Visafone, a leading Nigerian mobile phone company has announced its co-sponsorship as telecom partners along side Ecobank and Vitamalt of the Entrepreneur TV Series showing on national television from Saturday 4th of October.

The Entrepreneur TV Series, a business reality TV programme offering opportunities to Nigerian micro entrepreneurs to have access to an interest free funding of up to N1m will run for 13 week on African Independent Television-AIT 5-6pm on Sundays; Channels TV 7-8pm also on Sundays and African Magic on DSTV on Saturdays.

Head, Corporate Communications of Visafone Toni Kan Onwordi, said that Visafone is fully committed to empowering Nigerians, a commitment which according to him is behind “our support for The Entrepreneur TV Series, targeted at enhancing the entrepreneurial spirit of the average Nigerian. It is a worthy initiative that we feel proud to be a part of.”

64 candidates had been selected through regional auditioning in three major Nigerian cities from thousands who registered to be part of the show. The auditioning held in Kano , Aba and Lagos .

The Entrepreneur TV Series, the first of its kind in Nigeria will have 16 judges comprising of highly experienced personalities, who in their own rights have made their marks in growing various businesses. There will be three judges in each episode in the 13 weeks the programme will run.

Designed as a platform to invest in innovative social Enterprises that will help achieve a positive social impact as well as alleviating poverty and empowering small businesses in Nigeria, Executive Director of Inspire Media, Producer of the programme, Mr Goke Dokun, said the programme is a “must watch” as it is unique in several ways. First, it gives Nigerian micro-entrepreneurs the freedom to own their ideas, by allowing them access to required cash without interference on how they run it. Secondly it recognises the need to further empower the Nigerian Entrepreneur whom the world has acknowledged as being innovative but lacking opportunity to change his world.

In the words of Goke, “Though one million naira seems quite little, but it will offer eventual winners a head start in implementing their long envisioned business ideas enabling them to become wealth creators and employers of labour. Continuing, Mr Goke noted that in the Entrepreneur TV Series, the winner wins both his idea and the money, as against paying back money to the bank as in the case of accessing a loan to start a business.

The Entrepreneur TV Series has Ecobank Nigeria as the lead sponsor, Vitamalt, world’s number malt drink as associate sponsor, while Visafone is the telecoms sponsor. Other partners are Financial Standard Newspaper, Growing Business Foundation and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria.