In line with efforts to strengthen the work of social enterprises, impact investors and community development practitioners in Nigeria and Africa, Sterling One Foundation is delighted to announce that it will be hosting the premier edition of its Africa Social Impact Summit this July at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja, Nigeria.

The 2-day hybrid event, which will hold from July 13 to 14, 2022, is being executed in partnership with the United Nations Global Compact, Coca Cola Foundation, Impact Investors Foundation and Sterling Bank. It is expected to bring together thousands of players working within the African development with a view to attracting impact investments into critical sectors across the continent.

Set up in 2018, the Sterling One Foundation has played the role of catalyst and convener by providing and facilitating different resources including alternative financing to impact-driven organizations including non-profits to be able to create long-term impact and block gaps in underserved communities across Africa. 

With the Africa Social Impact Summit, Sterling One Foundation hopes to create realistic and effective frameworks that will make it easier for African countries to achieve 2030's Sustainable Development Goals with the help of changemakers who are tackling various challenges and driving behavioral change with their solutions.

Speaking about the summit, the CEO of Sterling One Foundation, Olapeju Ibekwe, opined that the summit presents a solid opportunity for Africa's civil society and impact investment arms to make a big move in how much their quota contributes to nation-building.

In her words, "Our vision at the Sterling One Foundation is to tackle the root causes of poverty, and by working with different impact investors, social enterprises and non-profits, we see daily how crucial the role they play in achieving this for Africa is, and this is why we are setting up this collaborative platform for these stakeholders to meet and engage with other stakeholders—business and government leaders—to share ideas that work and solutions that can scale."

Beyond the summit's opportunities for dialogue with key stakeholders, the Sterling One Foundation team plans to establish and support regional networks that will serve as knowledge sharing hubs, assisting both public and private sector players in aligning their priorities with the development space, facilitating the measurable achievement of the SDGs, and ensuring that solutions developed by different players are scalable and address the continent's most pressing challenges.

Notably, the summit will host a deal room in partnership with the Impact Investors Foundation where impactful and scalable solutions will access needed financing from local and global investors to address the unique challenges Africa faces while accelerating growth towards the SDGS. 

The event is open to attendees from all African nations, as well as foreign players with a keen interest in Africa, and will focus on discussions on climate action, circular economy, renewable energy, health, education, and gender equality. Intending participants can register on www.theimpactsummit.org.