AFKInsider: What are the applicants trying to achieve?

Douglas Imaralu: Applicants are young Nigerian entrepreneurs; some are already in business while others are looking to get into business. Although they have different interests – agriculture, technology, manufacturing, fashion, media, etc. Their goals are similar: network, build capacity and succeed with their enterprise.

AFKInsider: What is in it for Mara Foundation/Mara Group?

Douglas Imaralu: Mara Foundation is a social enterprise. The Mara Mentor project is one of its initiatives. Basically, our efforts are geared towards the common good of the society. Take unemployment as a societal challenge in Nigeria, we believe a potent solution to this is by promoting entrepreneurship among youths, thus Mara Mentor aims to enable, empower and inspire a generation of young entrepreneurs who would solve society challenges, create jobs and contribute to national development.

AFKInsider: Is Mara Foundation acting as an incubator or accelerator for the entrepreneurs?

Douglas Imaralu: More as a supporter of entrepreneurship in any stage. We understand that there are incubators and accelerators already in Nigeria and we just fill the void as an online community where entrepreneurs can meet, share ideas and network.

AFKInsider: Tell me about the apps and other available platforms

Douglas Imaralu: Mara Mentor can be accessed primarily through the mobile app and web platform. The Mara Mentor app can be downloaded on Apple, Android, Blackberry and Nokia stores. You also can access Mara Mentor via web on www.mentor.mara.com. And as mentioned earlier, the offline platform is what we have with Mara Mentor One-on-One.

AFKInsider: How has it grown in Nigeria?

Douglas Imaralu: Mara Mentor was founded in 2012 by the Founder of Mars Group and Mara Foundation, Ashish J Thakkar. The Mara Mentor program was launched by President Goodluck Jonathan alongside Ashish J. Thakkar on May 29th, 2014 at the Democracy Day celebrations in Abuja.

The Mara Mentor initiative is in partnership with the Federation, Ministry of Youth Development, Federal Ministry of Communication Technology, Federal Ministry of Agriculture, and the National Planning Commission. Mara Mentor is open to collaborations with organisations in the youth development space, to foster entrepreneurship education and capacity building for young Nigerians (Africans).