Three young businesspeople have been chosen to represent Nigeria at the 2023 Forbes Under 30 Africa Summit, according to an announcement made on Friday by the Ministry of Youths and Sports Development.
The Forbes-organized summit is slated to take place from April 23 to 26 in Gaborone, Botswana, “to harness the power of entrepreneurial capitalism amid a continent whose growth is ripe with opportunities for young entrepreneurs and rapidly becoming a hub for business and technological innovation.”
The selected persons would travel with the Minister of Youths and Sports, Sunday Dare, for the duration of the four-day excursion, the ministry noted.
The selected entrepreneurs are Ashley Jiritmwa Dimka-Tapgun, 29, CEO of Ashley’s Strawberry Farms Limited; Ayodeji Atte, 28, a media entrepreneur; and Winnie Ojochenemi Adejo, 29, CEO and creative director of Kira Brand Limited.
Dare, according to the ministry would also be representing the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), based on the invitation of Botswana President, Mokgweetsi Masisi.
Some of the A-listers expected at the summit include Ghazi Shami, founder & CEO, Empire Distribution; Denim Richards, actor & founder, Khumo Studios; Fireboy DML, award-winning Afrobeats artiste; Uche Pedro, founder & CEO, Bella Naija; Adebola Williams, chairman, AW Network and founder, RED; and Noureddine Tayebi, founder & CEO, Yassir.
The minister noted that the summit would provide Nigerians with another opportunity to showcase and demonstrate their investment worthiness
“I am proud to be leading this delegation to this event to showcase our youth and demonstrate their investment worthiness. We are a country blessed with immense and diverse talent and it shows even in the number of speakers and VIPs for this event that are Nigerians,” Dare said.
“We believe Africa’s future development is hinged on the production of both mid and high-value complex and non-complex items that we currently import from outside the continent that we should ordinarily share internally, a drive behind the AFCTA. Nigeria will as usual contribute impactfully as we continue to facilitate investment, aspiration and networks for our youth,” he said.
