Nigeria Backs Eight Young Founders With ₦40 Million in Non-Dilutive Cash

Eight Nigerian founders will receive ₦5 million ($3,711) each in non-dilutive funding from Nigeria's Ministry of Youth Development, through the Nigerian Youth Academy (NiYA), and Cascador, a Nigeria-focused platform for growth-stage founders. The total payout to the winners comes to ₦40 million, or roughly $29,700.

The grants are the payoff of the NiYA-Cascador Founders Programme, a four-week initiative launched in August to help early-stage businesses strengthen operations and access capital without giving up equity. It combines business training, regulatory guidance, mentorship, and funding.

That structure matters. Founders keep full ownership, and the programme tackles the operational problems that often stall young companies before capital ever becomes useful.

How competitive was it?

The eight winners emerged from a cohort of 17 entrepreneurs, selected from more than 19,000 applications. That's an acceptance rate well under 0.1% for the funded tier.

The winning businesses span education, fashion technology, food production, manufacturing, agriculture, and climate solutions:

• SewPro — a digital business management tool for tailors and fashion entrepreneurs
• Biuda — technology education for children and teenagers through interactive learning content
• Sparklean Station Nigeria — a manufacturer of cleaning and disinfectant products
• Backel Food Services — food and beverage production focused on healthier alternatives
• Shellify — converts eggshell waste into useful materials
• Rèkool Access Technology — solar-powered refrigeration and cold-storage systems
• Agrosavvy Consult — agriculture sector services
• Craft Planet — collects and processes plastic waste into sustainable construction materials

The remaining nine businesses in the cohort of 17 will each receive ₦1 million ($742) in non-dilutive growth capital. All participants also get an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution to manage operations and retain alumni status with NiYA.

What does this change for the founders?

Beyond the cash, participants gained direct engagement with the regulators that can make or break a young Nigerian company: the Nigeria Data Protection Commission, Standards Organisation of Nigeria, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Corporate Affairs Commission, and National Information Technology Development Agency.

Sapphital Limited, the Ministry's technical partner, implemented the programme using its Startup and Grant Management System to handle applications, assessments, and coordination. Participants also accessed SMECore, an ERP platform developed by Sapphital.

Kabir Olaosebikan, founder of Craft Planet, said the support is operational, not just financial. "This programme will prove to be a defining step in our growth story, giving us the business foundations and confidence to pursue our ambitions," Olaosebikan said. "With the funding and ERP platform, we now have the means to put what we've learned into action. Our focus is to build on our sustainable plastic waste solutions and create jobs as we grow."

A government pushing capital into startups

The NiYA partnership is the Nigerian government's latest move to channel money into the startup ecosystem. In February, the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) finalised agreements with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to launch a $50 million Impact Innovation Fund targeting pre-seed, seed, and early-stage Nigerian startups.

Youth Development Minister Ayodele Olawande framed the programme as closing a specific gap. "Nigeria is blessed with talented and innovative young people. What they need are opportunities to turn their ideas into successful businesses," Olawande said in a statement on Tuesday. "Through the Nigerian Youth Academy (NiYA) and our partnership with Cascador, we are bridging the gap between skills, funding and enterprise development."

Cascador's growing footprint

The ministry deal extends a busy year for Cascador. In September, its flagship Cascador ScaleUp programme selected 10 Nigerian companies for business assessments and access to funding. In October, it partnered with Sterling Bank to set up a $200 million fund helping small Nigerian businesses and startups access bank loans.

Since 2019, Cascador says it has supported 80 companies that have collectively raised more than $150 million — an average of nearly $1.9 million per company.

Cascador CEO Trish Thomas called the NiYA programme a pilot with room to grow. "This partnership has put that commitment into action, and seeing eight deserving founders secure funding at Pitch Day is an encouraging outcome for the pilot," Thomas said. "We look forward to seeing them use this backing to grow their businesses and create jobs in the communities they serve."

If the pilot scales, the next cohort could draw from an application pool already approaching 20,000 — and put more government-backed, equity-free capital into play for Nigeria's early-stage founders.