Africa’s future lies in the hands of its youthful population. But, while the region’s start-up businesses are gaining confidence and scale with a growing number of innovations achieving recognition beyond the region’s borders, much more must be done to create an enabling environment that allows entrepreneurs to flourish. This is especially the case for women entrepreneurs, whose potential is far from being optimized. This was the reason for a World Economic Forum challenge to find Africa’s top women Innovators. The criteria for the challenge required entrants’ companies to be less than three years old, be earning revenue for at least a year, and have proven innovation and positive social impact.
Read moreFulufhelo Ramulifho - The startup story of a South African edupreneur creating high school learner conversations about careers
Fulufhelo Ramulifho, founder of Careers For A Powerful You (South Africa)
The critical period of time for young people to open their minds to possibilities and to prepare for their futures is during their schoolyears - but, they need the right kind of support to help them on their journeys. Careers For A Powerful You is the brainchild of South African edupreneur Fulufhelo Ramulifho, a business focused on providing high quality career guidance, coaching and mentoring to help a new generation of young people to fulfil their potential.
Read moreEntrepreneur Smarts: Understanding S-curves
Farmers know when to plow, when to plant, when to harvest, for the best crop. Is there a seasonal code to guide people developing innovations? There is. Every innovation follows a lifecycle called an S-curve. Understanding S-curves will help you to take the right actions at the right time.
Read moreEssential Read: Own Your Space by Nadia Bilchik and Lori Milner
Lori Milner (L) and Nadia Bilchik (R)
Own Your Space by authors and entrepreneurs, Nadia Bilchik and Lori Milner, is a great read for any working woman, whether in the corporate environment or for the entrepreneur. It provides practical tools and insights gleaned from workshops held around the world and from interviews with some of South Africa’s most accomplished women to provide you with tried-and-tested techniques, tips and advice to help you boost your career, enhance your confidence and truly own your space on every level. By exploring your head space, your physical space, personal grooming, virtual and networking skills as well as overcoming the negative effects of past conditioning, you will learn how to develop the unshakeable confidence to achieve absolutely anything.
Read more2 African Women Social Entrepreneurs recognised by the Schwab Foundation
Tracey Chambers (L) and Yasmina Filali (R)
The 2016 Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneurs of the Year awards have just been announced, and 2 women from Africa are amongst the winners this year - Tracey Chambers of the Clothing Bank in South Africa and Yasmina Filali of Fondation Orient Occident in Morocco. The awards acknowledge the work and contribution made by 12 outstanding social entrepreneurs from 11 organizations operating in more than 70 countries that are pioneering solutions for social and environmental challenges, from child labour to women's empowerment to climate change and more.
Read moreEntrepreneur Advice from Ruth Kwalanda: It's okay to ask for help
Ruth Kwalanda, founder of CIAR Management Institute (Kenya)
It's okay to ask for help....
“If you are ever in doubt about anything, ask. There is always someone willing to help you. These days I ask a lot more questions as I run my business and know it’s OK to make mistakes as I go along.”
- Ruth Kwalanda is the founder of CIAR Management Institute, a corporate training business and provider of Kenya’s first E-learning platform. Ruth has been a leading provider of human capital development solutions to professionals and business communities in Africa for more than 5 years, facilitating business knowledge and skills transfer through cutting edge conferences, training programmes and e-learning.
Read moreAlly Angula: Every year 11 million Africans enter job market, and here’s the dilemma - jobs or technological progress?
Ally Angula, co-founder of Leap Holdings (Namibia)
KIGALI, WEF Africa: MASS jobs or productivity? Every year some 11 million young Africans enter the job market, only to join tens of millions of others struggling with limited work opportunities on the continent, creating the conditions for social unrest.
Read moreEntrepreneur Advice from Gabriella von Ille: Learn to handle the bad days
Gabriella von Ille, founder of Lifa Communications (South Africa)
Learn how to handle the bad days...
"Being an entrepreneur means dealing with constant ups and downs. There are great days, when everything goes right and you handle everything with such zeal, but then there are other days that aren't so good. It is all about how you handle the bad days."
