LEAP Africa, IYF To Host Pitch Event For Social Innovators

International Youth Foundation (IYF) and LEAP Africa have put up a pitch event for the recently launched Youth Enterprise Fund (YEF).

International Youth Foundation (IYF) is a global youth development organisation committed to inspiring and equipping young people to realise the future they envision while LEAP Africa is one of Africa’s leading youth-focused leadership development non-profit organisations.

According to the organisers, the pitch event constitutes a qualifying stage for the Youth Enterprise Fund which aims to reward ten Nigerian social innovators with a grant of $10,000 each in funding with capacity building focused on the specific needs and requirements of each social enterprise, to deepen the impact of their work across Nigeria.

The organisers also disclosed that the Youth Enterprise Fund, made possible through the generous support of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, seeks to empower young entrepreneurs by providing them with the necessary resources and financial backing to turn their ideas into reality. Present at the event were 13 early stage, young Nigerian social innovators who pitched their ingenious ideas in various sectors to the industry leaders who served as judges.

During the pitch event, the executive director of LEAP Africa, Kehinde Ayeni, asked the question: “Are you truly an innovator if you fail to disrupt the status quo?’’

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He further said, ‘‘This pivotal question challenged the audience to reflect on the core principles of innovation and its inherent connection to disruption.” He highlighted the importance of innovators being disruptors, stating that, “Irrespective of how developed a nation is, there is the necessity for disruptors. We need disruptors to alleviate poverty in Nigeria as we cannot continue to rely on the government.”

Joining the event virtually, Ronnie Murungu, the regional director for Africa and the Middle East, International Youth Foundation stated that for over two decades, IYF has been championing the importance of social entrepreneurship and this focus birthed the collaboration with LEAP Africa ten years ago.