the pride of Africa's women entrepreneurs
by Marilize Jacobs
For years, I was known as a “full-time mom.” It was my most important role. But when I stepped back into the “corporate world”, I didn't hide that chapter; I leveraged it. That journey, which I detailed on various platforms, wasn't just my story - it was my strategy. It proved that personal branding isn't a luxury; it's the core of modern business credibility. It transformed my identity into my most valuable professional equity.
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Isabel Mandofa, founder, Tropicalisa, Lda (Mozambique)
Startup Story
Isabel Mandofa is the founder of Tropicalisa, Lda, a Mozambican agri-food industry business focused on the sustainable transformation of local fruits into high-value-added products. It operates an integrated chain that buys surplus from small producers, processes, freezes and distributes fruit pulps, natural juices, syrups, sauces and frozen fruits, guaranteeing standardized quality, traceability and food safety. Tropicalisa’s core business is to make the most of national fruit, reduce post-harvest losses and supply the market during the off-season, providing practical, healthy and competitive solutions for supermarkets, restaurants, confectioneries, ice cream parlors, hotels and end consumers.
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Tech FoundHER Africa Challenge
Winners from Nigeria, Kenya, DRC and South Africa recognised in competition for building tech-enabled businesses solving real market problems
Ten women entrepreneur founders from across Africa pitched their technology businesses at the Tech FoundHER Africa Challenge finale on 19 November 2025 in Johannesburg, South Africa, with five receiving equity-free grants totalling over $100,000. Naspers and Prosus developed the Tech FoundHER Africa Challenge in partnership with Lionesses of Africa, a network of 1.8 million women entrepreneurs across the continent. The partnership enabled the Challenge to reach founders across diverse African markets and sectors. The winners will also receive mentorship from experienced investors and entrepreneurs within the Naspers and Prosus ecosystem, connections to institutional investors, and support navigating business development across African markets.
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Linda Klunder, CEO, Kumasi Drinks BV (Netherlands)
Lioness Pitch Profile / Start-Up Night Africa, The Hague, 2025
Linda Klunder is the CEO of Kumasi Drinks BV, which produces 100% natural soft drinks made from the sap of the cocoa pod, normally discarded during cocoa production. The drink has a tropical flavour resembling a mix of lychee, mango, and white peach, and is available either sparkling or still.
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In conversation (L-R) Nomalanga Sitole, Anne le Guellec and Marchel Gerrmann
Insights from the Fireside Chat at Start-Up Night Africa, The Hague — 17 September 2025, organised by Lionesses of Africa, with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of the Netherlands
At a moment when global growth strategies are being redefined, the conversation at Start-Up Night Africa in The Hague on 17 September 2025 cut through the noise with unusual clarity: supporting women entrepreneurs is no longer a side agenda—it is central to economic transformation. In a candid fireside chat, Anne le Guellec, Director of the International Enterprise Department, and Marchel Gerrmann, Ambassador for Business and Development, offered more than policy talking points. They articulated a shift in how governments, ecosystems, and investors must think about growth, partnership, and opportunity—particularly between Africa and Europe.
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Rahel Boon-Dejene, founder, R & D Group (Netherlands)
Lioness Pitch Profile / Start-Up Night Africa, The Hague, 2025
Rahel Boon-Dejene is the founder of R&D Group, a leading Ethiopian enterprise committed to advancing the global business services sector through innovative, technology-driven solutions. With over 15 years of experience, the company has established itself as a trusted partner in entrepreneurship support, outsourcing, and digital solutions.
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Cover Feature / Jules Ngankam, Group CEO, African Guarantee Fund (AGF)
On a crisp evening in The Hague on 17 September 2025, the 3rd Start-Up Night Africa event in The Netherlands took place, hosted by Lionesses of Africa in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The event served as a rallying point for improving access to finance, supporting women entrepreneurs building high-growth businesses in Africa. Taking the stage, African Guarantee Fund (AGF) Group CEO Jules Ngankam delivered a message that resonated long after the applause: women are the backbone of Africa’s economies - and when their financial potential is unlocked, the continent’s growth story is rewritten.
