The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has appointed prominent and influential Nigerian entrepreneur, Tony O. Elumelu to its newly created Advisory Council on Entrepreneurship and Growth.
IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva convened the council’s meeting on Thursday, March 26, saying it is part of the Fund’s efforts to help its 191 member countries create more conducive macroeconomic and financial conditions for strong and durable economic growth driven by productivity.
“The Council brings together a group of leading thinkers and practitioners in business, finance, academia, and policymaking to share their views and experiences on how macroeconomic and financial policies can provide a supportive environment for innovation, entrepreneurship, and productivity—key ingredients for a thriving private sector and strong economic growth,” said Georgieva.
Heirs Holdings Founder and Group Chair, Elumelu’s appointment was made official through a communique on from his organisation.
Africa’s leading advocate of entrepreneurship as tool for the continent’s economic transformation, Elumelu’s investment interests span multiple sectors, including banking, energy, real estate and hospitality. His charity organization, Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) has funded, mentored and trained over 25,000 African entrepreneurs since creation in 2015.
The IMF said the entrepreneur and philanthropist will be instrumental in ensuring that Africa’s entrepreneurial potential is central to global economic policymaking by identifying and addressing regulatory barriers to the sector.
“A self-made entrepreneur, Elumelu’s embracing of entrepreneurship is fundamental to his concept of Africapitalism, his belief that Africa’s private sector can and must play a leading role in the continent’s development, making long-term investments that deliver social and economic value,” the statement said.
Addressing a combined audience of policymakers, business executives, and investors at the inaugural edition of the Cameroon Economic Meeting in the Cameroon capital, Yaounde last month, Elumelu had emphasized that governments, private sector leaders, and development partners need to unite in order to unlock Africa’s vast economic potential.
The nine-member IMF Advisory Council comprises global business leaders, policymakers, and academics with mandate is to recommend policies that enhance resource allocation, stimulate innovation, and catalyse sustainable private sector-led economic growth.
Other members include: Professor Ufuk Akcigit, Arnold C. Harberger Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago; HRH Ambassador Reema Bandar Al-Saud, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United States of America; Marc Benioff, Chair, CEO, and Co-Founder of Salesforce; Ms. Ana Botín, Executive Chair, Banco Santander; Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Group; Ms. Margherita Della Valle, Chief Executive, Vodafone Group; Robert Smith, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Vista Equity Partners and Federico Sturzenegger, Argentine Minister of Deregulation and State Transformation.
