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Wennovation Hub Hosts Apps4Africa 2012 Event: ” Business Challenge” in LAGOS

2012-11-11T17:24:00.000-08:00

The management of Wennovation Hub is pleased to announce that it will be hosting the Apps4Africa 2012 Event at the Wennovation Hub on December 7, 2012 as the designated Local Partner for the series of events across regional centers across the continent. The event , "Business Challenge" is focused on transforming the technological and creative energy of Application Developers in Africa into viable business. This goal being in line with Wennovation Hub's focus as the premier Start-Up Accelerator in West Africa, is bringing together these worthy partners.

Business Challenge builds on the success of the two previous Apps4Africa competitions. In 2010, Apps4Africa focused on Civic Challenge and spurred developers to find innovative technology solutions to everyday problems on issues ranging from transparency and governance to health and education. The winning app – iCow – was developed in Kenya and enables farmers to better manage the breeding periods of their cows, helping increase yields. Regional winners of the 2011 Apps4africa competition on Climate Challenges in Africa came from Nigeria, Tanzania, Ghana, Senegal, Kenya and Botswana and produced apps that promote food security, health, sustainable agricultural practices, and disease monitoring.

Apps4Africa 2012 competition partners include TED, The Unreasonable Institute, iHub, IDEO, and LIONS@AFRICA, a public-private alliance led by the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Global Partnership that fosters public-private partnerships promoting technology and innovation in Africa. Appfrica International has renewed its partnership with Senegalese Born Marieme Jamme, CEO of Spotone Global Solutions to bring again engaged, localized and energized brainstorming sessions across Africa.

Coders and Developers are welcomed to sign up for the event at EventDiaries

Idris Bello, the Wennovation Hub director at signing indicated that "the alignment between Wennovation Hub's first foray into encouraging Apps Development with the first round of WennoCamp 2011 that featured companies like Valleybits, Opacus Technologies and MobiQube now with vibrant products in the market is a remarkable testimony to the synergy in this partnership".

Two Days to Make a Difference...Vote Wennovation

2012-10-30T22:45:00.001-07:00

You have two days to vote

Wennovation Hub is 1 of 11 Finalists at the Ashoka/SAP Power of Change Competition. We hope you're rooting for us!

Wennovation Emerge as SAP/Ashoka Global Competition Finalist: VOTE NOW

2012-10-22T08:57:00.000-07:00

The “Wennovation Hub Initiative” has been selected as a finalist in the SAP/Ashoka 'The Power of Small Competition'. The flagship creation of US-Nigerian business incubator ‘LoftyInc’, the Wennovation Hub was one of 11 finalists selected from more than 370 innovations submitted globally, tackling various issues around innovation and entrepreneurship. To emerge winner, friends of Wennovation Hub are invited to VOTE at this LINK.

As a competition finalist, the Wennovation Hub is "being honored for outstanding demonstration of innovation, social impact, and sustainability" according to a Press Release by the Ashoka Changemaker organizers.

The Wennovation Hub has been invited to participate in the SAPPHIRE NOW event organized by SAP in Madrid from November 13-16, 2012. Represented by its Program Director, Idris Bello,the Hub will showcase the power of its innovative model for powering start-ups in Frontier Markets. This model of "Product to Commercialization" has yielded six portfolio companies in the past year, three of which were funded by outside investors, and four of which are in full operations today.

The four finalists with the highest number of online votes will be announced as winners at the SAPPHIRE NOW event in Madrid. Wennovation supporters, friends, and well-wishers across the globe are invited and urged to VOTE for the platform at:

http://www.changemakers.com/powerofsmall

Just click on the check mark icon next to our entry, and LOG-IN with your Facebook Account to have your votes recorded.

Your vote for 'taking the Wennovation dream to the next level' will be appreciated!

OTGPlaya Secures Commercial Order, MobiQube is Anzisha Prize Finalist

2012-08-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

OTGPlaya Entity LLC, a Wennovation Hub company secured its first sizable commercial order by virtue of an order from a major supplier of educational equipment to Texas school districts this past week. OTGPlaya initial supply will be fulfilled within thirty days, and marks a significant milestone in the life of the start-up that delivered the first prototype of its scalable platform in July. OTGPlaya was designated by the Texas Buy Board contractor as a major equipment supplier by virtue of this order, and will service the multi-year contract to deliver OTGPlaya devices to school districts across the State of Texas.

OTGPlaya Entity LLC is a technology development company with a proprietary platform (combination of hardware and software) that delivers OTGPlaya licensed content to entertainment lovers and students alike utilizing its real-estate conserving and bandwidth efficient equipment and seamless software/applications. Educational institutions can particularly leverage the OTGPlaya Kiosk to aggregate and deliver content via synced applications to OTGPlaya low-cost but powerful Genie tablet, that seeks to revolutionize the way students learn in the classroom. Through its subsidiary in Nigeria, Prime CoHall Limited, OTGPlaya plans to deploy digital kiosks across Lagos state to deliver multimedia content to entertainment lovers currently handicapped by lack of access to reliable broadband connection, the premium cost of obtaining scarcely efficient access and the unreliability of the current ubiquitous DVD medium.

OTGPlaya CEO, Modupe Ajibola, did not not mince words in his email to his team that "the fulfillment of this first order, will mark the first step towards revolutionizing content is delivered in challenging environments; be it our schools or in emerging markets".

MobiQube Emerge Finalists

In related news, the Wennovation Hub is pleased to announce that that 20-yr old Mahmood Oyewo, a co-founder of MobiQube Limited another Wennovation Hub company is one of 13 anzishaprize finalists out of a pool of 270 entries. MobiQube's flagship product is released this summer is RubiQube, an mobile app that aggregates geographic relevant applications for users. Mahmood will be heading to South Africa later in the week in an attempt to bring his incredible innovation to a continent badly in need of young innovators and entrepreneurs. Anzisha Prize is a Mastercard Foundation/Africa Leadership Academy backed prize for young innovators on the continent.

Wennovation Hub CEO Wins Mentorship Award

2012-08-14T09:58:00.000-07:00

The Mentorship Award was bestowed on the Managing Partner of LoftyInc and CEO of the Wennovation Hub, Wole Odetayo by one of Africa's largest private philanthropic organizations: the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) on Saturday, August 11 2012.

Mr Tony Elumelu, founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) and Chairman of Heirs Holdings (left) and Mr Mike Onolememen, Minister of Works (right), congratulating Wole Odetayo, CEO of Wennovation Hub and winner of the foundation’s Chief Ebitimi Banigo Award for Mentorship 2012 during TEF’s leadership development programme in Lagos, on Saturday.

