Questions And Answers Guide For 2025 Tony Elumelu Foundation Entreprenuership Programme Application

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This article contains 2025 Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme Application questions and answers guide. Since 2015 we have coached and guided over 100 entrepreneurs towards winning the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme. Therefore go through this guide carefully. Before you apply, make sure you have your valid Identity Card, Personal photo short and CAC registration document ready.

Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme Application Stage

This year Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme application is in four stages:

Personal Information
Business idea & Experience
Business acumen test
Declarations

PERSONAL INFORMATION STAGE

In the personal information stage, you will be required to fill in your personal details and also upload your valid Identity Card and personal photo short.

KEY QUESTIONS

Q1 Tell us about yourself (150 words max) *

Personal bio and what led you to become an entrepreneur.

Tips for Answering:

Start with a Strong Introduction – Briefly introduce yourself, your background, and what you do.
Highlight Your Passion – Share an Emotional Story of what inspired you to become an entrepreneur.
Mention Key Experiences – Talk about relevant experiences that shaped your journey.

Example:

My name is Ada Chike, am a Nigerian, an agripreneur and a social impact-driven entrepreneur passionate about addressing food insecurity and malnutrition in Nigeria. My journey into entrepreneurship was shaped by my upbringing in a farming community, where I witnessed firsthand the challenges of smallholder farmers and food scarcity.

Determined to make a difference, I founded Boost Agro an enterprise that promotes nutrient-enriched crops and value-added food processing to improve nutrition and economic empowerment, particularly for women and youth. Through my work, I have supported over 1,500 farmers, and impacted more than 3,000 households with our food products….

Q2 Leadership Skills & Experience (100 words max) *

Describe your leadership skills and experience for running the business!

Tips for Answering:

Highlight Key Leadership Skills – Mention qualities like strategic thinking, problem-solving, team management, and decision-making.
Showcase Relevant Experience – Share leadership roles you’ve held in your business or other organizations.
Provide an Example – Demonstrate how your leadership has positively impacted your business.

Example

As a visionary leader, I have successfully led Boost Agro in addressing food insecurity through our innovative agribusiness solutions. Through my leadership, we have expanded into multiple Cities in Kano, supported over 1,500 farmers, and ………….

BUSINESS IDEA AND EXPERIENCE STAGE

Q3 “What problem does your product & service solve? (200 words max) *

What problem does your product & service solve?”

Tips for Answering:

Clearly Define the Problem – Explain the major issue your product/service addresses.
Use Data or Real-Life Story – Show the impact of the problem with data or real life story.
Explain Your Solution – Describe how your product/service directly solves the problem.
Highlight the Impact – Mention how your solution improves lives, businesses, or communities.

Examples:

Nigeria is experiencing a severe hunger and food scarcity crisis, worsened by climate change. Smallholder farmers, who produce most of the country’s food, struggle with reduced rainfall, shorter growing seasons, and rising temperatures. By 2050, some crop yields are expected to decline by 25% (IFPRI – Nigeria, 2023).

At Agro Boost we launched Solar-Powered Irrigation Pump Leasing services which aim at helping farmers in Kano state Nigeria adapt to unpredictable weather, ensuring all-year water supply and helping smallholder farmers build resilience to climate change.

Q4 Wow Us (200 words max) *

What is new, interesting, or different about your product or service (list 3 things)”

Tips for Answering:

Highlight Innovation – Show what makes your product or service unique.
List Three Key Differentiators – Clearly outline three new, interesting, or different aspects.
Use a Strong Hook – Start with a compelling statement or fact.
Demonstrate Impact – Show how your innovation benefits your target audience.

Example:

At Agro Boost, we are transforming smallholder farming with our Solar-Powered Irrigation Pump Leasing Service, offering:

Affordable Climate-Smart Irrigation – Our solar-powered pumps enable farmers to irrigate their crops year-round, reducing dependency on erratic rainfall. This ensures higher yields and food security, even in drought-prone areas.
Pay-As-You-Go Model – Our service allows farmers to lease pumps at low, flexible rates, eliminating high upfront costs and making modern irrigation accessible to even the smallest farms.
Increased Productivity & Resilience – By ensuring a steady water supply, our solution helps farmers grow more food, increase incomes, and adapt to climate change challenges…….

Q5 Addressable Market (50 words max) *

How big is the addressable market for your product or service?