- Gabriella von Ille is the founder of Lifa Communications in South Africa, a boutique consultancy firm focused on Africa and Natural Resources. Lifa specializes in PR & Strategic Communication, Digital Design and Marketing & Branding. Gabriella has a double degree in Political Science and Communications from Sweden and the US.
Read moreEntrepreneur Advice from Keri Muller: How can artists, makers & crafters get their creations to market?
Keri Muller, founder of Simple Intrigue
How can women start to market their products?....
"Just as I did, I would suggest that they start making things and then do the hard legwork of visiting shops, finding out who the buyers are and what they are buying. Knocking on people’s doors in the retail business and showing them samples of what they have produced, and they will learn as they go how to sell and market their own products and creations. It is hard work but it can pay off in the long run."
- Keri Muller is the founder and creative force behind Simple Intrigue, a Cape Town-based company that produces wonderfully creative art, installations and decor items. Keri is a treasure hunter, hoarder, maker of stuff, collector, browser, day dreamer, walker, and traveller. Simply put, Keri is a maker of stuff. She folds, glues and cuts paper and old books into artworks, traditional origami shapes and more abstract pieces. Popup books and cards, delicate paper mobiles and a humorous range of sketch prints are all part of her retail range of products. Keri also works on commissions for writing projects and publications, develops new products for corporates, functions, weddings or as special gifts.
Read moreNgozi Opara - The startup story of an entrepreneur in Nigeria on a mission to create a movement inspiring women to embrace their natural hair textures
Ngozi Opara, founder of Heat Free Hair
Heat Free Hair is the story of a woman with a passion for natural hair combined with the entrepreneurial drive to start a business providing natural hair extensions, plus a movement to educate and inform women on how to care for their natural hair.
Read moreBeth Malatji - The startup story of a South African publishing entrepreneur passionate about creating great magazine content for others in business
Beth Malatji, founder of Wealth Ladder Magazine (South Africa)
As part of their day-to day business development, entrepreneurs need access to great information, insight and advice, and Wealth Ladder Magazine looks to provide all those things and more. Entrepreneur Beth Malatji is creating not just an informative and engaging published resource but she is also creating networking events that bring entrepreneurs together.
Read moreAfrica's creative Women Jewellery Designers celebrated throughout the month of May
Every month at Lionesses of Africa, we shine a spotlight on a particular industry sector where Africa’s women entrepreneurs are making a real impact, through their businesses, their innovation, their products, services and craftsmanship, and their passion for what they do. This month (May), we are turning our attention to the incredibly creative women jewellery designers of Africa, who are turning the precious metals, gems and semi-precious stones found here on the continent into beautiful decorative pieces for the world to wear. These African women jewellery designers are putting the continent on the global map through their uniquely African-inspired designs and technical brilliance.
Read moreQuote of the Day by Tabitha Karanja
“When people look at me, they don’t see me as a woman; they see me as an entrepreneur.”
- Tabitha Karanja is founder and CEO of Keroche Breweries. She is one of Kenya's leading entrepreneurs, a remarkable trailblazer and an example of a woman made good against all the odds. Tabitha chose to venture where none before her had dared. She took on an 87-year-old business monopoly and entered an industry with a deeply entrenched male gender stereotype. Tabitha broke the mould to become Kenya’s first home-grown beer and alcoholic drink manufacturer. Today, her company's state-of-the-art production facility is targeting 20% of the Kenyan market.
Read moreEntrepreneur Advice from Nkemdilim Begho: It's OK to ask for help!
Nkemdilim Begho, founder and Managing Director of Future Software Resources Limited, Nigeria
Get help when you need it and never make the same mistake twice....
"One thing I always tell myself and made my philosophy is to admit when I need help and I always find somebody to help. It’s crucial to admit it when you are wrong and never make the same mistake again."
- Nkemdilim Begho is founder and Managing Director of Future Software Resources Limited, an IT solutions provider focused on online solutions, e-learning and IT security. As one of a few Nigerian women in the industry, her success is founded on a passion for driving innovative thinking, building a globally recognized technology brand and setting trends in the Nigerian Technology space.
