Applying for TEF Seed Capital.

I am going to start by saying if you have not heard about the TEF (Tony Elumelu Foundation) by now, you are probably neither Nigerian nor African. If you are, then you must have been sleeping under a rock. This year, TEF will officially 3 years old. Kudos to them. Going forward, I will refer to the Tony Elumelu Foundation (formerly Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme) as TEF.

This post is simply to answer some of the questions I have been asked about the TEF as I am privileged to be part of the class of 2016. In this post, I will mostly be sharing;

• My experience signing up and going through the TEF process.
• About TEF official and unofficial group forums.
• What TEF is and it isnt.
• Finally, managing your expectations about the TEF seed capital.

P.S: I am not a TEF staff or a brand ambassador for TEF (though i wish i was). I am an entrepreneur. So here goes:

Applying for TEF...

I first heard about the TEF in 2015 but didn't apply until 2016. When I eventually did apply. I applied my business idea- ChatClass NG. I had been working on it since 2013 and even Hotels.ng boss; Mark Essien had tried to help me with it at some point. S/O to him for his patience and time.

I didnt apply in 2015 for one reason: I said to myself “Shey iru e lonwan be?” (Translation: Is it your type they (TEF) are looking for there?).

But I finally put together my business plan and applied in 2016. The application process was simple and easy. In a couple of hours, I was done.

Lessons. (As I said, i would be sharing lessons as I go on)

1. I have been asked about my “winning edge” to get in. Unfortunately, i doubt that exists or if it does, I don’t think I have one. Ultimately, it boils down to your application. TEF has an independent screening process (Accenture) for applications and business plans to ensure transparency. So knowing TEF staff personally or sending email means nothing. Your application is basically being judged by people who dont know you, who you dont know and who you may never meet.
2. While it is okay to ask for help while applying, it is important to do it yourself. Not because TEF might find out if someone else applies for you but hey, its your business. Doesn't it make sense to apply by yourself?
3. Parmindir Vir shared that a lot of ladies started their applications in the 2015 set and never finished for some reason. Hence the statistics of Female applicants was really poor. TEF followed up with female applicants in 2016 encouraging them to finish their applications and surprisingly, the statistics improved significantly. So this is dedicated to the ladies applying or thinking of applying: PLEASE COMPLETE YOUR APPLICATIONS! PLEASE!!
4. The fact that I got selected means anyone can get in if you apply but If you dont get in still, pick yourself up and get ready for 2018.

Parmindir VIr speaking at TEF 2016.

After applying, I waited.

Statistics.

1. Out of the 1000 entrepreneurs to be selected across Africa, 600 will be Nigerians and the remaining 400 will be split across the other 53 countries in Africa. So if you are a Nigerian reading this, good for you.
2. Of the 1000 businesses to be selected, the largest sector is Agriculture, followed closely by Education (which I am in) and then the others. So if you are in any of them and reading this again, good for you.
3. In 2015, 20,000 entrepreneurs applied. In 2016, 65,000 entrepreneurs applied. It is estimated that about 85,000 to 100,000 entrepreneurs will apply in 2017. So brace up!
4. With the growing focus on driving female entrepreneurs especially in Africa, special attention will be paid to female entrepreneurs just like there was in 2016. So if you are a lady reading this, good for you.

After getting selected...

One day, an email arrived from TEF. It contained a video from Mr. Elumelu himself. I nearly deleted it and wondered why TEF would send an email to tell me I had failed to get in, more-so in a video from the Chairman himself. But I watched it and there were the first words i heard: “If you are watching this video, Congratulations you are one of the 1000 entrepreneurs selected this year…..” The email will also be the first of very many emails, webinar invitations, instructions et al from TEF. The list of the winners will also be published on the TEF website.

Lessons.