Tips for Answering:

Provide Market Size Data – Use numbers or research-backed estimates.
Define Your Target Audience – Identify who your customers are.
Show Growth Potential – Highlight market trends or demand.

Example

Nigeria’s agricultural sector supports over 38 million smallholder farmers, yet less than 5% have access to modern irrigation solutions. The market for solar-powered irrigation pumps is valued at $500 million, with increasing demand due to climate change. Agro Boost aims to serve over 500,000 farmers, ensuring food security and sustainability.

Q6. Revenue Model (50 words max) *

How will you get revenue in your business?

Tips for Answering:

Clearly State Revenue Streams – Mention how your business generates income.
Be Specific – Include key pricing models (e.g., sales, subscriptions, leasing, commissions).

Example

Agro Boost generates revenue through a pay-as-you-go leasing model for solar-powered irrigation pumps, enabling farmers to pay affordable daily, weekly, or monthly fees. We also earn from direct pump sales, maintenance services, and partnerships with cooperatives and agribusinesses, ensuring sustainable growth while increasing farmers’ productivity and food security.

Q7 Marketing Strategy (50 words max) *

Explain how you intend to (or already do) market your products or service to your

Target market

Tips for Answering:

Identify Key Marketing Channels – Mention digital, offline, or partnership strategies.
Highlight Customer Acquisition Methods – Explain how you attract and retain customers.
Show Scalability – Indicate how the strategy will expand reach.

Example

Agro Boost markets its solar-powered irrigation pumps through partnerships with cooperatives, demonstration farms, and community engagement programs. We leverage social media, radio ads, and referral networks to reach smallholder farmers…..

Q8. Competitors

Who are your competitors/ benchmark organizations? List your top 3″

Tips for Answering:

Identify Direct and Indirect Competitors – Mention businesses offering similar solutions.
Choose Recognized Industry Players – Select well-known competitors or benchmarks.

Q9. Differentiating Factors

Differentiating Factors (50 words max)

What differentiates you from other existing businesses in your field

Tips for Answering:

Highlight Unique Features – Focus on what makes your business stand out.
Compare to Competitors – Show how your approach is different or better.

Example

Agro Boost stands out through its pay-as-you-go leasing model, making irrigation affordable for smallholder farmers. We offer localized support and training, ensuring easy adoption…..

Q10. Current Milestone (50 words max) *

What are your current milestones for business?

Tips for Answering:

Highlight Key Achievements – Mention measurable progress, such as revenue, customers, partnerships, or expansion.
Be Specific – Use numbers or data where possible.

Examples

Agro Boost has successfully leased over 50 solar-powered irrigation pumps to smallholder farmers in Kano State, increasing crop yields by 30%…….

Q11. Next Milestone (50 words) *

Tips for Answering:

Set a Clear Goal – Define the next major target for your business.
Use Measurable Outcomes – Mention specific numbers, partnerships, or expansion plans.
Show Growth and Impact – Explain how this milestone moves your business forward.

Example

Agro Boost’s next milestone is to lease 1,000 solar-powered irrigation pumps across five states within 5 years, impacting over 5,000 smallholder farmers…….

FINANCIALS

Q12 Invested Cash

What is the total amount of cash invested to date in this start-up (in USD) *

Sample Answer : 2500

Q13 Monthly Expenses

What are your current monthly cash expenses in this business (in USD) *

Sample Answer: 250

Q14 Break-even revenue

What is the projected break-even revenues for the business? (in USD) *

To Calculate Breakeven revenue use this formula:

Breakeven Revenue = Total Fixed Costs/(1- Total Variable Cost/Total sales)

Total Fixed cost: 2500

Total Variable: 250 x 12 : 3000

Total Sales: 4,850

Selling price: 5

Breakeven Revenue = 2500/ (1- 3000/4850) = 2500/0.381

Breakeven Revenue = 6,562

Q15 Lifetime Revenue

How much revenue has your start-up generated since inception (in USD) *

Sample Answer: 4,850

Q16 Break-even volume (25 words max) *

What is the projected break-even volume (quantity) for the business? (25 words)

The projected break-even volume (quantity) is the quantity of products or services sold equivalent to the break even revenue (6,562)

That is = 6562/5 = 1,312.4

Projected Breakeven Volume: 1312

Q17 IMPACT (200 words max)

Tips for Answering:

Describe the Social, Economic, or Environmental Impact – Show how your business improves lives, communities, or industries.
Use Data and Examples – Highlight measurable outcomes (e.g., number of people reached, increased incomes, environmental benefits).

