Emerging startups are set to compete for millions in prizes as The Gathering on 100, a major youth culture and entrepreneurship event, moves to Aba, Abia State. The announcement follows a successful Lagos edition that transformed the National Stadium into a hub of creativity and opportunity.
From Lagos to Aba: Expanding the Movement
After a transformative week in Lagos, The Gathering on 100 is heading to Aba, bringing its unique blend of community, culture, and entrepreneurship to the commercial heart of Abia State. The Lagos edition, held from April 22 to 26, brought together young Nigerians for 100 consecutive hours of skill acquisition, pitch competitions, and entertainment. Now, Aba residents have the chance to shape their own experience as registration opens on the official website.
Pitchathon Offers N5 Million Prize Pool
The Aba edition will feature a high-stakes Pitchathon with a total prize pool of N5 million. The winning startup will receive N2.5 million, the first runner-up N1.5 million, and the third-place winner N1 million. This competition aims to spotlight promising early-stage founders and provide them with funding, visibility, and validation before investors and industry stakeholders.
At the Lagos edition, Hurpham Africa emerged as the overall winner with N15 million in funding support, followed by Coconoto Ltd with N10 million and Rava Send with N5 million. Five other startups—URI Social, Dulces Jams, Kindly Book, Africa Medical Marketplace, and MyFund—received N3 million each, along with visibility within the MTN business ecosystem.
Youth-Driven Experiences
The Gathering is built on a youth-first structure, allowing community members, known as Gatherers, to curate experiences. In Lagos, requests for ambition-focused activities led to skill acquisition sessions and the pitchathon, while cultural and fun requests inspired sip-and-paint sessions, rap battles, gaming tournaments, a tattoo parlour, and performances by top DJs. Aba attendees will have the same opportunity to shape their event.
The Aba edition will take place at Prime Event Centre, Osisioma, from 12:00 p.m. on June 14 until 6:00 a.m. on June 15. Organizers say the goal is to deepen access to opportunities across Nigeria by taking The Gathering beyond Lagos into high-potential commercial hubs like Aba, where entrepreneurship continues to thrive.
