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Africa’s Business Heroes Prize Competition Announces 2022 Winners

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Africa’s Business Heroes

Entrepreneurs hailing from Tanzania, Kenya and Egypt were in the top three following final pitching session in the Grand Finale

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, November 21, 2022/APO Group/ — 

The Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) Prize Competition (www.AfricaBusinessHeroes.org), a philanthropic initiative sponsored by the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Philanthropy, announced this year’s winners during a hybrid Grand Finale held in Johannesburg, South Africa that was live broadcasted to a global audience. Elia Timotheo from Tanzania, Tesh Mbaabu from Kenya and Nadia Gamal El Din from Egypt were named first, second and third prize winners, respectively. The first prize winner received a US$300,000 grant to accelerate his business growth further.

The top three Africa’s Business Heroes for 2022 are:

1st – winning $300,000 – Elia Timotheo, Founder and CEO of East Africa Fruits Co. (Tanzania)

2nd – winning $250,000 – Tesh Mbaabu, Co-Founder and CEO of Marketforce Technologies (Kenya)

3rd – winning $150,000 – Nadia Gamal El Din, Founder and CEO of Rahet Bally (Egypt)

“I’d like to thank the ABH team for working with us along the journey, and my fellow Heroes for being there for me. I especially want to bring this victory back to my team as I would not have been where I am now without them. More significantly, the award is meant to demonstrate to my fellow Tanzanians that entrepreneurship is the way forward and that food sustainability is attainable for all young Africans if we have the courage to make things happen,” says Elia Timotheo, Founder and CEO of East Africa Fruits Co., a food distributor that leverages data and technology to create efficiencies for farmers and consumers while reducing food waste.

Tesh Mbaabu was also chosen as the winner of the “People’s Choice” award, which was newly introduced this year to encourage audiences to support their favorite Hero among the top ten finalists through online voting.

“The winners of the 2022 Africa’s Business Heroes competition embody the incredible entrepreneurial spirit in the region. The judges recognized them for their leadership, passion, and ability to drive positive impact across Africa through their businesses. Despite the unprecedented challenges of the past two years, these entrepreneurs have inspired us all with their resilience and unwavering commitment to their businesses and communities,” said Jason Pau, Executive Director of International Programs, Jack Ma Foundation.

The finalists other than the top three will each receive US$100,000 in prize funding, and an additional US$10,000 will be allocated to each of the top ten finalists for immersive training program(s) and community gathering activities.

Despite the unprecedented challenges of the past two years, these entrepreneurs have inspired us all with their resilience and unwavering commitment to their businesses

The ten finalists of this year’s competition were chosen from an initial pool of over 21,000 applications from all 54 African countries after six months’ rigorous evaluation by over 300 judges.

Over 7,000 viewers from across the globe watched the Grand Finale live online, following the finalists as they pitched their businesses to a final panel of esteemed judges: Ibukun Awosika, Founder and CEO of The Chair Centre Group, Victor Williams, CEO of NBA Africa, and Joe Tsai, Executive Vice Chairman of Alibaba Group.

The Grand Finale judges were impressed with the caliber of the finalists and their businesses, commenting:

“Congratulations to all the finalists and winners of this year’s ABH competition. Once again, I am privileged to take part in the judging panel and to be able to put a spotlight on the important work being done by trailblazing entrepreneurs on the African continent. We hope to see the businesses of these outstanding entrepreneurs flourish into bigger and better enterprises that will stimulate socio-economic development beyond their local markets,” said Ibukun Awosika, Founder and CEO of The Chair Centre Group.

“Congratulations to all the finalists and the winners of this year’s ABH competition. Entrepreneurship is more than just building a successful business; it takes true grit and passion to create and seize opportunities where they don’t always exist. These exceptional entrepreneurs are all worthy winners and I’m excited to see how they will continue to drive progress in their respective markets, and across the African continent,” said Victor Williams, CEO of NBA Africa.

“The ABH competition is an incredible opportunity to see the vigorous entrepreneurship taking place on the African continent. This year’s winners are role models of entrepreneurship from the standpoint of changing people’s lives and creating opportunities for people to transform society with the use of technology. We believe their contribution will be huge if they can inspire more entrepreneurialism across the continent,” said Joe Tsai, Executive Vice Chairman of Alibaba Group.

The Africa’s Business Heroes Prize Competition aims to help foster an inclusive and vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem in Africa. The annual competition, now in its fourth year, shines a spotlight on talented African entrepreneurs working to make a difference in their communities and helping build a more sustainable, inclusive future. The ABH competition is grassroots oriented as well as age, gender and sector agnostic.

This year’s official competition slogan, “It’s African Time,” was a bold call to action for talented African entrepreneurs to redefine stereotypes associated with “African time” as creating local impact and building a better, more inclusive future through their businesses.

The latest edition of Africa’s Business Heroes TV show will air in 2023. The show will follow the finalists in their exciting journey to the 2022 ABH Grand Finale and features their on-stage pitches and behind-the-scenes moments from the Competition. The full video playback of the 2022 ABH Grand Finale is currently available on ABH’s official YouTube (https://bit.ly/3hTqFA5) channel.

