20 January 2012 - Africa's Most Successful Women: Divine Ndhlukula
Read the Forbes article featuring 2011 Africa Awards winner Divine Ndhlukula.
05 January 2012 - Africa's Most Successful Women: Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu
Read the Forbes article featuring one of the 2011 Africa Awards winners, Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu.
22 December 2011 - Media Coverage of the 2011 Africa Awards
The Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship and Convergence Africa conference received great coverage from around the world. Read on and prepare to be inspired! We hope you will join us in our efforts to uncover Africa’s outstanding entrepreneurs in 2012.
08 December 2011 - WINNERS ANNOUNCED!
Legatum, a private international investment group and Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment firm, today announced that SECURICO has won the US $100,000 grand prize of the 2011 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship. Based in Harare, Zimbabwe, SECURICO provides guarding services and electronic security solutions, and is the first security company in Zimbabwe to be ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) certified. SECURICO has more than 3,400 employees, 900 of which are women, making it the largest employer of women in the private sector. The company exemplifies the vital role played by entrepreneurs in creating economic growth, prosperity, and realising opportunity in Africa.
Six further finalists were recognised As Africa Awards Winners and each granted a prize of US $50,000:
- Chocolate City Group, Abuja, Nigeria
- Expand Technology, Phoenix, Mauritius
- Pepperoni Foods, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
- Unique Solutions, Serrekunda, The Gambia
- soleRebels, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Victoria Seeds, Kampala, Uganda
The Africa Award presented to Victoria Seeds was sponsored by the Coca-Cola Company and recognises the outstanding contribution of the winner, Victoria Seeds, to supporting, promoting and mentoring women in addition to excelling in all of the criteria required as an Africa Awards Winner.
Prize funds will be re-invested back into the business.
Click here to read the full press release.
01 November 2011 - Top 10 Finalists Announced
Following face-to-face interviews with each of the 15 semi-finalists, the judges have selected ten companies to go through to the final round and make a live presentation to an elite panel of judges in Nairobi on December 6th. With US$ 400,000 in prize funds to be won, the competition is hotter than ever.
Congratulations to all of the finalists:
12 October 2011 - Top 15 Semi-Finalists Announced
The competition this year has been tougher than ever and we are delighted to announce the 15 semi-finalists for the 2011 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship. Representing 11 countries and 12 industry sectors our semi-finalists reflect the diversity and vibrancy of business in Africa today. Over the next two week the judges will be visiting each of the semi-finalists in person and conducting face-to-face, in-depth interviews with the principals, managers and staff, and reviewing financial statements and business plans.
Congratulations to all of the companies who have progressed this far.
Congratulations to all of the companies who have progressed this far.
26 September 2011 - CONVERGENCE Africa - Africa's premier conference for entrepreneurs and investors, featuring Sir Richard Branson.
CONVERGENCE Africa is the platform that brings together the entrepreneurs, investors, policy-makers and businesspeople who will fuel the continent's burgeoning growth. This one-day conference is designed to be informative, practical, actionable and valuable. Featuring live Q&A sessions with Sir Richard Branson, Tony O. Elumelu and Fred Swaniker.
Visit the CONVERGENCE Africa website for more information.
22 September 2011 - Top 30 Companies Announced
After several rounds of evaluation and careful consideration of the 3,300 entries received, the following companies have been selected as the Top 30 (and ties) and will go forward to the next round of judging. The standard of entries this year has been higher than ever and we are pleased to see so many countries and o many industries represented - congratulations to all.
08 September 2011 - African Entrepreneurs Are Making Ghana Into a Tech Startup Hub
Step aside, Silicon Valley and Bangalore. A group of aspiring web entrepreneurs in Ghana are looking to turn Accra into the newest startup hub. Click here to read more.
01 September 2011 - Applications have now closed
Thank you for your applications to the 2011 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship. We've received over 3,300 applications from all over Africa. Results of the preliminary judging stage will be announced on the website soon.