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Inez van Oord, co-founder, Fiber Foods Group
Lioness Pitch Profile / Start-Up Night Africa, The Hague, 2025
Inez van Oord is the co-founder of Fiber Foods Group, a company that creates economic, social, and sustainable value for all stakeholders. Fiber Foods develops clean-label, whole-food ingredients in Africa that help food producers meet the growing consumer demand for healthier, more sustainable products. Fiber Foods is the inventor of PrimeJack® — a premium dehydrated jackfruit ingredient designed for large-scale food manufacturers.
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Marthe Paauwe, founder, Money Phone BV
Lioness Pitch Profile / Start-Up Night Africa, The Hague, 2025
Marthe Paauwe is the founder of Money Phone BV, a Dutch Fintech founded in 2018 that provides fast, affordable, and transparent loans to MSMEs, students, and smallholder farmers. Using AI credit scoring and mobile platforms, they empower the unbanked with inclusive access to credit; anytime, anywhere. Through MoneyPhone Africa, they aim to provide access to finance through their advanced technology, empowering rural communities in Rwanda and beyond while keeping costs minimal.
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Podcast Interview
Following his powerful opening address at the 3rd Start-Up Night Africa event in The Hague, the Netherlands, on 17 September 2025, Mr Jules Ngankam, Group Chief Executive Officer of the African Guarantee Fund, was a guest on the Lioness Radio Podcast speaking about the journey from Bias to Bankable - AGF’s Case for Financing Women Entrepreneurs.
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Tech FoundHER Africa Challenge
Each year, the Start-Up Night Africa event in The Hague provides a powerful platform to update key stakeholders, partners and women entrepreneurs on key initiatives underway, important to stimulating greater investment in women-founded businesses. At this year’s event on 17 September 2025, Lionesses of Africa founder and ceo, Melanie Hawken, updated the audience on the launch of the exciting Tech FoundHER Africa Challenge. This impactful initiative, created by Global technology group, Naspers and Prosus, and conducted in partnership with Lionesses of Africa, invited applications from women-led tech and tech-enabled startups across the continent. Originally piloted in India earlier this year, the programme launched in Africa as part of their commitment to championing and supporting female founders in technology. Applications closed on 30 September, and the Challenge is now in the first round of screening, where an expert committee will shortlist 30 candidates for further evaluation.
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Feature
In Africa’s dynamic entrepreneurship landscape, the conversation around access to finance for women-led enterprises has never been more critical. At the Lionesses of Africa Start-Up Night Africa 2025 in The Hague, leading women entrepreneurs and investors came together to explore how capital, when thoughtfully structured, can unlock exponential growth. The event, supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, showcased real-world success stories of African women founders scaling beyond borders and redefining the continent’s investment narrative.
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Lioness Pitch Profile / Start-Up Night Africa, The Hague, 2025
Nkem Okocha is the founder of Mama Moni, a fintech company that provides inclusive digital financial services tailored for women in Nigeria. The company’s advanced female-only agent network helps to drive financial services to financially excluded women and the last mile.
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Lioness Pitch Profile / Start-Up Night Africa, The Hague, 2025
Claudia Castellanos, co-founder and CEO of Black Mamba Foods in Eswatini, is passionate about The Black Mamba Manifesto: Building a Better World Through Good Food. Black Mamba is an African brand that makes bold, award-winning condiments with organically grown ingredients sourced from small-holder farmers. Exported to 12+ countries, the brand’s products deliver flavour with impact, uplifting 1,000+ people while proving food can be good for you, farmers, and the planet.
