The Forum will bring together 24 Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) Mandela Washington Fellows from 12 different countries across sub-Saharan Africa in Addis Ababa to identify opportunities and challenges for African entrepreneurs.

The daylong event will gather multi-sectoral entrepreneurs from the continent along with potential angel investors.  The forum will connect participants working in the fields of media, agriculture, information technology, and telecommunications.  The event is designed to create a space where African entrepreneurs can network, benchmark, and seek out potential investors.  A key outcome of the Forum will be input to the high-level U.S. – Africa Trade Investment Forum taking place on February 12 about opportunities for small and medium African businesses. 

The YALI Mandela Washington Fellows will participate in panels about the status of entrepreneurship in Africa, exhibit their products, showcase their businesses, and network with investors and U.S. business leaders. 

The forum will also provide the opportunity for investors to explore investment prospects on the continent.

The full program is open to the media.

What:              Africa Entrepreneur Forum

When:              Monday, February 11, 2019

Time:               0800 – 1500

Where:            Semien Salon, Sheraton Addis, Addis Ababa

Who:               YALI Mandela Washington Fellows and small and medium enterprise representatives

Members of the media are requested to arrive and finish set-up by 0745.  Members of the media who plan to stay for the entire event should contact taddessem@state.gov no later than 0900 Thursday, February 7 so that we may make appropriate arrangements.

Due to the ongoing AU Summit and presence of Heads of State, security may be tight at the Sheraton. Please RSVP your attendance to befekaduze@state.gov by Friday, February 8 at 1000 AM in order to assure access to the Sheraton for the AEF.