30 August 2011 - 5 BY 20: Empowering 5 Million Women Entrepreneurs by 2020
5 BY 20 is Coca-Cola's ambitious global commitment to empower 5 million women entrepreneurs in our system by 2020.
By harnessing the unique scale and reach of their global system, 5 BY 20 aims to give millions of women opportunities to reach their potential, to support their families and to strengthen their communities - and inspire millions more to do the same.
Read more about this initiative here.
29 August 2011 - Guns, Germs And Ministering Angels - The Irresistible Rise of East African Women
The Sisterhood Project, a collaboration between The EastAfrican and Africa Review.com, explores the surprising combination of historical factors that have transformed the role of women in the region over the past two decades.
Read the full article here.
28 August 2011 - Female African Entrepreneuship
An interesting infographic depicting the percentage share of formal firms that are owned by women in Africa has been created on Afrografique. Click here to see more.
18 July 2011 - FEATURED ENTREPRENEUR: soleRebels, Africa's fastest growing footwear brand
soleRebels, Africa's fastest growing footwear brand has launched its new global ecommerce website. Read more about the initiative on their press release.
The company’s business model, product design, quality and global success has attracted strong interest from international media. The Guardian Newspaper in the UK recently featured soleRebels in an article entitled "Ethiopia firm recycling tyres into shoes does big business via internet" while the web's leading eco-fashion report dubbed the company the "most fabulous eco shoemaker on the planet" and DISCOVERY CHANNEL presenter Summer Rayne Oakes named soleRebels the "world's coolest fair trade brand".
CNN recently profiled soleRebels and its founder Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu in a 30 minute special entitled "Ethiopian footwear fashionista starts a green shoe revolution", and BBC Worldwide is featuring the company in "An African Journey" with Jonathan Dimbleby.
Other coverage can be found on LA PARISIEN, the cover of FOOTWEAR NEWS, Die Welt, The Times (UK) and the Irish Times.
Learn more about the company on their website: http://www.solerebelsfootwear.co/
30 June 2011 - At Least 1 in 5 African Youth Plan to Start a Business
"Gallup surveys in 27 African countries and areas underscore the interest young people in the region have in entrepreneurship."
Read the full article here.
28 June 2011 - 2011 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship on Egyptian TV
The 2011 Africa Awards Programme is discussed on 'Channel 1 News' in Egypt.
26 June 2011 - The Role of Entrepreneurship and Opportunity in Sub-Saharan Africa
Celebrating entrepreneurship in sub-Saharan Africa is about recognising the key role entrepreneurs play in fostering wealth and wellbeing for ordinary Africans.
Click here to read the report in PDF format.
20 June 2011 - 7 African Entrepreneurs Who Inspire Innovation
"To be a successful entrepreneur in Africa, you must have raw courage, and blind perseverance to overcome mind-boggling bureaucracy and limited access to credit. In spite of these challenges many Africans have tapped into their entrepreneurial spirit and have been rewarded with success beyond their wildest dreams."
Read the full article here.
07 June 2011 - Time to celebrate African success stories!
ICT4Entrepreneurship interviews Hamish Banks about this year's Awards programme. Click here for more information.
01 June 2011 - Millionaire who built business empire on chili sauce
Read the CNN article featuring one of the 2007 Africa Awards winner's - Enterprise Urwibutso.
31 May 2011 - Footage from the 2011 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship launch event
The 2011 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship was launched in Nairobi on the 31st May. See pictures and video of the event below.
Video:
In this video:
Hamish Banks, Legatum Ltd.
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In this video:
James Mwangi, CEO, Equity Bank
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In this video:
John Waibochi, CEO, Virtual City
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In this video:
Antony Wahome, CEO, Linksoft LTD
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Pictures:
In this picture:
James Mwangi, Equity Bank
Anthony Wahome, Linksoft Group Ltd.
Hamish Banks, Legatum Ltd. |
In this picture:
Jennifer Barassa, Top Image
John Waibochi, Virtual City (2007 winner)
Eva Muraya, Brand Strategy & Design Ltd. (2007 finalist)
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In this picture:
Hamish Banks, Legatum Ltd.
