The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) has committed to partnering with the newly unveiled Victor & Amaka Ndoma-Egba Foundation (VANEF) in the sustainable development of the Nigerian youth.
This was disclosed by the founder and Chairman of TEF, Mr. Tony Elumelu during the first Amaka Ndoma-Egba Lecture held in Start Rite Schools, Abuja on December 11, 2021.
The event was organized by Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, former Senate Leader and former Chairman of the NDDC, as part of the activities marking the first year remembrance of his late wife, Mrs. Amaka Ndoma-Egba.
While speaking at the event, Mr. Elumelu reminisced about the spirit and character of late Amaka Ndoma-Egba, whom he recalled was one of the most dedicated and committed staff of the defunct Standard Trust Bank, during the bank’s early years. He added that he is not surprised that the Start-Rite Schools founded by her has attained enviable heights and international recognitions.
Earlier, Senator Ndoma-Egba revealed that his late wife was “an avid lover of children, a humanitarian and a philanthropist who desired to contribute to creating an egalitarian society that offers opportunities to everyone. This propelled her to sponsor the education of over a hundred less privileged Nigerian children within and outside the country, up to tertiary level”.
He disclosed that in order to sustain these efforts and ideals, he founded the Victor & Amaka Ndoma-Egba Foundation (VANEF) as he expressed his appreciation to Mr. Elumelu, who in spite of his very tight schedule, not only kept to his promise to attend the event in person but also made a firm commitment to support and partner with VANEF, through the TEF and UBA Foundation.
The Senator recalled that the Tony Elumelu Foundation is the leading champion of entrepreneurship in Africa. Its objective is to empower women and men across the African continent, catalysing economic growth, driving poverty eradication and ensuring job creation. The Foundation believes that the private sector’s role is critical for Africa’s development and that the private sector must create both social and economic wealth.
On the other hand, VANEF is a non-profit organisation that seeks to partner with communities, orphanages, schools government institutions, other non-profit organisations and well-meaning individuals to create a society in which individuals are empowered to be self-sufficient and are active players in ensuring peace building and conflict prevention. He pointed to the similarity of objectives as the core reason why synergy and partnership between the two organizations will lead to a better society.
The event, which was organized in conjunction with the Staff and Management of Start-Rite Schools featured musical and cultural performances by the pupils and students of the school as well as poetry readings by Dike Chukwumerije. It was attended by many dignitaries and the diplomatic community.
