Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme ($5 000 seed grant)
Tony Elumelu Foundation
Africa's largest entrepreneurship programme: seed capital, training and a mentor for early-stage founders across all 54 countries, including South Africa.
Amount
Deadline
Where
Who it is for
Sectors
Each year the Tony Elumelu Foundation selects thousands of African entrepreneurs for a 12-week online business training programme, a mentor, and US$5 000 in non-refundable seed capital. Businesses must be between idea stage and three years old; founders must be at least 18.
Applications open on 1 January each year on TEFConnect and close within a few months. South Africans are eligible and have been selected every year since 2015.
Who qualifies
African citizen aged 18+ with a business idea or business up to three years old, based in Africa.
How to apply
Apply on tefconnect.net when the annual application window opens (usually 1 January to March).
Insly is not the funder and charges nothing. Amounts and rules are as published by Tony Elumelu Foundation and were last checked 15 Sept 2026; confirm on their site before applying. No legitimate funder charges an application fee.