Section1

Tshepo Mohlala (Founder, Tshepo Jeans) Growing up in a rough township outside Johannesburg (South Africa), Tshepo Mohlala was laughed at for wearing skinny jeans before they were popular. But more than 10 years later, tables have turned, as 32-year-old Tshepo has become a favourite amongst celebrities the world over, for his inimitable tailor-made jeans targeted at African women who struggled to find a perfect fit. Counting Beyonce and Meghan Markle as clients, Teshepo comfortably says: “The township was never ready for my sense of style! A whole lot of African women have a tiny waist and big booties and big…

Chef Adejoke Bakare (Founder, Chishuru Restaurant) 📸@Chishuru Chef Adejoke Bakare’s restaurant Chishuru (which, in Nigeria’s Hausa language translates to “the silence that descends at the table when enjoying a meal”) has just been awarded a Michelin star, giving her the priceless status of being the first Black female chef in the UK to earn the privilege. A Michelin Star is awarded to restaurants offering outstanding cooking, taking into account five universal criteria: the quality of the ingredients, the harmony of flavours, the mastery of techniques, the personality of the chef as expressed through their cuisine and, just as importantly, consistency both across…

📸 The TonyElumeluFoundation As a part of the Tony Elumelu Foundation’s commitment to foster innovation and economic growth across the African continent, the following training and mentorship opportunities are currently running and available to young entrepreneurs across Africa on TEFConnect in 2024: 2024 TEF Entrepreneurship Programme, open from January 1 – March 1 Women Entrepreneurship For Africa (WE4A), open from January 1 – March 1 TEFConnect is the Foundation’s proprietary digital platform that provides capacity-building support, advisory and market linkages to over 1.5million Africans and counting. The platform’s unique training curriculum covered insightful topics including Starting Your Business, Business Management & Fundamentals, Leadership…

Olamide Olowe (Founder & CEO of Topicals) Nigerian-American entrepreneur Olamide Olowe has turned the beauty industry on its head in just four short years and even made history in 2022 as the youngest Black woman to raise $10 million in funding. After spending much of her childhood coping with chronic skin conditions like hyperpigmentation, Olamide founded the groundbreaking dermal company Topicals in August 2020 to offer safe, effective products for all skin types. But her early entrepreneurial journey started in 2015 when she co-founded the beauty brand SheaGIRL in partnership with SheaMoisture, which was later acquired by Unilever in 2017. Esthetician-approved Topicals has…

Tosin Eniolorunda (Co-Founder & CEO, Moniepoint) 📸Tosin/ Instagram The story of Moniepoint (an all-in-one digital financial services platform for businesses in emerging markets) started, according to Noor Sweid (Founder and Managing Partner at Global Ventures – a UAE-based, growth-stage venture capital firm), in 2015 when Tosin Eniolorunda set his sights firmly on delivering ‘financial happiness’ to businesses and customers across the African continent. 🎥 NoorSweid Says Ms. Sweid: “Initially, he thought that by providing optimised digital infrastructure for banks, he could dramatically improve the banking experience for the range of the bank’s clientele. At the time, Nigeria’s banking system suffered from…

Josephine Philips (Founder, SOJO) 📸Vogue Josephine Philips launched SOJO  in 2021 as the UK’s first clothing repair and alterations app. The London-based fashion-tech platform is re-inventing the clothing repair and tailoring industry, and has recently returned to Oxford Street’s Selfridges on a permanent basis. Says Josephine: “We’re back! SOJO has now launched permanently in Selfridges! Powering clothing repair for this iconic department store. It’s so exciting to be championing repair, alterations and a slower approach to fashion in the heart of one of the biggest shopping destinations. Come find us on Floor 3 and bring any clothes that need some TLC – old, new and…

(L-R): Fola Adeola (Chairman & Founder, FATE Foundation); Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Fola Laoye (Co-Founder & CEO, Iwosan Investments) 📸 Fola Laoye The state-of-the-art hospital at Iwosan Lagoon Hospitals, Victoria Island, was inaugurated on Wednesday, January 24, 2024 – Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu cutting the tape. Says Lola Laoye, Co-Founder & CEO of Iwosan Investments (owners of Lagoon Hospitals): “We have invested in medical infrastructure, technology, and staff development, with our team of hundreds of dedicated professionals committed to world class service. At Iwosan Lagoon Hospital VI, empathy meets cutting-edge technology. Our Centre of Excellence for cardiovascular care…

📸 Tech Nation A total of 25 companies have been selected for the 2024 Tech Nation Libra Programme (a curating community and education for under-represented tech founders to support scale and growth). The 25 shortlisted visionary founders and their ground-breaking companies joining Libra in 2024 are: 🚚 aTrace – seamless control over your supply chain🛒 Bakkali – making grocery shopping for cultural communities easier🌸 Brarista – AI-enabled bra expert🤖 Bot Theory – the first Web 3.0 Learning Metaverse for children📊 Deep Loop – generative AI supercharged analytics📈🏗 Ecolens – supply chain data to measure construction emissions📅 Elifa – digital vault for legacy planning and preservation🏙️ FueGo. – AI powered curator of travel and cultural experiences🚗 Finalrentals – sky-rocketing eCommerce sales…

Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah (2nd L); Founder & CEO, Del-York Group, Linus Idahosa (2nd R) Nigeria’s Enugu State government has just signed a multi-million dollar joint venture agreement with the Del-York Group to construct ‘The 042 Arena and Entertainment Park’ – a multi-purpose sports and entertainment hub designed to focus on key areas of development, training, innovation, education, talent discovery, hospitality, entertainment among other areas of interest. On completion, the sports arena will reportedly house the following facilities: training space, athlete housing, a physical therapy and sports medicine centre, and a performance centre, among. The entertainment park will house…

(L-R) 5G launch: Uche Ofodile (CEO, MTN Bénin) welcomes Aurelie Ilimatou Adam Soule (Minister of Digital and Digitalisation) 📸 MTN Bénin MTN Bénin is set to deploy its 5G network, which will provide subscribers with enhanced digital experiences and significant technological advances. During her strategic visit to the company, Aurelie Ilimatou Adam Soule (Bénin’s Minister of Digital and Digitalisation) and her delegation were shown, first-hand, the potential of 5G technology as the foundation for a modern and connected world – in terms of transmission speed, reduced latency, and increased capacity. Says Uche Ofodile (CEO, MTN Bénin): “MTN Bénin showcased a few examples of…