The Award is the Chief Ebitimi Banigo Award for Mentorship. It's a fallout of LoftyInc/Wennovation Hub's current participation in their sponsored African Market Internship Program 2012 in which TEF seconded LBS-MBA student to us and partly, as a result of our disruptive "Lofty" initiatives in the tech space in Nigeria.

The Executive Partner of LoftyInc, Michael Oluwagbemi in a message to the team declared that, "we cannot have an effective ground team without a leader and that credit belongs to Wole. I am incredibly proud of what we've been able to achieve this past year and a half together, and as I always in various forms.."we're just getting started"."

Indeed, the Wennovation Hub, Lagos Angel Network and very soon the Wennovation Hunt as well as the soon to be launched Wennovation Virtual Incubation Environment are all testimonies to the hard work of the Wennovation Team. So also are those dozen or so start-up companies the ecosystem supports between Nigeria, USA and Ghana.

Wennovation Hub is a Lagos based Start-Up Accelerator focused on the ECOWAS market and the technology enabled sector(s). It is an initiative of the Africa Leadership Forum (the partner) and LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited (the operator). It provides access to space, broadband, mentors and funders through its hybrid eco-system: leveraging non-profit and for-profit philosophies. Focused on accelerating "wennopreneurs" from ideas to funding/commercialization, the pioneer class of Wennovation Hub members of four companies have obtained up to $500,000 in investor commitment with over 80% coming from local investors. More than nine start-ups are currently members of the Wennovation Hub ecosystem and to varying degrees the portfolio of the operator company.

Wennovation Hub Director Headlines Calabar Event as Futaa Joins Ecosystem

2012-07-09T14:08:00.000-07:00

The Wennovation Hub Program Director- Idris Bello is one of the invited guest speakers to headline the 2012 Career Day event hosted by The Bridge Leadership Foundation in Calabar, Cross Rivers State Nigeria to hold Wednesday, July 11th, 2012 at the Cultural Centre, Calabar, Cross Rivers State, Nigeria.

The theme for this year is ‘Talent, Leadership & Entrepreneurship’.

According to The Bridge, "The Career Day seeks to inspire and empower young people in choosing the right career paths and making informed decisions. The aim of the event is to provide a platform for young Nigerians and graduates who are; seeking to enter the job market, at the start of their career or aspiring to be entrepreneurs, to learn from accomplished entrepreneurs and professionals (home and abroad) that have made major achievements in different sectors in the society."

Idris Bello hopes to use the event to inspire young people to solve critical problems surrounding them using technology. Building on his working within the Wennovation Hub that has led to the incubation of over a dozen start-ups and raising over half a million dollars mostly from local investors for them in the past year, Idris hopes the ongoing technology revolution among young people is sustained.

In like vein, Futaa.com Nigeria have joined the Wennovation Hub as an active space user of the ecosystem. Coined from futaa, a common local slung for football in Kenya, futaa.com is a new portal that intends to keep it local for African football in providing today’s and tomorrows news today, if possible. Started in Kenya, it has since expanded into Uganda and now Nigeria.With an intended 30 plus articles a day on the local news, leagues, Kenyan players in the region and abroad and news affecting the country Africa wide, futaa.com intends to drop it to you in the soonest time possible be it at your desk or on your mobile.

Wennovation: Building Regional Bridges

2012-05-28T22:40:00.000-07:00

April 2012 was regional integration month at the Wennovation Hub, as co-initiator Michael Oluwagbemi took to the road in Yaounde and Accra, building bridges with sister incubators in the West-Central Africa region. The burgeoning innovation incubation complex in the sub-continent have a lot to learn from cooperative initiatives aimed at sharing competencies, leaning on lessons learned across geographies and providing cross-platform access to participants within a network of linked incubators.

Michael Oluwagbemi (Far Left) with MEST Team

The first port of call was Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST), an organization that "provides training and mentoring for aspiring African software entrepreneurs with the goal of creating wealth and jobs locally in Africa.". MEST runs a model incubator in Accra linked to its training school by quite an elegant swing bridge over a neighborhood ravine, that models risk taking and opportunity for its attendees. The Wennovation Hub co-founder, Michael Oluwagbemi was welcomed by Michael Szymanski and Amma Baffoe.

Opportunity meets Risk..on the MEST Bridge!

At the end of meeting with MEST incubator leadership, key areas of potential cooperation were discussed and a regional team to pursue these initiatives will be consulting over the next few months to make them a reality. The trip to Accra followed a similar undertaking to burgeoning incubator last November to Accra where InnoHub led by vintage entrepreneur -Nelson Amo focused on core ICT competence building in schools across Ghana and both teams explored potential fronts in cooperative partnership.

The trip to Ghana was followed by similar undertaking to Cameroon, where in Yaounde the Harambe Alliance continues to wax strong via the work of Harambe Cameroon (HC) led by Ms. Olivia Mukam. In a meeting with HC's organization executives at Yaounde on 23rd April 2012 at Harambe's office, the visiting Wennovation Hub co-founder Michael Oluwagbemi discussed key lessons learned from the Wennovation experience in Nigeria and environ. The meeting was a repeat and follow-up to a previous visit, and integrating the vision for the sub-continent between Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon was extensively discussed and agreed to in principle.

Wennovation meets Harambe

Idris Bello, the Wennovation Hub's program director stresses the importance of "building bridges" to achieve the high impact goals of the organization. To read more about Idris' vision for the Wennovation Hub, read his recent interview with Bella Naija and Y! Magazine -currently on the newsstands.

Also, read MobiQube Nigeria Limited CEO- Mukhtar Oyewo's recent interview with CP Africa; this hot new start-up is a major driver off the Wennovation Platform. Watch this space.

Wennovation Program Director Takes to the Road

2012-04-17T08:58:00.002-07:00

Like a perennial phenomena of time, the Wennovation Hub again took again to the road in the month of March across the globe at conferences, seminars and talk-shops espousing its successes since the last road tour.

It was barely a year after Wennovation Hub director, Idris Bello - took the gospel of Wennopreneurship to the Globe in 2011, and resounding success stories of 85 entrepreneurs, 6 incubated business and 4 operating enterprises are solid benchmarks of effective start-up incubation.

The road trip started on Saturday, March 3,when Idris Bello headed to Cape Town, South Africa. with the Harambe Alliance Convivium, a dinner in Cape Town on Sunday with a cross-section of young African entrepreneurs and representatives of leading South African groups in the public and private sector for the purpose of exploring the nexus between the development of the continent and youth entrepreneurship.