Example

We have enabled over 1,500 farmers to irrigate their farms year-round, reducing food insecurity in local communities. Our pay-as-you-go model ensures that even low-income farmers can access modern irrigation without financial strain…….

Q 18 CHALLENGES (50 words max)

Tips for Answering:

Identify Key Challenges – Focus on the most significant obstacles your business faces.
Be Honest but Solution-Oriented – Show awareness while hinting at how you’re addressing them.

Example

Agro Boost faces challenges in access to funding for scaling, awareness among smallholder farmers, and logistics for last-mile delivery of solar-powered pumps…

COGNITIVE & BUSINESS ACUMEN QUESTIONS

Q1. Which of these business networking organizations is most suitable for a start up?

Strong Contact Networks
Casual Contact Networks
Community Service Clubs
Online/Social Media Networks (Anwser)

Q2. A SMART goal means?

Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely (Answer)
Small, Medium, Attractive, Result Oriented, Target
Goal are for only smart people
None of the options

Q3. Which of these accounting tools should not be employed to manage a company’s cashflow?

Quick books
Outlook (Answer)
Plan guru
SME tracker

Q4. ” Sheila started her business without following important guidelines or rules for solving problems. This means she was lacking ____.”

Business savings
Business acumen
Business principles (Answer)
Business strategy

Q5. Sarafina stayed up all night comparing the actual cost to the planned cost of the project she was running for her company. What did she spend her night doing?

Financial Monitioring (Answer)
Project analysis
Reading
None of the Above

Q6. ________ is what customers believe a product or service represents, not what the company owning the brand claims it does.

Brand perception (Answer)
Brand Proposition
User’s experience
Feedback

Q7. Trinkles Enterprise won the award for the highest increase in revenue in 2021 by collecting, analyzing, and reporting marketing information to solve problems. Based on this, what was their competitive advantage?

Innovation research
Marketing research (Answer)
Targeting strategy
Competitor analysis

Q8. “The difference between Debtor and Creditor, Current Liability and Retained earnings are all components of a _________________ “

Investment study
Balance sheet (Answer)
Feasibility Study
Company’s register

Q9. Elevator pitch is to ____ as Pitch deck is to_____

Succint; Detailed (Answer)
Circumstantial; Detailed
Succinct; Concise
Detailed; Succint

Q10. The statement “We strive to be the global leader in the sporting goods industry with brands built on a passion for sports and a sporting lifestyle” can best be categorized as

A lecture topic
A project theme
A book title
A Mission statement (Answer)

Q11.

___________ is the gathering of information about your market and customer so as to make informed decisions?

Marketing
Evaluation
Marketing strategy
Marketing research (Answer)

Q12. The skills needed to launch a business are different from those required to help it grow.

True (Answer)
false
Neither True or False
I don’t know

Q13. Cidar is a fruit juice company that has distinguished itself differently from other fruit juice companies. It has managed to upsell its product greatly and as such become the people’s choice and remain at the top of mind. What concept has the brand done better than its competitors.

Brand penetration
Brand strategy
Brand Positioning(Answer)
Brand value

Q14. The management orientation that suggests if you build a quality product and set a reasonable price, you don’t need much marketing effort to sell it, is called ____.

Product concept(Answer)
Marketing concept
Societal concept
Selling concept

Q15. All successful businesspeople should have a good basic understanding of financial statements and the main financial ratios

false
true (Answer)
Neither True nor False
I don’t know

Q16. What skill should be applied in cases such as letting an employee go or issuing a press release when scandal threatens to tarnish a company’s reputation,

Ideation skill
Financial management skill
Critical thinking skill (Answer)
Egocentrism

Q17. The stage where an idea blossoms is critical because ideas by themselves have ———————-?

Innovation
Meaning
No meaning(Answer)
Clarity

Q18. Which of the following should not be included in an elevator pitch?

Market Analysis
Sales Projection
Employee size(Answer)
Marketing concepts

Conclusion

Above are the questions and answer guide, endeavor to go read this post before applying for the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme. Also share the link of this post to your groups and friends. If you have any difficulty during the registration process, do drop a comment on the comment box below.