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African Entrepreneur Collective
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Co-Founded with Sara Leedom
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2015 Global Fellow
bold idea
Mitigate the epidemic of youth unemployment in Africa by providing training, affordable capital, and networks to young entrepreneurs.
organization overview
African Entrepreneur Collective (AEC) is a collection of incubators, accelerators, and investment funds supporting young entrepreneurs in Africa. AEC’s goal is simple: support local African entrepreneurs by providing them the capacity building, mentorship, and direct financing so that they can grow their enterprises to create jobs in their communities. Since launching in Rwanda in 2013, AEC has several brands under the AEC umbrella. AEC’s signature program, Inkomoko Business Development, works with 100 entrepreneurs annually, and their Kiva-backed loan fund, AEC Rwanda Trustee Ltd, provides direct financing to entrepreneurs. Through these entities and more, AEC has helped create more than 700 jobs.
Personal Bio
Julienne Oyler, is the founder and executive director of African Entrepreneur Collective (AEC). Julienne is passionate about developing the capacity of African youth, which led her to found AEC to help young entrepreneurs grow their businesses and create jobs for others, stemming the epidemic of youth unemployment across Africa. Julienne leads the organization’s strategy, including developing the accelerators and incubators within the AEC umbrella. She also manages investments into AEC entrepreneurs through a Kiva-backed loan fund. Prior to founding AEC, Julienne served as director of development at College Track, a national after-school program in the United States. She has held leadership and strategic consulting positions at a number of education organizations, including African Leadership Academy. Living, working, and traveling in more than twenty African countries, coupled with her experience working with education organizations, led Julienne to believe strongly in the power of education as a means to develop the potential in young people across the continent. Julienne has an MBA from Yale University and BA in African Politics and History from Georgetown University.
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Impact Location ?
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