A few weeks later Idris was at Istanbul, Turkey where he spent three days as an invited speaker and MIT Fellow at the 2012 MIT Global Startup Conference to explore the theme Directions for Innovation. Over three days, the conference discussed new technological directions, global market directions and strategic directions for entrepreneurs, investors, and supporting organizations.

Idris Bello, Wennovation Hub Director delivers his treatise at Turkey

Idris Featured on a Panel Discussing Entrepreneurial Expressions

The last few days of the month and early April were rounded off at the Clinton Global Initiative University at Washington DC with President Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, Jon Stewart and about 1000 students from around the world who are committed to action in making a positive impact on the world.

According to Idris Bello, for the month of March while on the road, "‘ Talent is universal, opportunity is not’, hence it is our responsibility to connect those with talent to opportunities wherever we find it."

In line with this promise, the Wennovation Hub for the next year is strategically focused on three core areas:

Capacity Building with the integration of Business Development Fellows and Launch of the Wennopreneurs in Residence Programs

Build Linkages across the region by linking with other hubs/incubators across Africa

Focus Portfolio Companies within the ecosystem on Funding, Operation & Impact

Idris Bello Hanging with the Prez @ DC

Sign up for $75000 Anzisha Prize Lagos Information Summit

2012-03-03T06:25:00.001-08:00

THE 2012 ANZISHA PRIZE TOUR IS COMING TO NIGERIA!

The Anzisha Prize is the premier award for African leaders aged 15-20 who have developed and implemented innovative solutions to challenges facing their communities.

The Prize recognizes young people whose passion for Africa drives them to design and develop projects that transform their communities and the continent. The Anzisha Prize is an initiative of the African Leadership Academy in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation.

Want to learn more? Attend an Anzisha Prize Tour information session in Lagos

Date: Thursday March 15th, 2012 (10am and 1pm) or Saturday, March 17, 2012 (11am and 2pm)

Where: Wennovation Hub, Entrepreneurship Development Center, Plot C Obasa Road off Oba-Akran Avenue (behind AP filling station), Ikeja Lagos State.

RSVP
TO RSVP, send your name, age, gender, session preferred, phone number (if any) and email address before March 10.

Via Email: prize@anzishaprize.org
Via SMS: 0808 844 4242

Or simply fill the form here Lagos Summit Form

Be sure to indicate session time of interest. Only invited summit delegates will be contacted, but every eligible student can apply for the Prize (www.anzishaprize.org)

REFRESHMENTS WILL BE PROVIDED

www.wennovationhub.com
facebook.com/wennovationhub
http://twitter.com/#!/wennovation

To help organize an info session in your city, email ideaslab@loftyincltd.biz

Wennovation Hub Partners with Africa Leadership Academy to Launch Anzisha Prize in Nigeria

2012-02-27T04:01:00.001-08:00

The Wennovation Hub (www.wennovationhub.com) has just entered into a partnership with the African Leadership Academy Centre for Entrepreneurial Leadership (with a multi-year grant from a leading global foundation - The MasterCard Foundation) towards partnering to launch the Anzisha Prize Tour in Nigeria ( http://www.anzishaprize.org/

The Anzisha Prize is the premier award for Africa's young entrepreneurial leaders ages 15-20. Starting in March we will be holding summits to promote the prize and get youth in Africa excited about entrepreneurship. The Partnership was agreed to in a Memorandum of Understanding executed on February 24, 2012.

According to the Program Director of the Wennovation Hub: Idris Bello, the Wennovation Hub "plan to hold two information summits in Lagos at the Wennovation Hub on March 17. The goal is to have a diverse audience of about 100 representatives of secondary schools, universities, and youth organizations (in the target age range) attend, and be enlightened about the process, and who can then act as ambassadors for the competition and get their friends and colleagues to register."

The Wennovation Hub operational team acknowledges the strategic synergy between the Anzisha Prize and the strategic objectives of the hub going forward to develop a robust pipeline of young entrepreneurs that will eventually feed the hub's incubation platform. The Africa Innovation Prize that focuses more specifically on higher education students further enriches this objective and is also set launch later this year by the Wennovation Hub in Nigeria.

ABOUT THE ANZISHA PRIZE:

The Anzisha Prize seeks to award young innovators who have developed and implemented innovative solutions to challenges facing their communities. Fifteen finalists from across Africa will win an all-expenses paid trip to South Africa to be a part of a week-long entrepreneurship workshop and conference at the African Leadership Academy campus on the outskirts of Johannesburg. The grand prize winners, selected from these finalists, will share prizes worth $75,000 USD. The Wennovation Hub will also provide mentorship and support to selected Anzisha Prize finalist(s) based in Lagos

ELIGIBILITY:

· Applicants must be between the ages of 15 and 20.

· Innovations in all fields (science and technology, civil society, arts and culture, sports, etc.) will be considered by the Prize Committee.

· Some projects are carried out by small groups or teams that see themselves as equal. Should this be the case with your project, the primary initiator who assembled the project team should apply for the prize on behalf of the group. Should the group be named a finalist, only the primary initiator of the winning group will attend the workshop in South Africa, though winnings may be shared amongst the group.

Email: prize@anzishaprize.org
Call: +27 11 699 3000

Nigeria: +234-805-951-7814

Download application form (500KB)

http://www.anzishaprize.org/export/sites/ala-prize/downloads/AnzishaPrize_Application_Form.doc

Wennopreneurs Go to Funding...!

2012-02-05T20:16:00.000-08:00

The Wennovation Hub is pleased to announce the first funding window opportunity for Wennopreneurs within the Wennovation Eco-System. On Friday, February 17 2012- the top Wennovation Hub Companies, will have an opportunity to pitch their products, showcase working "demos" and the market opportunity to top investors under the auspices of a funding initiative conceived with the Tony Elumelu Foundation & Heirs Holdings Limited.

The private closed-door "Investors Speed Dating Event" is the first of a series of events designed to put start-up entrepreneurs in contact with top-notch potential funders, and marks the last phase in the series of successive milestones in the first Wennovation Cycle that began in June 2011.

Four Wennovation Portfolio companies from both the WennoCamp and Wennovation Platform tracks will be showcased. These are:

The Tony Elumelu Foundation is an Africa-based and African-funded not-for-profit institution dedicated to the promotion and celebration of excellence in business leadership and entrepreneurship across Africa.

Heirs Holdings is an African investment company focusing on principal investments in a variety of sectors across Africa. Our investment universe extends from start-up ventures to established high growth companies.

The Wennovation Hub as a true hub for start-up business development located in Ikeja, Lagos with a focus on synthesizing high impact start-up growth, facilitation and development in West Africa. It is operated by LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited.