Read more100 Lionesses - Bilikiss Adebiyi-Abiola and Wecyclers honored as Deutsche Welle and Channels Television launch Eco@Africa
Bilikiss Adebiyi-Abiola, co-founder of WeCyclers (Nigeria)
At the global climate conference held in Paris earlier this year, Deutsche Welle and Channels TV agreed to deepen their cooperation by starting the joint production of an environmental program called Eco@Africa. The new program offers an in-depth look at environmental innovations and best-practice guidelines in Africa and Europe and presents ideas on ecological protection from all over the world. DW and Channels TV used the event, which was broadcast in Nigeria at prime time, to pay tribute to “Eco Heroes”, which included Bilikiss Adebiyi-Abiola, co-founder of WeCyclers.
Read moreWhy it's important to be grateful for the small things in life
Sometimes we tend to be so focused on the next big business thing, or on how to make our business better, or when to take our product to market, that we completely forget to pause and appreciate the little things in life that really matter. These could be the things that we have, that we’ve experienced, what we’ve learned, and what we’ve achieved along the way. We forget to show gratitude and to show thanks for all that is and to reflect on how good life has been to us so far.
Read moreBaitse Phejane - The startup story of a South African entrepreneur with a passion for problem solving and the development of other entrepreneurs
Baitse Phejane, founder of Akili Communications (South Africa)
Understanding the power of scalable business is critical for entrepreneurs who are looking to grow successful enterprises of the future. South African entrepreneur Baitse Phejane, founder of Akili Communications, is looking to provide help and guidance in this regard, and her company is poised to develop entrepreneurs who have a passion for what they do, but need assistance in scaling those ideas.
Read moreEntrepreneur Advice from Leslie Okoye: Take administrative systems and procedures seriously
Leslie Okoye, founder of L’Okoye Cosmetics Inc.
Take administrative systems and procedures seriously....
"Follow due processes and take every business step and procedure as it concerns your industry seriously. As young entrepreneurs, start-ups or small businesses, we tend to take for granted the system and procedures that large organizations have gone through because we feel it does not apply to us yet. I was one of those people - I just wanted to start and saw all these due processes as unnecessary barriers to entry. However, every process I skipped came back to haunt my business later and also slowed business growth. Instead of focusing on business development, I was forced to adopt the systems and go through the procedures I ran away from initially in order to stay in business."
- Leslie Okoye is the founder of L’Okoye Cosmetics Inc. and the CookieSkin® brand. This inspiring Nigerian entrepreneur develops and distributes quality skin care products for women of colour, distributing them worldwide via online and physical stores, supermarkets and spas. Leslie's mission to simplify skin care for the African woman began back in 2010 when she first launched her business.
Read moreQuote of the Day by Jennifer Riria
Jennifer Riria is group chief executive of Kenya Women Holding
“Women in Africa do not need charity to finance the issue. Control of the resources that they create is the issue, and respect in the financial sector is the issue.”
- Dr. Jennifer Riria is the Group CEO of Kenya Women Holding and one of Africa's leading women entrepreneurs who has always been on a mission to transform the lives of women and their families in her native Kenya. She is distinguished as a microfinance banker and practitioner, researcher and gender specialist. She has served in many leadership roles for which she has been recognized locally and internationally. In 2013 she was awarded the Ernst & Young (EY) Entrepreneur of the year, East Africa 2013, and subsequently, the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2014, at which point she was admitted to EY’s Global Hall of Fame.
Read moreQuote of the Day by Ethel Cofie
Ethel Cofie, founder of Edel Technology Consulting (Ghana)
"My personal goal going forward is to ensure that my dreams are not small and comfortable, but rather big and audacious, even scary, so that I can be motivated enough to feel excited about the challenges ahead when I wake up in the morning."
- Ethel Cofie is a Ghanaian-born entrepreneur and founder of Edel Technologies. This techpreneur is passionate about technology, female leadership and empowering women entrepreneurs. Ethel is a Mandela Fellow for President Obama’s Young African Leaders initiative(YALI), and has beenfeatured in BBC and CNN for work in technology and women leadership. She is the founder of Women in Tech Ghana, initiator of the 1st Pan African woman in tech meetup and was shortlisted for the UN GEM Tech Award for her work supporting women in ICT.
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