On January 26th, Emerging Communities Africa hosted an exciting workshop under the AfriConEU Networking Academy. Attendees had the opportunity to learn about a variety of funding options, including events and programs that support matchmaking, such as incubation, acceleration, scouting, pitch and demo events, and boot camps. The workshop also covered strategies for building and maintaining relationships with funders, as well as tips and best practices for maximizing the impact of funding opportunities. In addition, the workshop discussed the importance of diversifying funding sources to mitigate risk.

Overall it was a workshop full of inspiration and exchange of insights. More specifically, Georgia–Anna Chondrou, Communication Lead of Youthmakers Hub introduced to the audience what is the AfriConEU project. After that the floor was given to our speakers, Bankole Oloruntoba, CEO, Nigeria Climate Innovation Center and Ireayomide Oladunjoye, Immediate past Head, Lagos Innovates (Lagos State Employment Trust Fund) who discussed financing when you are about to start your own startup. 

During the workshop, some key insights were shared by Bankole Oloruntoba and Ireayomide Oladunjoye.

Bankole Oloruntoba said “Thinking about finance at the beginning of the business can stifle your creativity”, which highlights the importance of focusing on the core of the business before worrying about funding.

Irayomide Oladunjoye shared “Know where you are and look for opportunities in that line”, which advises entrepreneurs to be aware of their current position and to actively seek out opportunities that align with their business.

Both of these insights provide valuable perspectives on the funding process and are important to consider when building a successful business.

During the workshop there was also a panel discussion between Amarachi Nwachukwu from MendHq, Mike Rosanje from My Cash Buddy, Joba Oloba from the Nest Innovation Technology Park and Ibrahim Ajala from VS Creatives. Last but not least, Joba Oloba spoke about the importance of academic institutions in helping students to be involved in current issues.

Finally, the participants were splitted into groups and did some hands-on co-creative activity building and proposing a sustainable partnership framework for innovative projects! For more information about the event, you can check out AfriConEU’s Twitter page.