LoftyInc & Vertext Media Ink Project Finance Package

2011-12-11T18:39:00.000-08:00

LoftyInc Allied Partners, Nigeria’s pioneer start-up & project incubation firm is pleased to announce the closing of a short term project finance agreement with Vertext Media Limited. Vertext Media, the first company incubated by LoftyInc in 2008, is a family owned publishing and consulting concern based in Ibadan, Nigeria.

VML participated in the pilot phase of a new funding product offering by LoftyInc’s Project Incubation Group targeted at SGBs (Small & Growing Businesses). The funding product is targeted at SGBs with proven product sales seeking short to medium term project finance for their products or services and willing to subject this process to LoftyInc’s managed funding model that helps lower lenders’ risks in frontier markets.

While the size and detailed terms of the package remain undisclosed, the financing is for a one year period based on project plan submitted by the management of Vertext Media Limited, with a grace period of three months and no prepayment penalties.

Within the first two years of its establishment, Vertext Media have seen its turnover triple and net income double; a snapshot of the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) report prepared by LoftyInc for the firm in August, indicate net asset have grown by six fold as the company enter new markets like the energy industry and educational consulting for government in 2011/12. Indeed, the report predicts, VML “to more than double this projected revenues in FY 2012/13, once …it completes its current round of growth strategy execution”.

The project finance product currently in its pilot phase and set to launch officially in the first quarter of 2012 leverages the managed funding mechanisms developed by the start-up incubation group of LoftyInc (through the Wennovation Hub) and the social capital harnessing capabilities of LoftyInc’s USA subsidiary, Wazobia Investments LLC. This product further establishes LoftyInc’s credentials as a credible alternative to traditional sources of financing for small growing businesses (SGBs) in Nigeria and the broader ECOWAS region.

Want to participate in the first funding window in 1Q 2012? Contact us at projectincubation@loftyincltd.biz

Wish to explore partnerships to extend marginal social capital to frontier markets? Contact us at solutions@loftyincltd.biz

LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited was founded in 2008, and is a start-up business and project development company focused on frontier markets especially those in the ECOWAS region. LoftyInc is the operator of Nigeria’s first for-profit incubator and enterprise accelerator: the Wennovation Hub. LoftyInc is not a lender, mortgage broker or loan originator. It works with international lenders that specialize in small business project financing. LoftyInc’s involvement is in the capacity of an offsite guidance and support team for clients. In no way do LoftyInc represent itself as loan officers for any lending institution.

Nollywood Day Held as Wennopreneurs Attend EDC Conference

2011-12-02T13:17:00.000-08:00

It was a beehive of activities this week at the Wennovation Hub. The week started with an exhibition of the program at the recently concluded PAU-EDC Annual Conference held at the MUSON Center. It provided a natural avenue for would Wennopreneurs to pitch their ideas to would-be partners, investors and clients

Valleybits Technology Ltd. Team & Intern, Femi @ EDC Conference, Nov 29 2011

On hand were MobiQube, Valleybits & Opacus CEOs to the delight of the attendees. The well attended gala night event was headlined by Dr. Towry Coker. In attendance also was LoftyInc Managing & Executive Partners, Dr. Wole Odetayo & Michael O. Oluwagbemi II.

LoftyInc Partners & Wennopreneurs at the Gala Night Event

The Panelists- In Session

The highlight of the week most definitely got to be the First Nollywood Day Event at the Wennovation Hub, which featured a panel discussion by eminent panelists from Nollywood, Publi Advocacy and Technology. Led by Mr. Bode Oluwafemi, a strategic consultant and eminent advocate for technology, health and technology, actress Nse Ikpe Etim and MobiQube`Nig Ltd CEO Mukthar Oyewo spoke eloquently about the technology needs of Nollywood 2.0.

Nollywood Day Audience

With about twenty five live attendees, and twice as many followers on twitter, Facebook and Livestream, the Nollywood event was a resounding success with increased visibility for the positive impact of Wennovators in the emerging 21st century youth driven economy in Nigeria.

Nollywood Award Winning Actress Nse Ikpe Etim with Wennovators

Nollywood Day at the Wennovation Hub: Powering Nollywood using Technology

2011-11-25T16:11:00.000-08:00

In a bid to highlight the interconnectivity of Wennovation Hub’s recent content distribution technology and mobile application initiatives with top content creators in Nollywood and to achieve synergy with key actors, we are pleased to present to you the 1st Nollywood Day at the Wennovation Hub with the theme: Powering Nollywood using Technology (a panel discussion)

Venue: EDC Large Auditorium, Plot C Obasa Road, Off Oba Akran Rd Ikeja Lagos (road beside AP Petrol Station)

Date: Wednesday, November 30 @ 12.00pm

Panelists:

Nse Ikpe Etim, Nollywood Star & Best of Nollywood Awards 2011 Winner (Actress)

Nse Ikpe-Etim has been in the entertainment industry since age 18 when she anchored a show on NTA. Her first movie role was in Venom of justice 2 after which she has acted in various movies including the Nollywood big hit movies, Reloaded and Guilty Pleasures, where she acted as Ramsey Nouah's wife.

Chude Jideonwo, Founder – RedStrat/The Future Project, Y!Naija

A lawyer and award-winning journalist, Chude has, for almost a decade, garnered key experience in all forms of traditional and new media, and has translated that practical experience into successful media campaigns. He also works as an expert in youth development across the country and beyond.

Chude is founder and Creative Director of RedSTRAT/The Future Project, a full service public engagement/communications company. He is primarily in charge of Strategy, Planning, Content and Communication.
Chude also founded EnoughisEnough Nigeria, the largest coalition of youth and youth-led organizations in the country. It is now one of the country’s foremost civic participation groups as well as the premium voice for young people in politics. He chairs the Public Relations & Communications Committee, and has in that position secured buy-in from national and international media including CNN (International), BBC, Radio France, Reuters, the Associated Press, amongst others,
In May 2010, he was selected for the Nigeria Leadership Initiative’s (NLI) Future Leaders Fellowship.

Other panelists include Mukhtar Oyewo and Modupe Ajibola

Program:
• 12:00 – Introduction of Guests & Participants
• 12:20-‐ Wennovation Overview
• 12:40 – Questions & Answers
• 1:00 -‐ Panel Discussion: What ongoing technology developments are going to drive Nollywood  2.0 and how can this be jumpstarted?

• 2:00 – Meet our Wennopreneurs
• 2:30 – Vote of thanks

Mr. Femi Babajide, Marketing Development Manager at Intel Corporation (West Africa), will moderate the event

Send in your questions via twitter to @wennovation using the hashtag #nollytech , or on Facebook

This event will be live on Twitter (#nollytech), Facebook & we will make arrangements to telecast live.
This is the first in a series of sector partnering events for the ecosystem. Feel free to invite a friend.

