Young people attending the 2017 African Summit on Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ASENTI) must go home and inspire change in their world, founder of the Innovation Village CK Japheth said on Friday.
“This is the spirit of collaboration. This is the spirit of bringing things to life. Don’t go home the same. Take even just one conversation back with you and use it to inspire and change the world,” he told the delegates, who had travelled from Kenya, Rwanda, DRC, Egypt and Europe. Innovation Village is a conference centre dedicated to supporting entrepreneurship in Uganda.
Japheth urged the aspiring entrepreneurs to keep going no matter how many challenges they faced. He said that being an entrepreneur was like being a boxer: “Sometimes it takes 12 knockouts before you win.”
ASENTI brings together small and medium sized enterprises from across the continent and linking them with top leaders in business. Focusing on Africa’s aspirational youth, ASENTI aims to promote a culture of entrepreneurship in Africa and to create a wider network for potential trade and partnership across the continent and its far-flung global diaspora.
“We are committed to making Africa a hub of opportunities by bringing the opportunities closer to its people,” says Calvin Jodisis, CEO and Founder of ASENTI.
This year, the rapidly expanding African News Agency (ANA) is sponsoring ASENTI. “ANA recognises the enormous potential of Africa’s youth and wants to help this aspiration develop into economic and social success. We want to provide the continent’s rising stars with a media platform they can stand on to ensure their stories are heard,” says Grant Fredericks, ANA CEO.
–African News Agency
