The Mary Ojulari Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation committed to sustainable development and community empowerment, has injected $105,000 in investment to scale the businesses of 21 young entrepreneurs.
Out of the 50 qualified applicants that attended a rigorous two-week Ignite bootcamp, the judges’ panel selected 21 successful entrepreneurs.
Eighteen females and three males were listed as beneficiaries for the empowerment.
The grant was revealed on Tuesday during the foundation’s first vanguard fellowship awards and networking cocktail party, hosted in Lagos.
The beneficiaries are Jidechukwu Nwabueze (Jelapetra Farms Limited), Apelehin Oluwatoyin (Inspire Agro Centre), Centre),Olaleye Rofiat Olayinka (Eco Heroes), Hyacinth Orji (QuickWaka), Adetutu Olatunji (Two Event and Catering Services), Temitayo Oluyege (May Coutures), Oyebukola Oyeyemi (Oyecube Farms), Nkechi Gift Uzordima (Mush & Green), Olatunji Oluwafemi (Efem Studios), Chimdiebube Orji (Springsentia), Opeyemi Kehinde (Supplya), Gracious Obiyan (Ventus TechHub), UmmulKhayr Adeleke-Lawal (Ummi’s Nature), and Asogba Sunday (Sunny Gee Shoe & Leather Work).
Others are Anne Ogunyomi (LavenderCare), Temitope Kareem (HubPharm Africa), Imam Aisha Omolola (Tripple A Foods & Spices Mix Enterprises), Amaku Nancy Chioma (Chef Nahnah Foods & Confectionery Limited), Oluwabukola Shittu (SHEILA SHITTU), and Anna Odogwu (Smartan House & Non-Profit).
Mary Ojulari, the founder, said the decision to invest in the 21 young entrepreneurs from the inaugural edition of the Vanguard Fellowship is in line with the organisation’s mission to drive grassroots development by creating opportunities for individuals and communities to thrive through innovation, collaboration, and empowerment.
Ojulari said she was inspired to give back through the foundation, having been privileged to sponsor 25 remarkable children through primary, secondary, and university.
She noted that her experience relating to young people across the country had given her firsthand knowledge of what they require to be successful.
She revealed that the grant fund was donated by some well-meaning corporate organisations and individuals who shared in her vision to make an impact and touch lives positively, while appreciating the donors.
She stated that the beneficiaries were taken through 10 days of rigorous and transformational training, from the entrepreneurial mindset, business models, compliance, branding, strategies, and finance management to sales, risk management, leadership, and pitch-readiness.
She added that the first cohort of the vanguard fellows were exposed to the right mentorship, education, and funding at the bootcamp.
“We mentor young people and women and provide them business advice and funding. Today, we are giving 21 entrepreneurs $5,000 as a grant to pursue their venture,” Ojulari said.
“To arrive at the selected 21 entrepreneurs, we set up an Ignite Bootcamp after calling for applications.
“A total of 500 people applied, with 50 successful entrepreneurs placed in a bootcamp for two weeks.
“We brought in mentors and industry experts to train them in basic things such as how to run an organization. I am so proud of what we have achieved with the bootcamp.
“We could not have done it without the support of some individuals and partnership with organisations like SMEDAN.”
The keynote speaker, Cosmas Maduka, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Coscharis Group, urged the beneficiaries to believe in the power of their dreams and pursue their vision with courage to become successful entrepreneurs.
Using his grass-to-grace story, Maduka advised them to remain focused and shun all forms of distractions that would make them lose sight of their vision.
“There are many of you who are first in class, but they are not first in real life. You need to approach life with a different mental attitude,” he said.
“Nothing happened in you outside of your belief system. You need to learn to take action rather than professing by mouth alone.”