Contact : Ayokunle Akinrotimi (ideaslab@loftyincltd.biz +234 805 951 7814)

Wennovation Camp 1.0...1 dream, 2 Companies, 3 Products, 4 Mentors, 5 Consultants, 6 Weeks , 7 Entrepreneurs & 49 days from ideas to funding!

LoftyInc Inks Strategic Partnership with De La Rue African Innovation Prize

2011-11-18T10:33:00.000-08:00

LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with United Kingdom based De La Rue African Innovation Prize (DLRAIP), a not-for-profit organization that organizes business plan competitions in African countries and awards prizes to ideas emerging thereof. At the signing ceremony, which took place at the University of Cambridge, UK, on November 15, Wennovation Hub Program Director, Idris Bello, represented LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited while De La Rue African Innovation Prize was represented by its Trustees; Julia Fan Li, Sarah Teacher, and Alexander Handy.

Wennovation Hub Program Director (Idris Bello) and De La Rue African Innovation Prize Trustees at the formal signing of the MOU between the two organizations to support university entrepreneurship in Nigeria. Date: November 15, 2011.

The De La Rue African Innovation Prize was first inspired by a public policy lecture given by President Paul Kagame at the University of Cambridge in December 2008. In 2009, DLRAIP established a partnership to run the first DLRAIP Business Plan Competition at Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (KIST). DLRAIP itself started with a grant from Cambridge University Entrepreneurs (CUE) Business Plan competition and believes in the catalytic power of business competitions for both economic and social development.

This strategic partnership will see the current DLRAIP business plan competition expanding into six to seven Nigerian universities in 2012 culminating in awards of varying cash prizes and ultimately grants for the most promising ideas to get incubated at the LoftyInc operated Wennovation Hub, located in Lagos, Nigeria. The competition will be known as the De La Rue African Innovation Prize (DLRAIP) Wennovation Hunt.

Furthermore, the De La Rue African Innovation Prize driven selection process will serve as the basis for the scale-up of the ongoing Wennovation Camp program currently in its first cycle. The DLRAIP will enable expansion of WennoCamp 2.0 and subsequent versions from technology into other sectors.

According to LoftyInc’s Managing Partner, Wole Odetayo – the partnership “will see us tripling the current number of companies incubated at the Hub in 2012 alone, and thereafter creating a sustainable pipeline of innovative companies in the Wennovation eco-system”. DLRAIP’s Julia Fan Li added that the “The De La Rue African Innovation Prize is excited about expanding our program into Nigeria, and looks forward to working with the Wennovation Hub team”.

The 2012 sponsor of the African Innovation Prize globally is prominent multinational: De La Rue Identity Systems, which is a world expert in the delivery and management of systems and solutions with over 100 projects implemented in 65 countries. A substantial fundraising drive is however planned to support the DLRAIP Nigeria program. Interested corporate and individual supporters of the may contact us at: africaninnovationprize@gmail.com and ideaslab@loftyincltd.biz

Our Wennopreneurs are Blogging...and Listening too..

2011-11-09T06:47:00.000-08:00

Want to gain some insights into goings on at the Wennovation Hub? Well, you need not dial farther than the e-diaries of the two companies being incubated. Surf to their insightful recollections by clicking on the links below the screenshot images hereafter:

Link to Opacus Tech Blog...

Link to Valleybits Technologies Blog

We are incredibly excited about the possibilities and promise of these companies. Visit us today at www.wennovationhub.com to read more about what we do or write us at ideaslab@loftyincltd.biz

New Day(s) at the Wennovation Hub

2011-11-03T23:24:00.000-07:00

Just as the first Wennovation Camp incubation cycle got underway starting on November 2nd, we are glad to announce the launch of a fresh website for our deserving followers. With better animations, more media, and hopefully more updates on the activities of our "Wennopreneurs" at the hub...Visit the new website @ www.wennovationhub.com

The Wennovation Bootcamp was launched on Wednesday with the seven future "wennopreneurs" and various mentors coming together for one goal: launch two solid viable business built around the idea that high impact businesses need not obtain that million dollar contract to take off, but can be built on collaboration, network and efficient use of limited resources.

In attendance on Day One were the CEO of Bead Emporium- a fast growing jeweler & fashion retail outlet based in Nigeria & UK, Ms. Oyinda Osonowo sharing insights on what it takes to survive as entrepreneurs. Imploring the fresh minds in attendance to "fail as much as you like but never give up", she set a very high standard for subsequent would-be mentors for the program. Also in attendance on day one was tech social blogger and commentator, Jesse Oguntimehin. Attendees spent most of the day getting orientated to the unique cultures at the hub, while drawing fresh insights from the wellspring of wisdom offered by many in attendance.

Day Two held much promise, as a rapid WennoConsulting sessions were scheduled with top flight consultants from the ALF Entrepreneurship Development Center. This got up to a quick start, and got the teams started on a path to going from ideas to funding in six weeks with four separate consultants. The day was topped with a working session with Mr. Demola Idowu of Silveredge Projects -a medical technology and e-learning development company. The hands-on session was so transformative for the participants that the hub is still buzzing with the fresh insights offered by our invited Guests. Our thanks to everyone and especially our guests for making Day 1 & 2 of the Wennovation Camp 1.0 a resounding success.

For more information on the Wennovation Camp 1.0 focused on mobile application development and supported by Google Africa & MIT-AITI, email us at ideaslab@loftyincltd.biz

www.wennovationhub.com

i for Inspiration & innovation...Steve Jobs Rules...

2011-10-05T18:52:00.000-07:00

The man and the legend...just passed away. Steve Jobs was an inspiration to those of us that occupy the innovation complex. I know for sure that at LoftyInc, Steve Jobs particularly occupied a special place in our hearts.

I remembered Wole (co-founder) and I have had our Apple moments, discussing how Steve Jobs shaped his products and the company, we seeking how to adapt these lessons earlier on into ours. His focus on quality, user experience and perfection were simply impressive. Apple and Steve Jobs have consistently defied the adage that the customer knows best....Steve never shied away from creating a new need for his clients; that is what we aspire to be to our clients. Create a user experience the user never realized they even needed!

The height of my personal Steve Job moment came about exactly one and half years on the clock at LoftyInc. I was preparing for an epochal presentation at the World Bank ABCDE Conference at Stockholm, Sweden. I had to turn to the master: Steve Jobs.

