Elumelu tasks African leaders on agriculture

Tony Elumelu, Chairman of Heirs Holdings, has urged African leaders and development institutions to address the deepening unemployment crisis on the continent.


Elumelu, who is the Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), made the call recently at the Youth Connekt Africa Summit in Rwanda.

He spoke on the theme “How do we create 10 million jobs by 2020?”

According to him, access to electricity and increased focus on the agricultural sector would enhance entrepreneurship and tackle the challenge of unemployment.

He explained that the private sector has the responsibility to play the lead role in contributing to job creation in Africa.

He cited the TEF, which has contributed to various investments in these key areas, adding that this is visible from the $100million commitment over the years, towards supporting African entrepreneurs.

He said: “Today we have businesses in 20 African countries and employ 30,000 people directly and 50,000 people indirectly. Agriculture, access to electricity and entrepreneurship have the potential to create more jobs in Africa.”

Elumelu said Africa could be self-reliant and self-dependent if the right infrastructure and government support were put in place to boost these sectors.


He commended the effort of President Paul Kagame for his brilliant initiatives in the areas of entrepreneurship and attracting key investments to the African continent.

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