How to address the problems Nigerian startups face with accessing funding for their business is the main focus of a new book ‘Accessing Grants for Startups’ by Ifedayo Durosinmi Etti, alumni of the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme.
According to the author who has had first-hand experience helping startups apply for opportunities available on the African continent, many of startups are not aware that it is possible to apply for funding without having prior connections or seeking help from third party. The goal of the book therefore is to provide a do-it-yourself manual for startups including those in technology to take advantage of every opportunity on their way.
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“The grant application answers to frequently asked questions from writing a personal profile to unique selling propositions, what kind of a problem you aim to solve, and how to articulate your response to questions in a way that would guarantee that grantors and assessors select you,” Etti said at a press conference.
Majority of the funding applications fail because they are not tailored to solving specific problems in the society. For instance, most investors will easily pick start-ups creating solutions for problems identified by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) initiative of the United Nations.
Etti noted that startups whose products are tailored towards solving problems of poverty in Nigeria or promote economic growth, financial inclusion are often preferred ahead of others.
“I have also interviewed a couple of people who have received grants and other business opportunities and how those opportunities have affected their business and helped them to scale their businesses,” she disclosed. “So there are about 8 or 9 people whose stories you will read about, and some of them have actually gone global right now because they took advantage of the opportunities around them.”
The book also helps women founders that want specific funding opportunities.
Etti’s firm Parliamo Bambini, also launched a pitch competition called ‘The AGS Enterprise Challenge’ to help female led businesses – to showcase them and reward them with grants, a free workspace for 3 months and training and mentorship to help take their businesses to a new level.
“We started the campaign two weeks ago and have shortlisted the best 10,” Etti noted. “There will be a live pitch to the judges and audience. The judges will select the top three. The first prize is N1.5 million, the first runner up will get N1 million and third prize is N500,000. All three get free workspace for 3 months along with training and mentorship from top business coaches across Nigeria.”
