Billionaire philanthropist Tony O. Elumelu launched last month a $9 million fund directed to uplift communities affected by conflict and natural disasters across his native country Nigeria.
The event was well-covered by the media and the Nigerian government even pitched in with a generous donation, but now that the dust has settled, it’s time to figure out how the Elumelu Nigeria Empowerment Fund will work when it becomes fully operational in 2015.
Funded and managed by The Tony Elumelu Foundation, the fund hopes to make the communities it will serve economically sustainable by giving them access to startup funding and building their capacities to create a platform for a thriving entrepreneurial environment.
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About the author
Jenny Lei Ravelo@JennyLeiRavelo
Jenny Lei Ravelo is a Devex Senior Reporter based in Manila. She covers global health, with a particular focus on the World Health Organization, and other development and humanitarian aid trends in Asia Pacific. Prior to Devex, she wrote for ABS-CBN, one of the largest broadcasting networks in the Philippines, and was a copy editor for various international scientific journals. She received her journalism degree from the University of Santo Tomas.