After reading the book, "The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs- How to be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience" by Carmine Gallo, I was turbo charged for this audience. At the end of it all, and after my 50 or so recorded practice presenting like Steve Jobs, I was at Stockholm selling our ideas which today is known as the Wennovation Hub. Yes, our strategic partner- the Africa Leadership Forum was part of that audience at Stockholm...two weeks later I was on a plane heading to New York to sign us up.

Everyone have their Steve Jobs story. His black turtle neck wears, his secret preparations and product releases, the perfection in product aesthetic and functionality, his ability to read your need and even his choice of product name, makes Steve miles apart from his peers. He was a showman, a presenter and above a special human being. His insistence on perfection, sometimes near dictatorial handling of product releases was also legendary.

You want to demo? do it in your office...those are not for his users. Your release product must be bug free, and plug and play: that was the Steve Philosophy. Here was a technology visionary, an astute entrepreneur, an entertainer, a designer and above all an innovator. Steve will be missed, but he lives with us all.

As I shut down my MacAir writing this, I'm amazed how beautifully functional it is: and grateful I have it to fittingly pay this tribute to the man who can proudly say of this product in the words of Wole Soyinka's Bambulu: "this is the child of my brain; the product of my endeavors....the materialization of inventive genius". Genius...that is Steve. Inspiration..that is what he left us.

Wennovation Hub Launches WennoCamp 1.0 for Mobile Apps Development

2011-10-02T21:02:00.000-07:00

Seven of the thirty students trained by the partnership between LoftyInc and the MIT Accelerating Information Technology Innovation (AITI) , to incubate student launched local businesses around mobile application developers at the University of Ibadan this summer, have been selected by the Wennovation Hub to herald the first cycle of the Wennovation Camp this Fall.

The product enhancement and development process will be supported by business & technology mentors sourced from among the associates’ rank of the Nigeria Leadership Institute, and technical assistance will be rendered by Google Africa.

Since the MIT-AITI program ended in August, the process of Wennovating begun in earnest as these entrepreneurs were screened and carefully selected for fit into the incubation model, and allowed to reshape their teams accordingly around the best ideas.

The seven "wennovators" selected were from four teams at MIT-AITI program (InveniQ, Ting Mobile, Compass and Pluss) with very exciting products which may be enhanced or entirely remade during the WennoCamp. The Camp will span six weeks of product enhancement and business development leading up to seed funding and operations using the Hub as their space in the first few months of beta product launch.

The Wennovators are organized into two inter-disciplinary entities (teams):

Team 1 (Opacus Technologies Limited)- Alpha Product: Location Awareness & Transport Finder App

TL-R: Wennovators 1.0: Dara Adeyemo,Diji Adeyemo,
Ibrahim Abiola, Adetayo Rabiu

Team 2 (Business Name Pending CAC Approval) - Alpha Product: Enterprise Expense & Recruiter App

L-R: Oluwatosin Adesanya, Onitilo Oluremi, Oghenekhowo Tega

During the Camp, the seven "wennovators" aim to coalesce around redesigned and fused products from their initial pass at their ideas, and eventually launch into the market at least two mobile technology products focused companies in Nigeria. The greatest promise of these teams is to optimize their existing products, build newer ones and truly bring Nigeria Mobile App development into the business mainstream.

The "business bootcamp" heralding the six-weeks WennoCamp 1.0 is scheduled to begin in earnest on November 2, 2011. Exciting activities including engagement of notable CEOs, Technology gurus and bandstorming sessions are planned during the program.

This program further enhances LoftyInc's continued focus on enhancing Nigeria's innovation eco-system specifically focusing on areas like mobile technology where our impact can be most felt. It also validates the unique business incubation model designed by LoftyInc.

Our thanks to all our partners for helping us bring this program to fruition.

Internship Opportunity...

2011-09-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

LoftyInc Angel Network Internship Opportunity in Nigeria

Overview

As a volunteer intern, you will provide crucial contributions to LoftyInc's social impact investing activities, especially through the newly formed LoftyInc Angel Network (LAN).

The LoftyInc Angel Network (LAN) is a network of Nigerian angel investors (registration in progress) organized by, but independent of LoftyInc to offer seed and expansion capital to businesses incubated by LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited.

As an intern, you will augment LAN staff and investor members by tackling projects such as sector or regional analysis, case studies, due diligence support and/or investor support.

Responsibilities

The volunteer intern role provides crucial additional capacity to the LAN team. Responsibilities include one or more of the following, depending on your experience and interests:

Sector and Regional Analysis:

Learn about the most attractive emerging investment areas by performing analysis on target investment sectors (such as clean technology, education, mobile technology, mobile payments, or fair trade).
Perform market, segment, trend and company analysis to identify what's hot in impact capital and in social enterprise in these areas, identify potential deal flow partners and make recommendations. We plan to use this analysis to guide future investment decisions.

Case Studies:

Learn how social impact investments are made by studying investments we've made and writing up detailed case studies on how the investment was identified, researched and structured and the potential for exits. We plan to feature these case studies on our website and in our public relations activities to demonstrate our impact and success.

Due Diligence Support:

Learn how investors perform due diligence on prospective investments by preparing pre-meeting investor briefs and recording highlights of investor conversations with social enterprises. We plan to use this input to help us better assess investment opportunities.

Investment Meeting Secretary:

· Be a proverbial fly on the wall for our member investment meetings where we discuss investments and other top issues.

· Record meeting minutes and distribute to the team. This is a unique opportunity to form relationships with the industry’s leading impact investors in an otherwise closed-doors meeting. A great way as well to get to hear how investors evaluate projects in real time.

LAN MD Support:

Work with the MD of the LoftyInc Angel Network to identify potential members of the network, and follow up as required.
Represent the MD as required.

Other: We sometimes consider other projects which leverage unique capabilities of our volunteer interns.

Experience, Education and Training

The ideal candidate will be highly analytical; detail oriented and possess a strong interest in social enterprise and impact investing.
Experience in social enterprise, developing countries, public policy and/or investing desired but not required.
Must be a current student or recent grad living in Nigeria.

Time Commitment

Time commitment is quite flexible. We would ask for a minimum of 4-6 hours per week or more (depending on your project) for approximately 10 to 12 weeks, though by combining several projects, can also take full-time interns. We sometimes consider other time periods and time commitments depending on your situation.

Reporting and Compensation

Interns report to the LAN MD and each is mentored, as appropriate, by a LAN member investor. While this is a volunteer position with no monetary compensation at the moment, we make every effort to assure your experience is valuable.

