Elumelu
Tony Elumelu, chairman of Heirs Holdings, has urged African governments to deepen collaboration with the private sector to drive transformation in rural economies.
Elumelu spoke at the 49th governing council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in Rome, Italy.
He identified electricity access, blended finance, and business education as key pillars for making agriculture a viable career path for young Africans.
The chairman said a partnership between governments and the private sector is essential for Africa’s development.
“We believe that increased collaboration and cooperation between government and the private sector—especially in Africa—are vital to catalyse more transformation in rural economies and agriculture, increasing food production,” Elumelu said.
“Food security is fundamental to societal development. We must work together to make rural economies more attractive. We need to make agriculture appealing and exciting.
“The youth seem eager to embrace it, but they require more support from all of us.”
Highlighting the impact of the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), he said 21 percent of the 24,000 entrepreneurs supported by the foundation operate in the agribusiness sector, with women leading 55 percent of those ventures.
Elumelu noted that while seed capital is important, energy poverty remains a major obstacle to the digital innovation required for modern food security.
“Access to electricity is essential for economic development and transformation. We cannot discuss AI without improving electricity supplies,” he said.
“Poor electricity access and energy poverty limit how much these young people can embrace technology.”
The chairman also called on governments to ease regulatory bottlenecks and high collateral requirements that constrain small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
“In some countries, regulated environments can be quite stifling. We need to engage governments… what benefits small-scale enterprises benefits the entire economy: jobs are created by SMEs, and we must ensure youth engagement,” Elumelu said.
The businessman advocated for a shift toward “blended finance” models that combine philanthropic funding with commercial capital to “bypass traditional banking hurdles”. Thecable
