Trustees of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Africa’s leading philanthropic organisation empowering African entrepreneurs, on Thursday named Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu as replacement for Ms. Parminder Vir, as Chief Executive Officer with effect from April 1, 2019.
Until her appointment, Ugochukwu was the foundation’s Director of Partnerships since November 2017.
The board at its December 12 meeting the statement added, elevated Ms. Vir to the Advisory Board of the Foundation.
Ugochukwu, the statement said, is expected to lead the team in scaling the foundation’s globally acclaimed impact for pioneering a new approach to philanthropy with its $100m commitment to empowering African entrepreneurs.
The Foundation’s mission is rooted in Africapitalism, which positions the private sector as the key enabler of economic and social wealth creation in Africa.
“In her new role as CEO, Ifeyinwa will leverage her expertise, experience and network to provide strategic leadership in realising the Foundation’s goal of transforming Africa through entrepreneurship,” the statement added.
Commenting, Tony O. Elumelu, Founder, the Tony Elumelu Foundation said: “As Director of Partnerships, Ifeyinwa demonstrated strong leadership and strategic thinking in delivering the Foundation’s mission to transform Africa, securing major partnerships that scale the impact of the Foundation beyond its targeted 10,000 entrepreneurs. She is the perfect candidate to build on Parminder’s immense contribution.
“On behalf of the Board, I also commend Parminder, fondly known as the mother of African entrepreneurs, for her notable achievements, significant sacrifice and commitment to building and empowering the next generation of African business leaders. I warmly welcome her to the Board,” Mr. Elumelu concluded.
Reacting also, Parminder recalled that “in the last five years, we have empowered a generation of young Africans with the training, tools and opportunities to launch the continent into prosperity. As CEO, it has been my profound joy to support thousands of young people whose ideas are transforming Africa. I am therefore honoured to join the Tony Elumelu Foundation Advisory Board to contribute to the many more success stories that will emerge out of Africa.”
For Ugochukwu: “In my former role within the Foundation, I witnessed first-hand the potential of entrepreneurship in tackling Africa’s key challenges – unemployment and poverty. Our recently launched TEFConnect, the digital networking platform connecting African entrepreneurs, investors and mentors for business success will further achieve our Founder’s goal of democratising luck across the continent and fostering business beyond physical borders.”
She expressed honour at “the opportunity to build on Parminder’s legacy and launch the Tony Elumelu Foundation into its next phase of growth.”
Prior to joining the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Ifeyinwa served as a management consultant for the Enterprise Development Centre at the Pan-Atlantic University and sat on the board of Women Empowerment and Children Relief in Africa, a Cape Town-based non-profit focused on enhancing the economic welfare of women. Ifeyinwa holds a Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Wales, and a Post Graduate Degree in Business and Executive Coaching from the Integral Africa Institute, Cape Town. She is an associate of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Nigeria.