BRITS POS – BRITS - With Youth Month in full view, there’s a powerful initiative unfolding that’s helping high school students reimagine what their future could look like - not just as job seekers, but as job creators.
The Allan Gray Entrepreneurship Challenge (AGEC) is a free, online game that turns high school learners into business owners - guiding them through the ups and downs of running their own store, making real-world decisions and learning as they go. It takes just 30 minutes to play and there are incredible prizes for learners and schools. But the real magic? It’s not just a game. It’s a spark
In a time where youth unemployment is one of South Africa’s biggest challenges, Allen Gray Entrepreneurship (AGEC) is showing young people that entrepreneurship isn’t something you wait for, it’s something you start now. The game gives them the mindset, confidence and early exposure they need to see starting a business as something possible and personal.
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.
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).
