Kenya and Uganda agripreneurs emerge finalists of $100,000 Generation Africa awards

NAIROBI, Kenya - Esther Kimani founder of FarmerLifeLine Technologies in Kenya and Mark Musinguzi founder of Hya Bioplastics in Uganda each received a US$50,000 grand prize at the African Green Revolution Forum’s (AGRF) awards.

The ceremony took place in Kigali-Rwanda where they were part of 12 top-class finalists in this year’s GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition.

There were also four additional Impact Awards winners who were merited and received US$2,500. These four were Eloge Niyomwungere, founder of Best Food Solution in Burundi, Nancy Iraba co-founder of Healthy Seaweed Company in Tanzania, Noël N'guessan co-founder of LONO in Côte d’Ivoire, and Seynabou Dieng, co-founder of Maya Sarl in Senegal.

“These young entrepreneurs are the in the midst of a food revolution. Their ventures are making a positive impact on their communities, their environment, and the local economy,” remarked Ms Fernanda Lopes, Executive Vice President for Asia & Africa, Yara International, who awarded the winners on behalf of the Generation Africa co-founders.

Emerging victorious among the women agri-preneurs, Esther Kimani and her company FarmerLifeLine Technologies invented a device that helps Kenyan farmers to get ahead of pests and pathogens with a proprietary disease detection device that leverages solar-powered cameras, Artificial Intelligence, data analytics, and machine learning.

Among the men, grand prize winner Mark Musinguzi of Hya Bioplastics wants to lead Africa in sustainable food packaging with an innovative biodegradable product solution that provides a cost-competitive alternative to petroleum-based plastic packaging.

Generation Africa co-founder Svein Tore Holsether, the CEO and President of Yara International delivered keynote remarks at the final pitching contest to thank the finalists for their visionary work, remarking: “Once again, I am so impressed with the finalists. They are all truly inspiring and I see them as leaders and role models in a world that so desperately needs that kind of drive and dedication to solve the staggering global challenges we are faced with.”

For Senegalese Seynabou Dieng, the company she co-founded, Maya, is much more than a food processing company. By partnering with small-scale local farmers in Mali, this 80% women-staffed company gets the best local ingredients to manufacture their proudly African sauces, spices, mixes, and dried fruits.

While Nancy Iraba founded Healthy Seaweed Company to boost the livelihoods of women seaweed farmers in Zanzibar and to bring the health benefits of seaweed home through local value-addition and the promotion of seaweed as a sustainable and highly nutritious food source.

Noël N'guessan of LONO co-founded his business to focus on healthy soil. One of its products, KubeKo, helps farmers in Côte d’Ivoire to unlock value from their waste. This easy-to-use biogas composting system generates 2 hours of cooking gas and 50l of liquid fertilizer from 5kg of organic waste per day.

Eloge Niyomwungere and his business Best Food Solution process chillies into oil, powder, and dried chillies for local and export markets. He founded his company to revitalise Burundi’s chilli industry by supporting smallholder farmers with quality inputs and guaranteed offset. They even manufacture an organic chilli-based pesticide to protect yields.

Marking the first in-person GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition since 2019, the twelve finalists were elated for the post-pandemic opportunity to build relationships with a global complement of delegates attending the 2022 AGRF summit. They enjoyed facilitated participation at the AGRF Agribusiness Deal Room where they could build face-to-face trust with future partners, investors, and clients. Corteva Agriscience, one of Generation Africa’s co-founders, sponsored the finalists in their travels to the live event.

“By bringing them to Africa’s biggest agriculture summit we hope to catalyse relationships between these youth who are agri-preneurs and global leaders in the industry. The GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize, and the networks and connections that come with it, are designed to empower the youth generation to scale their impact-driven agrifood businesses in the fight for a sustainable, African food system. It is wonderful to see this powerful platform back in action,” said Barbra Muzata, Head of Corporate Communications and Brand at Corteva Agriscience.

The fourth annual GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize reached nearly six million people during the entry window from 19 April to 6 June 2022. Applications streamed in from 45 African countries with 10 countries represented amongst the Top 12 finalists.

“GoGettaz has grown into the biggest, youth-focussed, agri-premiership competition in Africa. Our entries are becoming more diverse every year,” said Dickson Naftali, Head of Generation Africa. “The GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize was conceived to spread a message of hope and opportunity in the agri-food sector. Seeing more youth with truly innovative solutions, and building companies that create jobs in the food system makes me really proud. They hold the future of our continent in their hands.”

GAROWE ONLINE