Aiyedatiwa To Buy Dangote Shares For 500 Ondo Entrepreneurs

Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has announced plans to purchase shares in the Dangote Group for 500 young entrepreneurs in the state as part of efforts to promote investment, entrepreneurship and wealth creation among youths.

Aiyedatiwa made the announcement during the 2026 Ondo State Entrepreneurship Agency (ONDEA) Entrepreneurs Summit held at the International Centre for Culture and Events, The Dome, in Akure.

The summit, themed “The New Ondo: Positioning Entrepreneurs for Emerging Opportunities,” brought together entrepreneurs, investors, business owners, policymakers and other stakeholders.

The governor said the initiative was intended to expose young entrepreneurs to investment opportunities and enable them to acquire stakes in one of Nigeria’s major business groups.

“I want my people to be beneficiary of the Dangote shares. On this note, I’m also supporting ONDEA to purchase for 500 youths aside the 20 persons that had gone through screening and emerged,” Aiyedatiwa said.

He added that the state would purchase what he described as a substantial amount of Dangote Refinery shares for the beneficiaries, allowing them to participate in ownership of the business.

According to the governor, the initiative formed part of his administration’s broader plan to transition Ondo from a predominantly civil service-driven economy to one focused on entrepreneurship, innovation and investment.

Aiyedatiwa also announced ₦80 million in grants for 20 entrepreneurs selected under the ONDEA My IDEA programme, with each beneficiary receiving ₦4 million.

He said the beneficiaries would also receive business support, mentorship and opportunities for international exposure.

The governor said his administration was developing an entrepreneurial ecosystem designed to connect ideas with skills, businesses with financing and businesses with markets.

He identified agriculture and agro-processing, cocoa and other cash crops, tourism, the blue economy, oil and gas, solid minerals, technology, renewable energy, creative industries, manufacturing, logistics and export-oriented businesses as key areas of focus.

“We must build enterprise not only for markets within Ondo State, but other parts of Nigeria and ultimately to the world,” he said.

Aiyedatiwa also unveiled the Lucky Light Initiative, a phased solar-energy programme aimed at providing reliable and affordable electricity to 1,000 small businesses across the state’s 18 local government areas.

He explained that the programme was designed as an economic intervention for businesses rather than a household electrification scheme.

“Lucky Light is an initiative designed specifically to support 1,000 small businesses with reliable, clean and affordable power. It is not a household electrification programme; it is an economic intervention designed to power businesses across all 18 Local Government Areas of Ondo State,” the governor said.

He noted that rising energy costs had increased the cost of doing business for small enterprises, making interventions aimed at reducing operating expenses necessary.

The governor urged the 20 My IDEA beneficiaries to deploy the grants toward building sustainable businesses, creating jobs, paying taxes and supporting other entrepreneurs.

Earlier, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Investment, Summy Smart Francis, disclosed that ONDEA received more than 2,703 applications for the My IDEA programme.

Francis said the applicants underwent three stages of screening before the final 20 beneficiaries were selected.

“We received over 2,703 applications. We have three levels of screenings and they get to the final judges where we identify the 20 ideas that have the strategy to be able to add economic impact to the state,” he said.

He added that each beneficiary received ₦4 million and would also be entitled to a business trip outside Nigeria.

Also speaking, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said entrepreneurs would play an important role in the Federal Government’s ambition to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030.