SCHOOL NEWS - The 2025 edition of the annual Allan Gray Entrepreneurship Challenge (AGEC) is now open for entries for schools and learners across Southern Africa – and this year the legendary business competition offers even more action-packed games, prizes and opportunities for high school learners to pursue their business dreams.
“As the Challenge enters its ninth year in 2025, the mission to ignite entrepreneurial thinking among youth across Southern Africa – in more schools, more provinces, and even reaching learners in neighbouring countries like Namibia, Eswatini and Botswana – is getting more critical and more exciting,” says Marcel Manikum, Programme Lead of the Allan Gray Entrepreneurship Challenge.
AGEC plays a unique role in Southern Africa by focusing on early-stage entrepreneurial exposure - targeting high school learners and sparking curiosity through fun, gamified learning.
Top students get the opportunity to pitch their business ideas live at the AGEC Summit to turn business plans into real ventures.
The Challenge is currently expanding in the Eastern Cape, Limpopo, North West, and KwaZulu-Natal, alongside continued work in Gauteng and Western Cape.
“These areas show untapped potential with rising interest from educators and district leaders. They also represent communities where entrepreneurial education can serve as a powerful lever for social mobility,” says Manikum.
Exciting new additions to the competition
AGEC 2025 promises to be even more thrilling than previous years. The competition’s goal is to shift perceptions about entrepreneurship, making it exciting, accessible, and relevant from a young age.
Manikum explains: “Among the competition’s new features, there is a brand-new high school game – with a deeper, scenario-based simulation that puts learners in the driver’s seat of real-world business decisions.
The popular AGEC digital platform is also faster, smarter, more mobile-friendly It’s designed to feel relevant, exciting, and easy to use.
Participants stand a chance to win exciting prizes, including cash and Allan Gray Unit Trusts! The final Business Pitch Challenge will reward the top three students with incredible prizes, while the Allan Gray High School Game features a generous overall prize pool. Schools can also win a special prize for entering the most participants.
From small beginnings to a booming movement
“AGEC started as an online game to get students excited about business, and since inception, has grown into a full-on movement - with national competitions, hands-on tools for teachers, physical card games like Startup Shuffle, and even face-to-face pitching events,” says Manikum.
The big idea behind the Challenge was to spark ideas, build confidence, and help young people envision themselves as entrepreneurs while still in high school.
The 2024 competition saw more than 21 000 learners participating across four countries, with the Allan Gray High School Game being played over 200 000 times, equating to 70 000 hours of entrepreneurial learning.
The competition in 2024 also provided training, that is accredited by the South African Council of Educators, to more than 800 teachers through partnerships with teacher unions (SADTU, NAPTOSA and SAO).
“For us, the growth has not been just about numbers – we're seeing very exciting progress in how young people are starting to think differently about their future. Sparking their ambition is at the heart of Mr. Allan Gray’s mission – to build a generation of problem-solvers, job creators, and confident leaders.”
What learners say about the Allan Gray Entrepreneurship Challenge
“Last year’s competition showed a remarkable impact on our students - 95.2% agreed that entrepreneurship can drive community change, 94.8% say entrepreneurship skills are useful for life, even if you don’t start a business, and 69.85% of learners believe they now have what it takes to start a business — many attributing their confidence to AGEC exposure,” says Manikum.
‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’
