In a move to reaffirm his commitment to empowering African entrepreneurs, Chairman of Heirs Holdings, UBA Group and Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), Tony O. Elumelu, CFR, has announced 3,200 beneficiaries for the 2026 TEF Entrepreneurship Programme.

Tony Elumelu

The announcement, made in Abuja, coincides with the philanthropist’s annual reflection on impact, purpose, and the transformative power of entrepreneurship across the African continent.

In his annual letter, Elumelu emphasised that opportunity and prosperity can be intentionally created and scaled, saying, “Hope is not just a feeling, it is a system we can build”. This underscores his long-standing belief in Africapitalism, the philosophy that Africa’s private sector must drive economic and social development.

This year’s cohort of 3,200 young entrepreneurs, selected from across all 54 African countries, will each receive $5,000 in non-refundable seed capital, alongside access to mentorship, business training, and TEF’s proprietary digital platform, TEFConnect.

Highlighting the programme’s growing impact, Elumelu noted that the Foundation has now disbursed over $100 million in funding to more than 24,000 African entrepreneurs since its inception. The programme continues to demonstrate strong outcomes, with 80 per cent of supported businesses scaling beyond the early stage, significantly outperforming global averages.

Collectively, TEF-supported entrepreneurs have generated over $4.2 billion in revenue, created 1.5 million jobs, and lifted more than 2.1 million Africans out of poverty, impacting over four million households across the continent.

A notable feature of this year’s selection is the strong representation of women, who account for 51 per cent of the cohort. According to Elumelu, this reflects merit-based selection and highlights the increasing leadership of African women in entrepreneurship. “When opportunity is accessible, African women do not simply participate, they lead.”

Reflecting on the Foundation’s journey since its launch in 2010, Elumelu reiterated the vision to democratise opportunity and scale impact across Africa by investing in its most valuable resource, which is its people. He also expressed gratitude to partners, mentors, and stakeholders who continue to support the Foundation’s mission of building a self-sustaining Africa.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation is the leading philanthropy empowering young African entrepreneurs from all 54 African countries. Through its flagship Entrepreneurship Programme, TEF provides training, mentorship, funding, and access to networks, driving inclusive economic growth and transforming Africa’s development narrative from aid to investment and partnership.

More than 45,000 jobs have been cut across the global technology sector in the first few months of 2026, according to data from RationalFX, signalling that the industry is still adjusting after a period of aggressive hiring rather than returning to a full growth phase.

“In 2025, automation, artificial intelligence, and sustained cost-discipline measures drove much of the downsizing, with entire departments restructured or eliminated in favour of leaner, AI-assisted workflows. This trend has continued full steam into 2026,” said Alan Cohen, analyst at RationalFX.

According to the report, if the current rate of redundancies is sustained, total layoffs in 2026 could surpass the 245,000 recorded in 2025.

The majority of these layoffs have been concentrated in the United States, with major companies continuing to trim their workforce despite stable core operations.

Amazon has announced approximately 16,000 job cuts this year, while Block has also reduced thousands of roles as it tightens operations and shifts focus towards artificial intelligence.

There are indications that further reductions may follow.

Meta is reportedly considering additional layoffs as it increases investment in AI infrastructure, while PayPal and Klarna are reassessing spending and hiring strategies amid ongoing uncertainty.

Established technology firms are also undergoing restructuring. Dell has reduced its workforce by around 11,000 over the past year as part of a broader reorganisation, while Salesforce has cut approximately 1,000 roles in 2026 while aligning its teams more closely with AI-driven products.

Outside the United States, layoffs have been smaller in scale but more geographically dispersed.

Australia has reported around 2,650 job cuts so far this year, followed by Sweden with roughly 1,923 and Netherlands with about 1,700.

Other markets have also been affected. Israel and India have recorded approximately 1,539 and 1,520 layoffs respectively, with Israel’s startup ecosystem particularly sensitive to tighter funding conditions, while in India, both startups and larger IT firms have reduced headcount as global client spending slows.

In Singapore, around 1,016 layoffs have been reported, reflecting a softer hiring environment across Asia’s major technology hubs, where companies are adopting a more cautious approach amid uneven demand.

Across Europe, job cuts have been comparatively limited but still noticeable.

The United Kingdom has recorded around 1,000 layoffs, while Czech Republic and Germany have seen smaller reductions.

The broader trend suggests that technology companies are shifting towards leaner operations and more defined priorities following years of expansion. Increasing investment in automation and artificial intelligence is also reshaping the types of roles in demand.

For employees, the impact is becoming increasingly visible, with hiring slowing and becoming more selective. While opportunities remain, companies are taking a more measured approach to recruitment compared to the rapid expansion seen in previous years.

Further credit… .storyboard18.com

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been named Central Bank of the Year 2026 by an awards committee in London.

The award recognises the bank’s major reforms that helped stabilise Nigeria’s economy and improve investor confidence.

The award is part of the 13th annual Central Banking Awards. It highlights how the CBN helped turn around Nigeria’s economy, which was close to crisis in 2023.

At that time, Nigeria faced serious problems such as high inflation, a weak currency, low foreign reserves, and about $7 billion in unpaid foreign exchange obligations.

There was also a big gap between official and black-market exchange rates.

After Olayemi Cardoso was appointed governor in October 2023 by Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the CBN introduced strong reforms. These reforms focused on proper monetary policies, transparency, and market-based systems.

One major change was in the foreign exchange system.

The CBN removed multiple exchange rates and introduced a “willing-buyer, willing-seller” system. This made the market more transparent and reduced manipulation.

The bank also cleared old foreign exchange debts owed to sectors like aviation and manufacturing.

This helped restore trust in the economy. By late 2025, the gap between official and black-market exchange rates dropped to less than 2%.

Nigeria’s foreign reserves also improved, rising to $46.7 billion by November 2025  the highest level in almost seven years.

This was due to better foreign exchange inflows, stronger exports, and renewed investor confidence.

The International Monetary Fund praised these reforms, saying they improved the foreign exchange market and made pricing more reliable.

Inflation, which peaked at 34.8% in December 2024, dropped to 15.1% by January 2026. The CBN achieved this by raising interest rates and carefully managing the economy.

The bank also improved its internal operations. It stopped some programmes that were increasing money supply and causing inflation.

It strengthened its systems, improved compliance, and introduced digital tools, including artificial intelligence.

In the banking sector, the CBN introduced new rules requiring banks to increase their capital. This is expected to make the financial system stronger.

Nigeria also improved its fight against financial crimes. In 2025, the country was removed from a global watchlist for money laundering after improving its monitoring systems.

These reforms boosted Nigeria’s global image. Credit rating agencies upgraded the country’s outlook, and investor interest increased. Nigeria’s 2025 Eurobond attracted more than five times the expected subscriptions.

Although progress has been made, the CBN says challenges still remain, such as maintaining low inflation and completing banking reforms.

Overall, the award shows that Nigeria is regaining its position in the global financial system, thanks to strong policies and reforms by the CBN.