According to a recent report by the United Nations, the sustainable growth of Africa heavily relies on the effective utilization of tools such as technology to combat multidimensional vulnerabilities. Throughout the continent, individuals are leveraging their experiences, skills, and networks to develop purpose-driven solutions for various challenges. In recent years, the African startup ecosystem has experienced a significant surge in the number of founders utilizing technology to innovate and address African problems.
Here is a compilation of fifteen remarkable founders who are creating impactful solutions across the continent, deserving your attention:
1. Marie-Reine Seshie
As the CEO and co-founder of Kola Market, Marie brings over a decade of experience in driving results for SMEs and startups across Africa. With a background in the banking sector and management consulting for SMEs, Marie’s startup, Kola Market, serves as a B2B platform that leverages data science and digital tools to provide SMEs with consistent sales, smart inventory insights, and blended finance. Their goal is simple: to assist SMEs in selling out their inventory and expanding their income sustainably and profitably.
2. Aisha Husseini (Nigeria)
Aisha Husseini boasts over seven years of experience in consumer lending and trade within the African technology ecosystem. As a two-time founder and previous leader of Mobile Waiter, Aisha’s current venture, Keza Africa, is a smartphone financing platform. Keza Africa aims to make digital work tools more affordable by enabling Africans to purchase smartphones and pay for them in monthly installments.
3. Olusola Amusan (Nigeria)
Olusola Amusan, co-founder and CEO of Vesti, possesses a background in software engineering and a track record as a two-time founder. With expertise in designing learning curriculums for top banks and universities, Olusola’s startup, Vesti, is a finance and legal software platform that facilitates financial payments and settlement of migration-related fees. Vesti empowers users to move from one place to another, transfer money, access government payments, savings, health insurance, and make payments to migration merchants.
4. Nomsa Makgabenyana (Botswana)
Nomsa Makgabenyana, an MPhil (Inclusive Innovation) candidate at the Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town, is the founder of Seriti Insights. Seriti Insights addresses the fact that Africans often express themselves in a mixture of languages, constantly evolving sayings, and shared experiences with brands and products on social media platforms. Their product, the Seipone.ai SaaS, provides marketers, brand builders, and product owners with real-time insights and sentiments of African consumers, regardless of the language they use.
5. Chineye Ochem (Nigeria)
Chineye Ochem, the co-founder and COO of Tyms Africa, is a Chartered Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner with extensive experience in accounting and finance. Tyms Africa assists businesses with cash flow management and short-term cash flow financing through Tyms Book, an automated bookkeeping and accounting platform. Tyms Book enables businesses to maintain proper financial records and generate financial reports seamlessly, allowing Chineye to contribute to improving the standard of living for Nigerians and Africans.
6. Naledi Magowe (Botswana)
Naledi Magowe, co-founder of Brastorne, demonstrates an unwavering commitment to bridging the digital divide for rural African communities. Brastorne has empowered over two million Africans through mobile solutions, providing knowledge, resources, and connectivity to the rural poor in Africa. Recognized as a thought leader on a global scale, Naledi’s startup connects the unconnected to the world by granting equitable access to the internet, markets, information, and community, even without smartphones or data bundles.
7. Ope Onaboye (Nigeria)
Ope Onaboye, a serial entrepreneur and CEO of Renda, brings ten years of diverse experience spanning different sectors. Renda is an online platform that simplifies e-commerce operations and provides access to logistics services. Apart from connecting businesses with dispatch riders, Renda focuses on a wide range of bulk logistics services, including procurement, warehousing, inventory management, and freight. With a network of over 300 drivers and 90+ warehouses, Renda currently operates in ten cities.
8. Blandine Umuziranenge (Rwanda)
As the founder and CEO of Kosmotive, Blandine Umuziranenge combines IT, Social Entrepreneurship, and Circular Business Modeling to improve menstrual, maternal, and child health in Rwanda and throughout Africa. Through their eHealth platform and Helpline, Kosmotive provides access to menstrual, maternal, and child health information. They also manufacture and distribute women’s hygiene products, particularly KosmoPads reusable sanitary pads, to invest in girls’ education, women’s health, and the environment.
9. Jennat El Guennouni (Morocco)
Jennat El Guennouni, co-founder of JobBee, possesses a diverse background, having worked in Europe for ten years after growing up in Morocco. Trained as an industrial engineer, she switched careers, became an NLP practitioner, and rediscovered her passion for behavioral science. JobBee is an HR Tech startup on a mission to unlock African tech talent. They help scaling tech companies efficiently hire vetted remote developers and assist developers in advancing their careers within international companies.
10. Nyambogo Jennifer (Kenya)
As the CEO and co-founder of Mawu Africa, Jennifer is deeply experienced in fintech and e-commerce, spearheading creative vision, ideation, strategy, and execution. Mawu Africa operates as an online marketplace that allows global buyers to discover and purchase products from Africa’s most talented craftspeople. By digitally connecting these craftspeople with global consumers, Mawu Africa aims to showcase exceptional goods made throughout Africa.
11. Pauline Kariuki (Kenya)
Pauline Kariuki, co-founder, and CTO at Mawu Africa, is an IT expert with over five years of experience in product management and e-commerce. With a passion for utilizing technology to create an impact in society, Pauline joins Jennifer in their mission at Mawu Africa to connect global buyers with African craftspeople, making their products easily accessible to a broader market.
12. Chikodi Ukaiwe (Nigeria)
Chikodi Ukaiwe, co-founder of Salad Africa, is dedicated to providing employees with financial services and benefits beyond their regular paychecks. With a background in building solutions in Africa for around ten years, Salad Africa offers features like Salary On Demand, enabling employees to access their salaries before payday.
13. Agness Mollel (Tanzania)
Agness Mollel, a lawyer by profession and co-founder of Mipango Fintech, is driven by a desire to empower women and youth across various sectors. Mipango app, their AI-enabled personal finance app, enables customers to track their cash, mobile money, and bank transactions. It also facilitates the creation and tracking of budgets, goals, savings, and investments, providing personalized financial advice based on users’ specific needs.
14. Oare Ehiemua-Ochui (Nigeria)
Oare Ehiemua-Ochui, Founder and CEO of LaborHack, is passionate about constructing a new economy for artisans. LaborHack acts as a digital platform that connects construction businesses with a pool of trained, tested, and vetted skilled workers available on-demand for projects. They provide experienced and vetted artisans to fulfill business and home care service needs, with all artisans on LaborHack being OPL Academy certified.
15. Joyce Mbaya
Joyce Mbaya, co-founder, and CEO of Zydii, brings over ten years of entrepreneurial experience to the table. Zydii is a workforce upskilling solution that provides accessible and transformative digital training designed for Africa. By offering African and relatable digital courses, Zydii aims to make workforce training affordable and accessible for African businesses. Their courses can be accessed online, offline (via USSD & SMS), and cater to the diverse needs of the African workforce.
These fifteen founders represent a diverse range of innovative solutions across various sectors, contributing to Africa’s sustainable growth through technology and entrepreneurship.
Original Post: https://techcabal.com/2023/04/20/15-founders-building-solutions-to-look-out-for-in-2023/
