Venture Garden Group Launches Venture Garden Foundation
Venture Garden Group Launches Venture Garden Foundation
Venture Garden Group (VGG), Africa's first technology holding company focused on developing and scaling innovative, data-driven businesses, has established the Venture Garden Foundation as a non-profit organization (VGF). A chess tournament was held in conjunction with this launch in collaboration with Chess in Slums Africa, an impact initiative run by Chess in Slums Africa.
VGF's mission is to empower and unleash the potential of individuals who currently lack access to productive opportunities. VGF's mission is to empower ambitious social impact initiatives that seek to exponentially scale their impact across the continent by addressing four critical challenges faced by nonprofits: structure, technology, partnerships, and funding.
VGF's flagship program is the Talent Initiative, a community-based initiative aimed at assisting disadvantaged children and youth between the ages of 5 and 25 years in breaking the cycle of poverty through the use of talent and globally recognized skills. The VGF will assist partners with established programs such as Chess-in-Slums in scaling their impact. VGF hosted 50 children from the Chess in Slums program at the launch, who competed in a double elimination chess tournament against VGG staff and management and were rewarded with a variety of prizes, including full-ride education scholarships for the top four chess players.
While announcing that VGF will launch additional Talent Initiative partnerships, such as the CodingKids Initiative, alongside Spark Foundation and similar programs for art, sports, and music, Kunmi Demuren, cofounder of VGG and a member of the VGF Board of Trustees, stated, "after ten pioneering years of venture building and innovation across Africa through VGG, we have learned that one of the most effective strategies is to partner with others." VGF is our response to the critical need to act immediately and close the social divide caused by gender discrimination and a lack of opportunities for African youth.”
VGF currently supports a number of initiatives, including the Garden Women Network, TechStar Amazon, university hackathons, and an out-of-school outreach program. VGF's newly launched Talent Initiative will provide an administrative workspace and a venue for Chess in Slums tournaments at the Vibranium Valley. Garden Social Ventures (GSV) will also assist CISA in developing its strategy, team, and implementation frameworks, leveraging its experience to assist CISA with fundraising and other advisory services.
Tunde Onakoya, Convener of Chess in Slums Africa, added, "today marked an incredible beginning for VGF and their partnership with our organization." Chess in Slums is committed to reaching 1 million children over the next five years, and with the support of VGF, we are confident that we can accomplish this goal. We look forward to collaborating with VGF to create opportunities for Africa's disadvantaged youth.”
About Venture Garden Group
VGG is Africa's first technology holding company, investing in the development, scaling, and spin-off of innovative companies that address critical social issues in sectors such as transportation, energy, education, and financial services. VGG has developed several of Africa's leading technology companies, including AviTech, EduTech, PowerTech, and TripsEdge, all of which have aided in the improvement of Africans' daily lives across the continent. VGG approaches technology development through rigorous research and development led by its African team, enabling the company to prioritize training and development of indigenous African talent.
About Chess in Slums
Chess in Slums Africa is a non-profit organization dedicated to utilizing the noble game of chess to assist young underprivileged children in slum communities in realizing their full potential through the integration of game principles with daily life challenges, thereby enhancing abstract thinking, creativity, and innovation.
