Renaissance Africa Awards Grants to 215 Niger Delta Youths, Launches NRISE

Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited has granted 215 young entrepreneurs in the Niger Delta with financial assistance to launch, enhance, and expand their businesses. At a graduation and award ceremony in Port Harcourt, Renaissance Africa's Vice President of Relations and Sustainable Development, Mr. Igo Weli, revealed that the 215 winners were chosen from over 21,000 applicants through a thorough selection process, training, and business-plan development.

Weli highlighted the high number of applications as evidence of the Niger Delta's abundant entrepreneurial potential and ideas, despite economic challenges.

The grants are part of Renaissance Africa's broader commitment to investing in people, creating opportunities, and promoting sustainable development across the region. Weli encouraged the beneficiaries to view their certificates, awards, and grants as seeds, emphasizing that building a successful business requires care, discipline, patience, and consistency.

He advised the entrepreneurs to concentrate on solving real problems, generating value, establishing customer trust, and continuously improving their knowledge, stating that success is measured not only by financial gains but also by the opportunities created for others.

The event also marked the launch of the NNPC Renaissance Initiative for Sustainable Enterprise (NRiSE), an upgraded enterprise development platform built upon the 22-year history of the LiveWIRE programme. LiveWIRE, run by the former Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), had trained approximately 11,000 young entrepreneurs in the Niger Delta and supported businesses that continued to operate.

Mr. Weli explained that NRiSE would offer mentorship, incubation, business advisory services, market linkages, and strengthened partnerships to help enterprises start, survive, and grow.

Speaking at the ceremony, Acting Chief Upstream Investment Officer, NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services (NUIMS), Mr. Olanrewaju Igandan, praised Renaissance Africa for maintaining the enterprise development initiative. Igandan emphasized that the program had provided the beneficiaries with practical tools and knowledge to become successful entrepreneurs, describing the certificates received as more than just a formality.

He urged the graduates to expand their businesses, generate employment opportunities for others, and stressed that young entrepreneurs require opportunity, structure, and sustained support to transform their potential into thriving businesses.