Entrepreneurship Awards Made Available for All Africa
Ten African entrepreneurs to be honoured
Thursday, 9 June 2011
For the first time this year, since its foundation in 2007, Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship, is o
pen to applicants from countries all over the continent, Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment firm and Legatum, a private international investment group, said Wednesday.
Profitable, growing enterprises whose earnings are about one million dollars to 15 million dollars a year are expected to win 100,000 dollars and five other companies will receive awards of 50,000 dollars each.
In its fourth successful year, the Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship honours and rewards African business leaders who have demonstrated the entrepreneurial spirit and embodied the qualities needed to be successful in business. The Award evaluates applicants on important points like profitability, return on investment and growth; investment in employees; long-term business strategy; culture, values and leadership; innovation to address market needs and contribution to the community.
This year's award follows on the success of last year's programme which accepted more than 2,700 applications from 15 countries as well as 18 different industry sectors. The 2010 awards event was attended by 250 business leaders and influencers. And it saw ten finalists selected from Ethiopia, Botswana, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda and South Africa.
When it was founded four years ago, the Africa wards for Entrepreneurship programme had accepted only five countries but it has now grown to including all countries of the continent. The announcement of this year's Africa Awards coincides with the publication of a report on entrepreneurship in sub-Saharan Africa by the Legatum Institute, the publishers of the 110-country Global Prosperity Index. The report says that entrepreneurs are the "enablers of growth" who break down economic barriers and social constraints and that entrepreneurship and access to opportunity are by far the most highly correlated indicators of a nation's overall prosperity. The Gala Awards banquet on December 8 in Nairobi will be preceded by an inaugural high-profile, one-day conference on entrepreneurship, Convergence: Africa, headlined by a globally-recognised champion of entrepreneurship.
This year's Africa Awards will honour ten finalists and winners in the presence of an international audience of leading business people, investors, policymakers, and entrepreneurs.
Source: The Botswana Gazette
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