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What we’re loving this week
In this week’s spotlight on all things Woman Made In Africa, we are showcasing Africa’s talented and innovative women entrepreneurs who are creating sustainable, quality products that discerning and impact-driven customers want to buy. Catching our attention this week are: Rio Largo Olive Oil in South Africa, the multi-award-winning and innovative olive oil brand owned by Brenda and Nick Wilkinson; Savanna Premium Chocolate, co-founded by Chiinga Musonda and Lynn Musonda Phiri, a luxury artisan bean-to-bar chocolate maker in Lusaka, Zambia; Atelier Taila Carrilho in Mozambique, founded by Taíla Carrilho, who creates the most exquisite, eye-catching pieces, such as ornate wooden clutch bags and distinctive jewellery; Rokus London, a fine jewellery brand founded by Marie-Paule Tano, lovingly handcrafted between London and Abidjan, combining traditional and artisanal African metalwork with modern Western jewellery making techniques; Pichulik, the ethical jewellery, accessories and womenswear atelier based in Cape Town, South Africa and founded by Katherine-Mary Pichulik.
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Betsy Fore
Book Review
Successful entrepreneur Betsy Fore, in her new book Built on Purpose: Discover Your Deep Inner Why and Manifest the Business of Your Dreams, shows how, by practicing a manifesting mindset, you can discover your deepest purpose. She calls this an “inner why” and believes finding it can unlock your greatest potential as a creator, founder, and builder of great products.
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Gladys Kgorane, founder, Caleb’s Farm Cabins (South Africa)
Lioness Launch
Caleb’s Farm Cabins, the farm-style retreat and events destination in Potchefstroom, South Africa, launched in 2024, has gained a reputation for offering tranquil accommodation and wellness experiences for individuals, families, and small groups. It has now expanded to include the launch of a dedicated events venue, Hebron View Hall, which is ideal for celebrating special occasions such as weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries, as well as conferences.
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Lerato Masuku, director, Bokamo Warona Construction (South Africa)
Startup Story
Lerato Masuku is the visionary director of Bokamo Warona Construction, a 100% black female-owned company based in Daveyton, Benoni. Founded with a passion for quality and community development, the company specialises in general building, maintenance, plumbing, civil works, paving, and general supplies. Under Lerato's leadership, Bokamo Warona Construction has earned a reputation for delivering reliable and professional services, including recent successful projects such as slurry work on the R56 in the Eastern Cape. Lerato is committed to empowering women in the construction industry while growing a business that supports infrastructure and job creation across South Africa. The business was launched in 2016 and has created jobs for 10 people.
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Olamide Alade, founder and creative director, Amòké Regal (Nigeria)
Startup Story
Olamide Alade is the founder and creative director of Amòké Regal, a luxury modest Nigerian fashion brand redefining African fashion by weaving cultural heritage into elegance, exclusivity, and decency. With a strong passion for fashion storytelling, she creates exclusive pieces that empower ambitious African women to step confidently into corporate spaces, boardrooms, and on global stages while embracing their cultural identity. Alongside her creative work, Olamide is a Chartered HR Professional and an Associate of Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ), bringing depth and leadership experience to her entrepreneurial journey.
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Vanessa Mhlom, founder and CEO, Pleroma Patch (South Africa)
Lioness Weekender Cover Story
Pleroma Patch, a South African innovative wellness brand creating plant-based patches to support sleep, recovery, and menstrual health.
Vanessa Mhlom is the founder and CEO of Pleroma Patch and is a 2025 Veuve Clicquot Bold Future Award finalist. Pleroma Patch is a modern wellness brand pioneering a simpler, smarter way to care for your body, through transdermal vitamin patches. Pleroma’s discreet, plant-based patches support sleep, recovery, and menstrual health. Driven by her belief that dignified self-care should be a right, not a luxury, she is developing the ‘Patch It Forward’ initiative, a give-back model that channels a portion of each purchase toward expanding access to wellness essentials like menstrual and sleep support for underserved women and girls.
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