Sahara Foundation empowers African social entrepreneurs with seed funding

The Sahara Foundation has empowered African social entrepreneurs with a sum of $5000 as seed funding for African social innovators who have completed its 2022 Sahara Impact Fund (SIF) Fellowship programme.

The three-month Fellowship was organized by the foundation in collaboration with Leap Africa, a youth-focused leadership development nonprofit organization; and Impact Amplifier, a social enterprise that accelerates the investment readiness, growth, and capital provision of high-impact, innovative social enterprises in Africa.

The director of the Sahara foundation on Monday disclosed that the organization is committed to impacting lives and building sustainable societies across Africa.

“The Sahara Impact Fund was set up to help close the gap in energy equality in Africa, as well as promote a sustainable environment through the empowerment of creative social entrepreneurs working to move Africa from a continent of potential to actualization,” Uzokwe said.

Uzokwe called upon social entrepreneurs to use the training and funds received from the programme to advance their business dreams and congratulated all 21 Fellows who participated in this year’s program.

She said, “The foundation is looking to continue this relationship and we urge you all as ambassadors to go out there and strengthen your businesses and each other. Leverage this network and build impactful social enterprises. As social entrepreneurs, Africa’s future depends on your actions today.

The beneficiaries of the seed funding include the CEO of OnePad Reusable Pad, Ayilara Assurance Oluchi; Lamin Ceesay, CEO of Karakunku Farm, the Gambia; Aminu Moses Rex, CEO of Delfak Nigeria Ltd; Claude Albert Moghomaye, CEO, Bertec, Cameroon; Michael Osumune, CEO, Moon Innovations, Nigeria; Adeyemi Tunde, Ceo, D-Olivette Global Enterprise, Nigeria and Olawale Thompson, CEO, Planet Savers Global Ltd, Nigeria.

Other beneficiaries include James Thuch Madhier, South Sudan; Ligare Allan, Kenya; Siwelwa Lazarous, Zambia; and Gerasia Laurent Andrea, Tanzania.

The objective of the fellowship is to better equip African social entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skill sets required to build sustainable businesses, capable of addressing the continent’s challenges. Faced with challenges such as inadequate energy, waste management, unemployment, poverty, climate challenges occasioned by drought, flooding, extreme heat, etc.

These African social innovators are helping to address Africa’s social and economic issues with their business models.

The need to accelerate Africa’s growth in access to energy and promote sustainable environments across the continent inspired the creation of the Sahara Impact Fund Fellowship programme. We believe that Africa’s biggest challenges need diverse, local problem solvers and Sahara Foundation is helping to identify and empower these social solution providers.

Founder of Leap Africa, Ndidi Nwuneli, congratulated the Fellows for successfully completing the programme and he implored them to make good use of the knowledge acquired and help improve
Africa’s development with their ideas and abilities.

Nwuneli congratulated the Sahara Foundation for powering this initiative and commended their commitment to advancing Social Development Goal (SDG) 17 – Partnership for the Goals.