President Muhammadu Buhari, will on Thursday in Abuja, confer the National Productivity Order of Merit (NPOM) Award Tony Elumelu, Founder of The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) and Chairman of the United Bank for Africa Group (UBA) and Heirs Holdings.
The award instituted by the Federal Government through the Ministry of Labour and Employment is in recognition of Elumelu’s commitment to the empowerment of youths across Nigeria and Africa
A letter from the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige to Elumelu said Buhari approved the conferment of the Award “on you in recognition of your high productivity, hard work and excellence”.
Elumelu, one of Africa’s leading investors and philanthropists, as well as the most prominent proponent of entrepreneurship in Africa, in 2010 created The Tony Elumelu Foundation, a private-sector-led philanthropy empowering African entrepreneurs and championing African entrepreneurship on the continent.
The Foundation’s flagship initiative, the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme, is a 10-year, $100 million commitment to identify, train, mentor and fund 10,000 young African entrepreneurs across 54 African countries. The Foundation’s mission is inspired by Tony’s economic philosophy of Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the continent.
Embodying this narrative in the private sector, Elumelu has built his reputation as a corporate turnaround expert and is credited with leading the largest merger in corporate banking history in Nigeria, resulting in what is known as present-day UBA Group, employing over 30,000 staff and with branches across 20 African countries, London, New York and Paris.
In 2010, he founded Heirs Holdings, a family-owned investment company, committed to improving lives and transforming Africa. Today, Heirs Holdings’ portfolio spans the power, oil and gas, financial services, hospitality, real estate and healthcare sectors, operating in twenty-three countries worldwide.
Through Heirs Holdings, Elumelu is committed to the sustainable development of the African economy, channelling his investments and experience into improving lives across the continent, while changing the narrative of Africa.
Other awardees include Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Oba Otudeko, and Col Hameed Ali (retd).