Next Steps

Send resume and cover e-mail with subject heading- “Attention LoftyInc Angel Network” to solution@loftyincltd.biz on or before September 30, 2011

About LoftyInc

LoftyInc Allied Partners Ltd. is a business development company founded in 2008 to specifically focus on supporting innovative entrepreneurs and businesses. LoftyInc specializes in start-up business and project incubation in West Africa. LoftyInc unique business incubation model is implemented on a platform jointly initiated with the Africa Leadership Forum: the Wennovation Hub. LoftyInc supports over half a dozen domestic start-ups and three early stage projects sponsored by domestic and international clients. www.loftyincltd.biz www.wennovationhub.com

Plot C, Obasa Road, off Oba Akran Road, Ikeja Lagos

MobiQube Joins Wennovation Platform

2011-08-22T12:57:00.000-07:00

Mobile platform application developer and indigenous social networking operator, MobiQube Nigeria Limited recorded a milestone when it officially became the newest member of the Wennovation Platform on August 15th, 2011. MobiQube was represented by Chief Executive Officer, Mukhtar Oyewo; signing on behalf of LoftyInc was Wole Odetayo, Managing Partner.

MobiQube have a number of products in the pipeline, including Yarnable: a micro-discussion social site focused on Africa currently undergoing major revamp after MobiQube late May 2011 takeover. Due for release soon are beta versions of FoneRecharge and GreetingCards, as well as suite of free-apps for various smart phone platforms. Major development of the suite is already ongoing at the Hub facilities where MobiQube's top flight team are working towards a mid fourth quarter release in time for the holiday season.

The Wennovation Platform is one of three flagship programs being run by the Wennovation Hub, the other being WennoConsulting and WennoCamps, focused on offering robust support to start-ups with products in advanced development or in the market. MobiQube joins PrimeCoHall within this program, as well as the three legacy companies for which LoftyInc have always provided ongoing support since 2008.

LoftyInc & MobiQube sign the dotted line...

Dr. Wole Odetayo reaffirmed at the signing that, "For the Wennovation Hub, this new member is particularly synergistic with our focus on mobile application development or linked companies in 2011; coming off the intensive training phase of WennoCamp, organized in partnership with MIT-AITI for mobile application development at the University of Ibadan in early August". That training being a precursor for the WennoCamp incubation phase which will soon take off at the Hub.

In the next few weeks, LoftyInc will partner closely with MobiQube to ensure timely and effective release of products in the fourth quarter, while helping the MobiQube team identify strategic options to enhance the company's viability. LoftyInc will also gain one board sit as a result of this strategic addition to our portfolio firms.

Wennovation Day as MIT-AITI Trains Nigeria's Next Tech Entrepreneurs

2011-07-28T20:25:00.000-07:00

Next Generation Afropreneurs?

It was a day full of Wennovation and potential "wennovators", on July 13 at the site of MIT-AITI ongoing training of top notch mobile application programmers on the campus of the University of Ibadan. The program which began in earnest in June, devoted a full day to a compendium of speakers from the LoftyInc operated Wennovation Hub.

LoftyInc's Michael Oluwagbemi & Wole Odetayo

First, during the morning session LoftyInc Partners- Wole Odetayo and Michael Oluwagbemi, and Hub Operating Director, Ayo Akinrotimi introduced the concept of Wennovation. Through the interactive session, attendants were familiarized with the opportunity of a lifetime which will see at least two teams qualifying into the incubation program at the hub to be known as Wennovation Camp starting in September, 2011. The introductory session which was lively and well received, was followed up with an introduction to the concept of Business Process and Legal Aid by Barrister Kamar Raji a seasoned legal practitioner

Top Notch Consultant, Niyi Sanuth Discusses
Bureaucratic Survival Strategies

The afternoon session focused first on bureaucracy and strategy of navigating the complex web of government regulations, rules and procurement. Led by the insights provided by business process consultant, Mr. Niyi Sanuth- the session was riveted with relevant questions on how to operate within a large public sector led economy focusing especially on strategies that will be useful to start-ups to survive in this arcane world of rules.

The day's session ended with riveting expose by Michael Oluwagbemi on Apps Monetization and Financing Alternatives for Small Growing Businesses in Nigeria. An afternoon of engaging discussions, questions and hopefully recruitment of the next generation of Wennovators began thereafter.

The exciting part of the day were discussions surrounding some exciting projects that are being developed by MIT-AITI participants, two of which will eventually be admitted into the WennoCamp program. Projects ranging from emergency locator phone app to geo-locators as well as mobile job finders, messaging and social congregation platforms were among interesting projects these young minds are working on at the MIT-AITI lab. Read more about these exciting projects

Barrister Raji Discuss Legal Options for Start-Ups in Nigeria

The MIT-AITI program will come to a close in early August, when winners scheduled to join the WennoCamp program will be chosen at an August 2nd meet at Ibadan.

LoftyInc & MIT-AITI Collaborate to Float Mobile Apps Start-Ups in Nigeria

2011-06-22T18:28:00.000-07:00

Press Release on Wennovation Hub’s Collaboration with MIT-AITI

LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited, the operators of Nigeria’s premier business incubator- The Wennovation Hub- are pleased to announce a new collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Africa Information Technology Initiative (MIT-AITI).

The signing event where the memorandum of understanding (MoU), codifying the relationship between the two entities, was held on Wednesday, June 22nd 2011 at the Wennovation Hub – Plot C, Obasa Road, Ikeja-Lagos. Mr. Soji Awe of MIT represented the MIT-AITI program with Wole Odetayo (Managing Partner) & Ayokunle Akinrotimi (Associate) representing LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited.

Under the terms of the agreement, LoftyInc will provide some facilitators and materials specifically focusing on business incubation for the six-week pioneer training and mobile application technologies’ product development program of MIT-AITI in Nigeria beginning on June 21st through July 29th, 2011. In like manner, LoftyInc will also send representatives to serve on the project panel to award honors to top developers during the MIT-AITI program being held at the University of Ibadan’s (UI) computer science department. More than thirty students and future entrepreneurs will be in attendance.

MIT-AITI's Soji Awe signs MoU on Wednesday, June 22

LoftyInc's Wole Odetayo Signs MoU at Signing Ceremony

Top market oriented mobile application developers will be selected by LoftyInc from the MIT-AITI program at UI, to graduate onwards into the pilot Wennovation Hub program to be known as WennoCamp. One of the key backers of the program is Google Africa.

The four weeks of WennoCamp incubation program will be held on site at the Wennovation Hub, Lagos; and will be focused exclusively on product refinement and business development. During this period, the student developers will be immersed with a team of their choice, supported by top WennoCamp linked geeks to unobtrusively develop a business around their initial project ideas built during the MIT-AITI program.

CEO mentors and intensive product trouble shooting sessions are amongst the exciting sessions planned during their four week stint which will come to a close by pitching to potential seed investors organized by LoftyInc.

