The Head of Corporate Communications, Sahara Group, Mr Bethel Obioma, has said the Sahara Group Foundation focuses on social sustainability through its EXTRAPRENEURSHIP strategy, empowering communities in 42 countries.

He added that it has invested more than $100 million and aims to build sustainable societies and achieve 11 of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

According to him, the foundation emphasizes collaboration and innovation to address socio-economic and environmental challenges globally.

He spoke during the flag off of ‘Making A Difference Around Africa,’ (MADAA) by Sahara Group Foundation to drive home-grown innovation in Africa. The initiative is aimed at giving wings to the aspirations of African entrepreneurs.

The flag off of the programme is in line with the overarching transformative Extrapreneurship model, of the Sahara Group Foundation, the social impact vehicle of energy conglomerate, Sahara Group.

MADAA project is an enterprise development initiative that aims to identify and support scalable, innovative solutions using local resources. It focuses on fostering sustainable business ventures and encouraging African youth to view entrepreneurship as a primary career choice. By spotlighting inventors and innovators across the continent, MADAA seeks to create a pipeline of passionate entrepreneurs ready to tackle everyday challenges. This EXTRA initiative also promotes reverse innovation, helping home-grown solutions reach global markets while positioning Sahara Group as a leader in youth entrepreneurship in Africa.

Speaking at the unveiling of MADAA, which attracted stakeholders from corporate businesses, entrepreneurs, and members of the press, Head of Programs at Sahara Group Foundation, Chidilim Menakaya, said the initiative promises sustainable economic opportunities to its target demography, which are budding entrepreneurs with remarkable business ideas.

She said: “MADAA is a strategic platform developed by Sahara Group Foundation to identify entrepreneurs and social innovators who are on the cusp of greatness and provides the much-needed impetus to scale their novel ideas, as well as their small businesses, to great heights.”

Menakaya explained that the launch of the MADAA initiative underscores Sahara Group

Foundation’s unwavering commitment to “building sustainable communities through

Extrapreneurship,” and represents the first project amongst an array of curated social interventions designed to promote sustainable development in Africa “by growing and scaling the base of entrepreneurs who have exceptional ideas that can transform the continent’s economic fortunes.”

Open till the end of November 2024, she explained that the application to MADAA is now underway, with beneficiaries expected to ultimately leverage the platform to assume leadership and influential roles in their various business niches.

She said: “We are actively on the lookout for the extraordinary, the unusual, those whose business ideas can be nursed to fruition sustainably, particularly with the deployment of locally occurring resources. Entrepreneurs desirous of moving their craft to the next level need to head to www.saharagroupfoundation.org to apply for MADDAA right away” Menakaya emphasized.

She added: “Shortlisting of candidates begins in December ahead of the final selection of beneficiaries to feature on the actual program which starts in Q1 of 2025. MADAA beneficiaries will have access to a robust suite of resources, including financial and investment support worth $100 million and mentorship from seasoned industry experts.

“MADAA’s launch comes amid Sahara Group Foundation’s drive for inclusiveness and progressive partnerships that promote expansion, business advisory, and capacity development in the Medium Small and Micro Enterprises (MSMEs) sector across the continent. “MADAA seeks to support African home-grown innovations and businesses to succeed, scale and thrive sustainably, thereby establishing an integrated ecosystem of collaborators actively contributing toward transforming economic development in Africa,” Menakaya added.

Director, Governance & Sustainability, Sahara Group, Ejiro Gray in an interview with journalists also gave more insight into the programme.

She said: “We are today to witness the launch of Sahara Group Foundation’s Extrapreneurship programme called MADAA. Africa is not bereft of ideas. Africa has so many ideas, so many intelligent and brilliant minds. But what is often lacking is a platform to showcase these ideas, develop them and scale them.

“I strongly believe that Africa’s problems will be solved Africans. And so we thought it was high time we started identifying with these inventors, innovators, entrepreneurs who have the solutions to some of the Africa’s problems using everyday materials and resources that are common place in our environment.”

She added: “What is peculiar about this programme is that it is curated in such a way that we are meeting the entrepreneurs at the point of their unique needs because we understand that the development of this idea usually go through different phases. So we are not just throwing money on them. We want it to be sustainable.

“We want to identify where exactly do they require help. It can be financial help but it can also be helping business development, marketing, intellectual property, finance, taxation, whatever it is, we have experts in-house who will then work with these individuals to ensure that businesses are investor-ready, they are scalable and where they also require financial support, we also have other curative programme that help them along this line.”

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