In 2018, his brother passed away due to uncontrolled hypertension. Since then, he has been using his technical skills to combat heart disease and reduce health inequities.

Peter Njongwe (photo), a South African software engineer, product manager, and entrepreneur, is the founder and CEO of Oben Health, a startup focused on improving healthcare access for people of color in the United States. Founded in 2020, Oben Health, previously known as Lapis Health, aims to enhance the quality of care, improve the quality of life, and reduce sudden deaths related to heart disease in communities of color. The startup has developed an AI-based platform that delivers healthcare services in barbershops and beauty salons.

The Oben Health platform seamlessly integrates clinical screenings, social determinants of health (SDOH), health coaching, and treatments. It fosters team-based care, coordination, and population health management through interoperability and data analytics. The inspiration to start this company came after the loss of Njongwe's brother in 2018. "My brother passed away from uncontrolled hypertension at age 36. He went to bed and never woke up, leaving a wife and two children behind. If my brother had gotten screened for hypertension, I think he would still be alive" Njongwe explains on the reasons behind the platform. 

Njongwe holds a degree in computer information systems and entrepreneurship, earned in 2013 from Mount Royal University in Canada. He began his professional career the same year at Hitachi Solutions Canada, an enterprise application consulting firm, as an IT consultant. In 2014, he became a software developer at Evans 2 Design, now E2 + Associates, a company specializing in housing construction and land development. In 2015, he was hired by Shopify as a product manager. From 2019 to 2021, he served as an executive-in-residence at Connection Silicon Valley, an organization that helps Canadian companies collaborate, innovate, and establish partnerships within the Silicon Valley tech ecosystem.

Melchior Koba

Driven by a passion for both art and culture, he sees technology as a powerful tool to tackle challenges.  He has created a platform that connects African artists across the continent.

Seydina Mouhamed Sene (photo), a Senegalese tech entrepreneur and passionate artist, is the founder of Welfin Sarl, a tech startup specializing in event communication.

Launched in 2022, Welfin aims to simplify and speed up the organization of professional events using artificial intelligence to offer unique, personalized experiences tailored to each company's budget.

One of Welfin's flagship solutions is Teralma, a platform dedicated to the cultural and creative industries. The platform lists and networks engaged artists across Africa, encouraging them to participate in sustainable development programs initiated by non-governmental organizations and associations on the continent.

Prior to founding Welfin, Sene co-founded Circus Morocco in 2016, a startup dedicated to recycling electronic waste from businesses, households, and rural communities. In 2019, he also co-founded Bsensei, a fintech startup developing solutions for financial institutions.

Sene graduated from the Faculty of Legal, Economic, and Social Sciences (FSJES) Ain Chock in Casablanca, where he earned a bachelor's degree in management economics. Since 2016, he has been a member of the international MakeSense community, which helps social entrepreneurs tackle their challenges.

His entrepreneurial efforts have been recognized with several awards. With Circus Morocco, he won the Orange Social Entrepreneur Award in Africa and the Middle East in 2018 in Morocco. With Bsensei, he received first prize in the Open Innovation organized by BNP Paribas in Africa in 2018 and first prize at the Africa Blockchain Summit organized by Bank Al-Maghrib and Paris Europlace in 2019. In 2021, he secured second place in the Free Innovation Xperience Challenge launched by the telecom operator Free.

Melchior Koba

Driven by a passion for crafting technological solutions, especially in the financial sector, he tackles challenges within his community.  He's a seasoned entrepreneur, having founded and invested in several African companies.

Paul Kwesi Damalie is a Ghanain serial entrepreneur and investor. In 2023, he founded Damalie Innovation Holdings Group (DIH Group), an investment company dedicated to improving the lives of one billion people by investing in key sectors and creating exponential value.

DIH Group focuses on areas such as health technologies, the sports value chain, family entertainment and games, urban infrastructure, urban development, integrated commerce and finance, and climate resilience.

As an angel investor, Damalie supports the startup DrDoGood, founded in 2023, which aims to revolutionize access to and delivery of primary healthcare through a web and mobile application that facilitates interactions between patients and healthcare providers.

In 2013, Damalie co-founded Wordstreem, a social audio streaming app for Christian ministries to engage their communities, serving as its CEO during the first year. In 2016, he co-founded Loystar, a digital loyalty and commerce platform that enables merchants to sell and retain customers, serving as the Director of Business Development and Operations for a year.

Also in 2016, Damalie co-founded Inclusive Financial Technologies, a company developing digital infrastructure for Africa to make financial data globally accessible, serving as CEO for two years. In 2018, he founded Appruve, a startup that facilitates identity verification for individuals and businesses across Africa, where he was CEO until 2023.

Damalie graduated from Radford University College in 2014 with a bachelor's degree in finance and strategic management. To gain experience, he worked for several companies, including serving as the country head of Next Money in Ghana in 2015, joining the advisory board of the Financial Inclusion Forum Africa in 2018, and becoming an angel investor for Moneex, a fintech startup that helps freelancers, businesses, and diasporas in Africa, in 2023.

Melchior Koba

Focused on improving business operations, he offers a technology management platform that empowers companies to enhance their performance through efficient management tools.

Saad Kemmou (photo) is a Moroccan entrepreneur with a bachelor's degree in international business, entrepreneurship, and marketing obtained in 2008 from Drexel University's LeBow College of Business in the United States. He is the founder and CEO of Hsabati, a startup that provides management services to businesses.

Founded in 2018, Hsabati is a modular and customizable management platform for businesses. Its great flexibility allows users to select and configure the features they need for optimized daily management.

Hsabati offers a CRM (customer relationship management) module that enhances performance at every stage of the sales process, from lead management to customer retention. Additionally, the platform optimizes inventory management, purchasing/sales, production, and finances, and includes a dedicated project management module.

Saad Kemmou is also the vice president of the Moroccan Fintech Federation. Prior to Hsabati, he founded Flood Gate Labs in 2012, a startup incubator and studio focusing on new technologies, mobile telephony, and advertising. He served as CEO until 2020.

He has also gained extensive experience working for various companies in Morocco and the United States. In 2009, he was an account manager at Market Resource Partners, a company specializing in the strategic development and tactical execution of integrated marketing programs for software and technology service firms. From 2011 to 2012, he was project and client relations manager at Media Mobility in Morocco, a startup facilitating the creation, distribution, and monetization of mobile applications across all platforms and screens.

Melchior Koba