1. Sometimes, it is your type they are looking for, lol. Your idea might just be the solution Africa is looking for.
2. The answer you seek might just be in that next email. Dont be in such a hurry to hit the delete button. Read first.
3. Yeah, you will be contacted via email. Please close attention to your email.
4. Attend the webinars. It contains answers to all the questions you will have as you go on.
5. You will also be assigned a mentor to guide you through a 12-week online bootcamp. Work with him or her (I sent mine a linkedin connection the same day I found out his name) and don’t be worried about getting your ideas stolen (that’s just silly).
6. It is important to actually do the tasks in the 12-week online bootcamp and even more important to do it yourself. Not because TEF might find out if someone else does it for you but hey, its your business. Doesn’t it make sense to do by yourself? I had a business running, staff to manage, a 9–5 job, was taking an online class from maestro Steve Harris and still did my tasks and assignments myself. I was waking up 3:30am and sleeping 12 midnight. Dont worry about getting stuck, thats why you have a mentor. S/O to Future Software Nigeria Resources Ltd boss, Nkemdilim Uwaje Begho for all her her encouragements during this time.
7. If you have not registered your business, it is in your best interest to do so and you would be required to submit your CAC documents and open a business account. You can however leave this till the later end of the online bootcamp. You can skip the name search fees and search for yourself using this portal.

After the online bootcamp…

After the online bootcamp, we were asked to submit reports, milestones, documents and our business plans. I should confess at this point that I had help with my financials but she and I did it together. The irony here is that the financials got rejected twice during which I was forced to redo myself before it got approved. So again, Ask for help but do it yourself. After I submitted all the required documents, we geared up for the TEF conference in Victoria Island, Lagos.

At the TEF conference….

I should duff my hat to the TEF team for pulling this one off. I am talking about logistics for at least 2000 people (TEF class of 2016- us, TEF class of 2015 who volunteered, TEF staff and other third-party services); yet it was mostly seamless! The meals were amazing, the registration desk seemed to munch up their queues like hungry lions and did I mention the speakers were on point?! Attend sessions, take notes, Ask questions…intelligently. The conference ended with a concert with one of Africa’s finest musicians- P Square. I should admit at this point that I developed a crush on one of the speakers- Somachi. Lord! She slay-ed! I am still not cured but hope she doesnt read this, lol!

Somachi speaking on Afri-capitalism at TEF 2016.

Somachi…again.

Okay! Moving on! Lessons.

1. This isn't a written requirement but NETWORK, NETWORK and just when you think you have done enough, NETWORK some more. The TEF conference has entrepreneurs from all 54 countries in Africa in one place at a time and that is ah-mazing! No, I do not think anyone has ever been able to manage such a feat.

By sunday morning, it was all over.

• About TEF official and unofficial group forums.

A lot of whatsapp and telegram groups will emerge. You should know that none of them are authorized by TEF. The only recognized platform for interaction between TEF entrepreneurs 2015, 2016 and the eventual 2017 is the TEF Hub which you will be sent logins to access.

• What TEF fund is and it isnt.

What TEF gives is SEED CAPITAL to fund the business plan you submitted. You are not allowed to change your business idea after being funded or transfer the fund to other uses. It is NOT a grant or a “dash money” or a loan. It is also wise not to pay tithe on this money for our brothers and sisters in the lord. lol.

There was a story that was shared with me about some guy who was TEF 2015 alumni, got in and after getting the funds went back to his Job on the pretext of the funds not being enough. That is saddening as he has prevented someone else the opportunity of being funded. TEF will give an initial $5,000 and create the opportunity to request an additional $5,000 if the initial isn’t enough based on certain terms and conditions. There was also a story about some guy in some African country who won funds at some Microsoft business competition used the funds to marry a second wife! lord!

If this is your plan or similar to the above, it is in your best interest not to apply at all.

• Finally, managing your expectations about the TEF seed capital.

The moment your name is on the TEF 2017 list, you are guaranteed of the initial funds of $5000…well, almost guaranteed. However, TEF will only pay when they are ready. As much as they intend to keep to time and work very hard to ensure funds arrive as scheduled, sometimes, things never go the way we plan. That’s life. The conference was in September 2016 but I didnt get my funds until January 2017. I have friends who have gotten into debt over money they hadn't received or spent all their savings in hope of the funds. I will simply share one lesson about money i learnt from my mother when I was much younger…

“Do not spend money you have not yet seen”

Until the money enters your account, it is not yet yours and you have not yet seen it.

Yea, I got funded too.

Are writers eligible to apply?

Honestly, I dont not know but better Question: Is it a business? Is it scale-able? will it transform Africa? If yes, then by all means please apply.

Oh, and my business? Click here to find out all about it. Got questions I haven’t answered already? please leave a comment.

Now that I have delivered on my promise, apply here.

Be wise and all the best, Femi.