Career
Adeyinka Tekenah, Kehinde Ayanleye make Africa Netpreneur Prize 50 Finalists
Adeyinka Tekenah, Chinedu Azodoh, Kehinde Ayanleye and four other innovative entrepreneurs in Nigeria have been included among the top 50 finalists selected to compete for this year’s Africa Netpreneur Prize Initiative.
Last year’s prize of $250,ooo was taken by LifeBank’s Temie Giwa-Tubosun and this year’s “Africa’s Business Heroes” competition, organized by Jack Ma Foundation’s flagship philanthropic program in Africa, Africa Netpreneur Prize Initiative, is the second edition.
The 50 entrepreneurs will continue their journey in the competition, for a chance to become one of the ten entrepreneurs that will compete in the grand finale later this year.
The diversity of the finalist roster reflects the aim of Africa’s Business Heroes to be inclusive and grassroots, providing entrepreneurs from all over Africa with a platform to showcase their talent and business ideas, regardless of nationality, industry, age or gender.
The finalists come from 21 countries, which include Nigeria, Kenya, Algeria, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and 18 sectors, such as Agriculture, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, Business Services, Construction, Education, Engineering, e-Commerce, Fashion, Financial Services, Healthcare, ICT, Logistics, Manufacturing, Management services, Retail, Renewable energy, and Transportation.
The top 10 finalists in the competition will share a prize pool of 1.5 million dollars this year and gain access to the initiative’s community of business leaders to leverage its shared expertise, best practice, training and resources.
Meet the finalists from Nigeria:
Adeyinka Tekenah
Adeyinka Tekenah is the founder of one of Nigeria’s premier indigenous coffee franchises: Happy Coffee.
Chinedu Azodoh
Chinedu Azodoh is co-founder and CGO at MAX, a technology company building the infrastructure for last-mile mobility in Africa. Chinedu has always had a passion to change the African experience.
Faith Adesemowo
Faith Adesemowo is the co-founder and CEO of Social Lender, a lending solution platform, is committed to building a community of trust and credit to drive financial inclusion for the unbanked and under-banked.
Ifeoluwa Olatayo
Ifeoluwa Olatayo is the founder and CEO of Soupah. A company which tackles inefficiencies in the food supply chain in Nigeria by connecting small scale rural farmers with urban retailers.
Kehinde Ayanleye
Kehinde is the Co-founder of Stutern, an organisation connecting African millennials with technology skills & job placements.
Oluwasoga Oni
Oluwasoga Oni is the CEO of MDaaS, a medical devices services startup in Nigeria
Olajide Ayegbusi
Jide Ayegbusi is the founder and CEO of Edusko.com based in Lagos, Nigeria. Edusko is a one-stop, web-based application that allows parents to compare good schools, make informed decisions, access school fees finance and enrol their children with ease.