Successful Wennovators through the WennoCamp will be provided access to:

· Ultra-Modern office space and complimentary broadband connection with full office support services for 3 months following their successful completion of the incubation program

· Mentors – both technical and business types experienced in operations and development

· Funding of up to $25 000 through a pioneer network of small investors being built by LoftyInc

· Small seed grant (up to $1000 in kind) to register their business and begin marketing

· The network of LoftyInc consultants in legal, financial and strategic advising that provide reduced fee-for-services to Wennovation linked firms

Speaking yesterday from Houston, Texas, Wennovation Hub Program Director and Serial Afropreneur, Idris Ayodeji Bello said “This collaboration is a small but important step in our journey of establishing a Wennovation Village in Nigeria, which will compete with the likes of Silicon Valley in the US, in terms of the quality of innovation and venture funding to support such. It is also a testament to our belief in the concept of wennovation (collaborative innovation), and we look forward to future collaborations with similarly-aligned organizations in Nigeria, and the Diaspora”.

AITI is a multidisciplinary group of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) that promotes development in Africa by cultivating young technology entrepreneurs. AITI develops curriculum materials, software technologies, platforms, and networks that enable African undergraduate students to innovate in the area of information and communication technologies (ICTs). Since 2000, AITI has sent nearly 100 MIT instructors to teach over 1200 African students in five countries, resulting in the creation of African businesses and the addition of course offerings at our partner universities. http://aiti.mit.edu/

VisionInvent Joins Wennovation Platform

2011-05-29T20:59:00.001-07:00

In fulfillment of the vision of LoftyInc, as operators of the Wennovation Program, for its use as a bridge to tap into West Africa's enormous human resources in the Diaspora for economic development, LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited is pleased to announce a first of its kind alliance with VisionInvent Inc on the stable of newly launched program known as the Wennovation Platform.

VisionInvent is a design and engineering firm based in Austin, Texas and co-founded by Mr. Modupe Ajibola in 2008. A provider of hi-tech engineering, manufacturing, networking and sales services for more than two dozen innovative products, it also holds differing degrees of intellectual property protections/rights on these products singly or with top technology partners (OEMs). VisionInvent is led by Modupe Ajibola, a technology prodigy originally from Nigeria, working on over half a dozen patents applications developed in his firm. He is a graduate of Texas A & M University, and also a serial inventor and entrepreneur.

The program developed by LoftyInc ( i.e. the Wennovation Platform) allows technologists, inventors and hi-tech entrepreneurs overseas use the "Wennovation Advantage" to build their brand, pursue projects, obtain sales and manage/execute contracts or projects wins in Nigeria, while still largely maintaining their primary residence and home office overseas.

L-R: LoftyInc Partners, Wole Odetayo & Michael Oluwagbemi,

VisionInvent Modupe Ajibola & LoftyInc Assoc. Kingsley Onoriode

LoftyInc is proud to count VisionInvent USA and her Nigerian Subsidiary - PrimeCo Hall Limited, as the first organization taking advantage of this program. The alliance was officially kicked off on May 2, 2011 during a visit of a joint LoftyInc-Vision Invent team to the Wennovation Hub that is already yielding positive sales results to the latter organization.

Among the products being pushed by VisionInvent in the market includes environmental sensor technologies, biometric technology solutions, back-up power applications, power regeneration and energy harnessing technologies, LED/Billboard/Electronic promotional solutions, specialty technology items as well as multi-platform consumer products like tablets and extension screen solutions for homes and offices. See VisionInvent/PrimeCo Hall Brochure.

Speaking about his collaboration with LoftyInc, Modupe insists that "providing a program and platform by which technology developed by Nigerians overseas can be accessible to those at home, provides a collaborative framework for transforming Nigeria's economy using all her resources at home and abroad". LoftyInc looks forward to many years of productive alliance between our organizations.

The "Wennovation Platform" provides office location, project management tools and staff, as well as network and contacts to its members. For more information contact us at ideaslab@loftyincltd.biz or visit www.wennovationhub.com

More News...

LoftyInc congratulates our legal advisor/consultant, Barrister Tomi Lagundoye on her recent completion of a Masters Degree in Law program at the University of Texas Austin. Prior to her LLM program, Tomi graduated with a degree in Law (LLB) from the University of Ibadan before proceeding to the Nigeria Law School (BL) and was called to bar in 2007. Thereafter, she worked at the prestigious law chambers of Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie in Lagos focusing on Commercial Law especially in the Oil & Gas Sector. During her stint at University of Texas, she served as Staff Editor at the Texas Journal of Oil, Gas and Energy Law.

Barr. Tomi Lagundoye and LoftyInc Exec Partner, Michael Oluwagbemi
at UT Law 2011 Sunflower Ceremony

The LoftyInc family congratulates Tomi on her achievement, and wish her good luck in her future endeavors. Tomi formally joined the ranks of proud Longhorn lawyers at a unique "Sunflower Ceremony" held on the grounds of Frank Erwin, Jr. Special Events Center, at UT Austin on Saturday May 21 2011.

Last Line

FFF Channels, and Entrepreneur's Funding Alternatives...read here

Wennovation Hub Launches Complimentary WennoConsulting Sessions

2011-05-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

As part of the strategy of attracting high quality innovative entrepreneurs onto the Wennovation Hub platform, the Wennovation Hub introduced a complimentary bi-weekly consulting sessions focused on start-ups in Lagos on May 6th, 2011.

LoftyInc Team with WennoConsulting Client #1,, Mr. Smith (3rd-L)

This complimentary first time consulting is designed to assist start-up entrepreneurs with pivotal services such as ideas refinement, business planning, strategy as well as funding advice. A team of seasoned consultant from the Entrepreneurship Development Center of Africa Leadership Forum and LoftyInc Allied Partners have been designated to sit on these sessions and provide substantive input to participating start-ups.

Client #1 was Mr. Oladapo Smith, a would-be specialty items design, and marketing entrepreneur seeking assistance with product refinement and business development guidance. At the session on which LoftyInc's Ayo Akinrotimi, Wole Odetayo and Michael Oluwagbemi sat on- constructive feedbacks that promises to launch the motivated entrepreneur were provided.

The next WennoConsulting session is scheduled for May 20th, 2011. To register, send an email indicating preference time between 9am and 3pm to ideaslab@loftyincltd.biz

Did you know that:

Wennovation new Youtube Channel is up and running..watch clips, such as the following:

Wennovation Hub Program Director, Idris Bello bagged Rice University's highest award and Executive Masters in Business Administration at a Commencement Ceremony held on Friday, May 13th 2011