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18 March 2011 - Africa Awards 2010 video coverage
The 2010 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship is featured on Africa Report.
01 February 2011 - Tutuka Software's Newsletter
Click here to download the first 2011 Newsletter from Tutuka Software (2010 Africa Awards Winner), which includes a recap of their breakthrough FIFA World Cup programme, the outstanding performance of the Star Schools students they support, and an update on their office move.
24 January 2011 - Integr8's endeavours achieve global recognition
South Africa’s largest privately-owned ICT managed services company, the Integr8 Group (2008 Africa Awards Winner), has been confirmed as amongst the twenty five largest companies will be part of any internship. Other areas of thematic interest that may be part of an internship areSouth Africa’s largest privately-owned ICT managed services company, the Integr8 Group (2008 Africa Awards Winner), has been confirmed as amongst the twenty five largest companies will be part of any internship. Other areas of thematic interest that may be part of an internship areSouth Africa’s largest privately-owned ICT managed services company, the Integr8 Group (2008 Africa Awards Winner), has been confirmed as amongst the twenty five largest companies will be part of any internship. Other areas of thematic interest that may be part of an internship are
06 December 2010 - Craft Silicon of Nairobi, Kenya, wins top prize and $100,000 at 2010 Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship
In an exciting climax to the 2010 Africa Awards, Craft Silicon Ltd. was declared the winner by the elite panel of judges. Under the leadership of CEO Kamal Budhabhatti, Craft Silicon provides software solutions for core banking, microfinance, and electronic and mobile payments in four continents. The company is a strong example of the vital role of entrepreneurship in creating economic growth, prosperity, and opportunity in Africa and was cited by Chairman of Judges Tokunbo Talabi, as embodying both innovation and inspiration.
Five other companies were honoured with prizes of $50,000 each: Mellech Engineering & Construction Ltd., Nairobi, Kenya; Planbuild Technical Services Ltd., Kampala, Uganda; Sigma Electric PLC, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Tutuka Software (Pty) Ltd., Rivonia, South Africa; Wilkins Engineering Ltd., Accra, Ghana.
07 November 2010 - Komla Dumor announced as Master of Ceremonies
Komla Dumor is a senior broadcast journalist and news anchor with the BBC where he anchors the The World Today. In 2009 he became the face and voice of a new groundbreaking television programme Africa Business Report.
Mr. Dumor has reported for the BBC in close to 15 different countries. He joined the BBC in 2006 after a decade-long career as a morning show host on radio in his native Ghana. He was voted Journalist of the Year by Ghana Journalist Association in 2003, and holds a BSc in Sociology and Psychology (University of Ghana) and an MA in Public Administration (Harvard University). His hobbies include reading, listening to music and discussing African economic progress.
01 October 2010 - East Africa's leading entrepreneur joins the judging panel
We are delighted to announce that Dr. Manu Chandaria, CEO of Comcraft, will be part of the elite judging panel for the 2010 Africa Awards for Entrepeneurship. Dr. Chandaria was previously the Chairman of the Judges for the 2007 Africa Awards competition and brings an unrivalled wealth of experience and wisdom to the final judging process.
15 July 2010 - Gala Awards Evening
Ten Finalists will be honoured at this year's invitation-only Gala Awards event in Nairobi, on December 6th, attended by Africa's business leaders, policymakers, entrepreneurs and international media. One Grand Prizewinner will receive US$ 100,000 to invest back into the business and employees, and five others will receive awards of US$50,000. Further details of the event will be posted here shortly.
01 July 2010 - Judging panel
The final panel of judges will be chaired by Tokunbo Talabi, the CEO of Superflux International and a previous Grand Prize winner of the Legatum Africa Awards. The other judges are:
- Dr. Manu Chandaria - Chairman Comcraft Ltd.
- Dr. James Mwangi - CEO, Equity Bank
- Mr. Kibuga Kariithi - ex-CEO of Nairobi Stock Exchange
- Mr. Steve Beck - Co-Founder & CEO, Springhill Equity Partners LLC