Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, on Monday launched a $100 million venture capital firm, Afri-Venture Capital Company Limited.
This, according to El-Rufai, aims to provide much-needed funding and support to innovative entrepreneurs across the country. Headquartered in Abuja, the firm will commence operations in January 2024.
Making the announcement on his official X account, El-Rufai, who will serve as the part-time chairman of the board said Afri-Venture Capital will have “Jimi Lawal, Hafiz Bayero, Eyo Ekpo and Kabir Yabo as founding directors and initial shareholders.”
Since the announcement, the startup and business ecosystem in Nigeria has received the news with mixed feelings.
While some are optimistic about the potential benefits of the fund in boosting Nigeria’s startup ecosystem, others are critical of the former governor’s intentions drawing from his controversial past.
Expressing admiration for the former governor’s enterprising approach, some pointed to the possibility f El-Rufai’s firm benefitting all and sundry.
Referencing a 2019 report about the Kaduna State Government borrowing $350m million from the World Bank and its contribution to a $573m debt El-Rufai allegedly left Kaduna state in, an X user inquired whether the establishment of a $100 million VC firm was a method to settle the debts accumulated during ElRufai’s tenure.
El-Rufai’s Afri-Venture Capital firm may need to demonstrate that it is an equitable investor to overcome these concerns and become a truly inclusive force in Nigeria’s startup community.
“I am privileged to be the part-time Chairman of the Board. Please pray for our success and the Nigerian (and in the near future African) innovators and entrepreneurs we hope to finance, nurture, and mentor to be the Dangote Group of the future,” he says on X.