder of TEF and Group Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Tony Elumelu, reiterates his unwavering belief in the potential of Africa’s entrepreneurs.

He said, is “I believe that Africa’s transformation will not be led by aid but by empowering the next generation of African entrepreneurs—giving them the tools, the funding, the training, and the networks to build sustainable businesses that create jobs and drive economic growth.

Over the past decade, we have nurtured entrepreneurs from inception to success, scaling our impact across all 54 African countries. We have provided capital and also developed a robust monitoring and evaluation framework that allows us to track the progress of our entrepreneurs and measure their contributions to their communities and economies.

“No other organisation is implementing entrepreneurship development at this scale across Africa. We have learnt, we have refined, and we continue to improve, ensuring that African entrepreneurs—women and men—are at the forefront of solving our continent’s challenges and creating wealth for themselves and their communities. Entrepreneurship is the key to Africa’s prosperity. I wish the 2025 cohort of Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurs success as they chase their ambitions and play their part in Africa’s transformation.”

The 2025 announcement comes at a critical time as Africa’s entrepreneurship ecosystem faces funding constraints and global economic headwinds.

Some of the alumni of the programme include Mary Okeke, a fintech founder from Nigeria, who said, “As a woman in the fintech industry, it was difficult to secure funding. TEF not only provided me with capital but also the confidence and skills to build a business that is now attracting international investors.”

A renewable energy entrepreneur, Juma Nyerere, from Tanzania, said, “The TEF Entrepreneurship Programme helped me commercialise my clean energy innovation. Today, we provide solar solutions to over 50,000 homes in rural Tanzania.”