Em Ekong

Em Ekong has over 25 years of experience as a business advisor and project manager, with a recent focus on the development and delivery of enterprise, employment, and skills programs in both the UK and West Africa. Fifteen years ago, Em founded Urban Inclusion Community Ltd, a regeneration company and social enterprise dedicated to developing and delivering programs that support women, young people, and ethnic minority communities.

Em’s areas of expertise include business mentoring, business planning, raising finance, fundraising, business growth strategies, project evaluation and monitoring, community capacity building, marketing/communications, and project management.

Through Urban Inclusion, Em played a key role in establishing the African and Caribbean Business Experience, in partnership with RegenFirst, which organized the largest business-to-business event during London’s 2012 Olympics. This event successfully brought together African, Caribbean, and Diaspora businesses to support the development of enterprise and economic growth through sector-specific business matching and knowledge transfer.

In 2011, Em expanded Urban Inclusion’s reach by establishing offices in Ghana, where the organization provided business development services and economic development consultancy to isolated and disadvantaged entrepreneurs in West Africa.

At the core of Em’s work is building entrepreneurial ecosystems in Africa. His current initiatives include collaboration with the Aspen Institute of Development Entrepreneurs, Women’s Entrepreneurship and Leadership for Africa, ShEquity (investing in women entrepreneurs), GIZ/Scale Up Africa (supporting Member-Based Business Organisations), and Sound Diplomacy, where he works on developing business resilience strategies for MSMEs and organizations operating in the music, creative, and cultural sectors.