Pre-registration for the 2023 ABH prize will open in December 2022 and the 2023 ABH application will open in early 2023. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH).

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Ministers among hundreds of energy-sector leaders to attend AOW event

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1 day ago

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October 4, 2024

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Sinclair

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors”

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

AOW: Investing in African Energy (https://AOWEnergy.com) – Africa’s leading oil, gas and energy event – has confirmed attendance for more than 80 ministers and senior officials, representing African governments, energy departments and regulators at next month’s event.

These influential stakeholders will be among the more than 1 600 senior delegates and industry leaders who will be attending the event to develop policy, share discoveries, secure investment, and shape Africa’s energy future.

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors.”

Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention

Among the officials and government ministers attending will be energy leaders from South Africa, Nigeria, Namibia, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, DRC, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Eswatini, Uganda, CAR, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Gabon, Malawi, Morocco, Zanzibar, Liberia, Senegal, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone.

In addition, the event will feature high-level delegations from numerous national oil companies, as well as multilateral bodies including the African Union, (AU), African Energy Commission (AFREC), African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) and the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).

AOW will see these energy leaders networking with C-suite executives and decision-makers from more than 760 top energy companies at daily networking events, to discuss insights, forge new relationships, and negotiate major energy deals.

“We are so excited to see the calibre of delegates at this year’s AOW event,” says Chief Executive Officer of Sankofa Events, Paul Sinclair. “Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention. The high-powered attendance proves AOW is a key platform to enable this intervention.”

Key themes to be discussed at this year’s AOW will be sustainable upstream development; expanding gas value chains; renewables and new energies; adoption of best-in-class technologies; and access to finance.

AOW: Investing in African Energy will culminate in a special anniversary party at Groot Constantia Vineyard to celebrate 30 years of the AOW event.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of AOW: Investing in African Energy.

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Afreximbank approves US$20.8 million for Starlink Global’s cashew factory project in Lagos

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1 day ago

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October 4, 2024

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PAPSS

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs

CAIRO, Egypt, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) (www.Afreximbank.com) has approved a US$20.8 million financing facility for Nigeria-based Starlink Global & Ideal Limited to enable the company construct and operate a 30,000-metric tonne per annum cashew processing factory in Lagos.

We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria

According to the facility agreement signed in on July 22, 2024, Afreximbank will provide the funds in two tranches with the first tranche of US$7.48M going toward capital expenditure for the construction of the factory and the second, totalling US$13.25M to be deployed as working capital for the operations of the factory.

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs once the factory becomes operational. It is also expected to support about 40 small and medium-sized enterprises.

Commenting on the transaction, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, Executive Vice President, Intra Africa Trade and Export Development, Afreximbank, said that by supporting Starlink Global to establish a modern processing facility, Afreximbank is making it possible for Africa to add value to its agro-commodities, thereby facilitating exports and subsequent inflow of much-needed foreign exchange into the continent.

“We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria. It will contribute to value creation and to the development of the local community while also improving the lots of smallholder farmers and small business suppliers that will work with Starlink across the value chain,” Mrs. Awani added.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank.

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Sonangol to Lead Decarbonized Oil & Gas (O&G) Development, Says Angolan National Oil Company (NOC) Head

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October 4, 2024

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Sonangol

Participating in an on-stage interview at Angola Oil & Gas 2024, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins emphasized that oil and gas remains a core focus for the national oil company

LUANDA, Angola, October 3, 2024/APO Group/ — 

Angola’s national oil company Sonangol reiterated its commitment to driving sustainable hydrocarbon development during the Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) conference this week. Speaking during an “In-Conversation with” session, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins stated that the company will not abandon oil and gas, but rather advance decarbonized oil and gas development.

We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas

By investing in upstream oil and gas production while prioritizing low-carbon projects, Sonangol aims to boost national crude output, while diversifying and decarbonizing the industry. The NOC is focusing efforts on non-associated gas development, as well as alternative energy sources such as solar.

“We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas. Gas produced from Angola LNG will be used for the production of fertilizer and we are evaluating the utilization of gas in the south of the country, linking gas with steel industries. We also have a blue carbon project, linked to the reduction of carbon through the plantation of mangroves. We have one area in Luanda and have identified four additional areas for this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Sonangol has undergone transformation in recent years: following the creation of the National Oil, Gas & Biofuels Agency (ANPG) in 2019, Sonangol transferred its role as national concessionaire and regulator. This transformation has aimed to make Sonangol more competitive and strengthen its capacity as an upstream operator. Concurrently, the government is partially privatizing the NOC, with privatization set to be complete in 2026. This process will enhance financial capacity, allowing Sonangol to drive new upstream projects forward.

“The transformation of Sonangol started several years ago, when we passed the regulatory, concessionaire role to the ANPG. At the time, we transferred almost 600 employees to the ANPG. After that, Sonangol underwent a restructuring program where we created five core business units from 36 different entities – starting with exploration and production. We want to go public, but we want to do it properly. So, we are currently going through all the processes to do this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital & Power.

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