Chidi Nwaogu Secures N10.5m Funding From International Telecommunication Union and United Nations
- Chidi Nwaogu has received funding from the International Telecommunication Union and the United Nations to scale its company, Savvy
- Nwaogu said the funding would be applied towards expanding its service globally and also help the next generation of impact-driven entrepreneurs
- This is the second round of investment for his firm this year, and he was also recently among the top 10 finalists for Jack Ma business funding
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Savvy, a Nigerian start-up owned by young entrepreneur Chidi Nwaogu, has received $25,000 (N10.2 million) in grant money from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC).
Nwaogu secured the fund after his company was announced as one of the 10 winners of the Global South COVID-19 Digital Innovation Challenge organised by the ITU and the UNOSSC.
This will be its second grant for 2021, having secured $15,000 (N6.18 million) in funding from the Roddenberry Foundation through the Catalyst Award.
Source: Facebook
How Savvy was founded
Nwaogu told Legit.ng that his firm, Savvy, was inspired by his friends' repeated requests for help on social media during the COVID-19 lockout.
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He said:
"Most of them had lost their jobs and transitioned from being gainfully employed professionals to unprepared job searchers facing an uncertain future."
"I couldn't meet everyone's expectations, and I truly wanted to help, so it dawned on me that I needed to come up with something that would benefit everyone."
With the singular purpose of giving back to society, the young tech entrepreneur promptly reached out to more than 50 entrepreneurs he had met from 20 countries.
He told Legit.ng it was at this moment Savvy was founded to help at least 10,000 young professionals around the world transition into entrepreneurship by equipping them with the relevant knowledge, skills, tools, resources.
Nwaogu added that the budding entrepreneurs will also be helped with support networks, and community to build sustainable, innovative, and profitable impact-driven businesses as a way to reduce global unemployment that has been broadened by the pandemic.
What the funding will do for his business
So far, Nwaogu disclosed about 5,000 individuals in 143 countries have been trained, and over 1,000 businesses have been created across diverse sectors in different regions.
Nwaogu continues:
"The $25,000 will help scale our work further around the globe, and we are excited on what the future holds for us and the many young bright minds out there"
"The funds will go a longway in helping us make good on our mission to train the next generation of impact-driven entrepreneurs as a way to reduce global unemployment that has been broadened by the COVID-19 pandemic."
Nwaogu also revealed that aside from the new funding, his team will receive mentorship and training support from ITU, and that's what he most looks forward to.
What is Global South COVID-19 Digital Innovation Challenge
The programme sought to identify scalable, innovative, digital solutions that will enable countries, societies, communities, institutions, and individuals from the Global South to deal with the cascading effects of the pandemic.
Three Nigerians, Ikenna, Chidi, Oghenetega Get N197.7m
In a related story, Legit.ng had earlier reported that three Nigerian firms won nearly half a million dollars in total in funding provided by the Chinese billionaire, Jack Ma.
The funds were given to startups across Africa that set out to solve major problems within their countries.
Among the 10 finalists listed, Nigeria's Ikenna Nzewi came 2nd as Jack Ma foundation disclosed over 12,000 applications were submitted.
Source: Legit.ng
