TECH STARS (960)
Through its programs and activities, TechBuzz Hub empowers young African entrepreneurs to develop innovative solutions. With international awards to its credit, it continues its ascent, impacting Africa.
TechBuzz Hub is a Ugandan startup incubator and coworking space helping entrepreneurs turn their ideas into sustainable businesses. Established in 2016 by Keneth Twesigye, who serves as its CEO, the hub is dedicated to fostering the growth of early-stage startups led by individuals aged 18 to 35.
Its offerings to achieve that goal encompass inclusive coworking spaces, startup incubation programs, and informative seminars. Beyond physical spaces, the hub extends critical business development services, including mentoring, consulting, and networking opportunities. These initiatives have proven instrumental in empowering numerous entrepreneurs, enabling them to fulfill their dreams and turn their ideas into reality.
TechBuzz Hub introduced Offisa, a virtual space network serving as a remote office that allows entrepreneurs to efficiently manage their business operations. It also organizes meetings that bring together entrepreneurs, startups, and business owners, fostering collaboration, and sharing of experiences, and providing a platform to track company progress while benefiting from expert support.
The incubator also hosts the Fortnyt Series, a series of fortnightly workshops designed to offer mentor-to-entrepreneur and peer-to-peer technical assistance. Additionally, the hub has launched the Young Professionals Program, geared towards supporting recent graduates and those entering the job market. This program focuses on equipping young individuals with practical skills and knowledge highly sought after in the job market, enhancing their job readiness.
TechBuzz Hub's commitment to capacity building is evident in its diverse training programs covering business modeling, roadmap, and strategy development, project management, business planning, graphic design, website design, computer applications, and financial projections. These training courses are designed to be open and customized, providing a holistic approach to building business capacity.
In 2023, the incubator won the prize for best coworking space at the Global Startup Awards Africa. A member of the AfriLabs network, it is supported by Mastercard Foundation and Startup Uganda, among others.
Melchior Koba
Across Africa, a fintech revolution is underway, fuelled by over $2.7 billion in investment since 2021. In Kenya, where the scene is particularly fertile, 24-year-old Collins Kathuli exemplifies a new generation of entrepreneurs democratizing access to financial services.
Collins Kathuli (photo), a Kenyan computer scientist and technology entrepreneur with a focus on the finance sector, is the co-founder and CEO of Kyanda, a startup committed to providing affordable financial services and addressing the issue of unbanked and underbanked populations in Africa.
Established in 2019, Kyanda's vision is to offer secure and convenient access to financial services at an affordable rate, efficiently and transparently, to reach everyone, anytime. The platform facilitates money transfers, payments, and bill settlements from the comfort of users' homes, catering to both individuals looking to streamline their finances and business owners seeking to optimize financial operations. Having successfully served over 10,000 users in Kenya, Kyanda recently expanded its reach to South Africa. The platform notably enables South Africans to form or join groups to collectively save money towards shared objectives.
Collins Kathuli earned his Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering from KCA University in March 2023. Since 2021, he has been actively contributing as a mentor at Techstars Startup Weekend Nairobi, a 54-hour event designed to provide valuable experiential training for both technical and non-technical entrepreneurs.
The winner of the Anzisha Prize 2022 has received several awards and distinctions during his entrepreneurial career. In 2020, at the FOYA Awards, he received the fintech founder of the year award in East Africa, and in 2021 the first prize at the Global Student Entrepreneurship Awards. In 2022, his company was voted best fintech in Kenya, and he won the Fintech Innovator of the Year award at the Africatech Festival.
Melchior Koba
Driven by a passion to empower African businesses, he returned to his native Benin after his agro-economics and veterinary studies in China. He has since launched an e-commerce platform that connects African businesses to global markets.
Yarou Bao Sero Razack (photo) is a veterinary surgeon and agro-economist hailing from Benin. He is also the co-founder and CEO of Ahiyoyo, a startup dedicated to streamlining the procurement, distribution, and payment processes for companies, resulting in significant time and cost savings.
Ahiyoyo was born in 2019 to connect businesses with international suppliers and local consumers. Its primary aim is to assist enterprises in reducing procurement costs, expanding their operations across diverse African countries, and facilitating seamless transactions with global suppliers, ultimately enhancing overall profitability.
In a recent interview with We Are Tech Africa, Yarou Bao Sero Razack outlined Ahiyoyo's ambitious plans for the future. The company has extended its presence beyond Benin, deploying team members to Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, and Burkina Faso. Ahiyoyo's future roadmap includes geographical expansion through the establishment of warehouses and agencies, diversification of services, forging strategic partnerships, and a commitment to continuous innovation. The CEO explains that the startup eyes 25,000 transitions by December 2025 as well as $3 million in turnover and 1,000 registered businesses by that timeline.
Recently in Togo, the entrepreneur took part in Ocean's News' L'Afrik De Demain (ADD) program and was awarded the prize for second best African entrepreneur. Expressing his satisfaction with the recognition, he told We Are Tech Africa: “The award I received during Ocean's News' L'Afrik De Demain program represents a significant recognition of my efforts as an African entrepreneur. Being ranked second-best African entrepreneur at this annual conference is a source of immense pride and a validation of the work accomplished with Ahiyoyo.”
On the educational front, Yarou Bao Sero Razack holds a veterinary medicine degree from Hunan Agricultural University (2018) and a master's degree in agricultural economics from Southwest University (2021).
A board member of edtech Yasiri and a business mentor at VC4A (Venture Capital for Africa), he worked in China at HIMANX, a Chinese tobacco company, where he was a brand development specialist from 2019 to 2020.
In addition to the ADD award, the entrepreneur received several other distinctions in 2023. A member of the ForbesBLK community, he was one of the top 25 founders selected for the Westerwelle Foundation's Young Founders Programme. He is also a FAST Accelerator Fellow.
Melchior Koba
She joined the CcHub technology innovation center in 2021 as co-founder and managing partner of Creative Economy Practice. Her appointment as head of the center is the result of her leadership in these previous positions.
Ojoma Ochai (photo), a Nigerian creative economy expert with a specialization diploma in Network Engineering from the NIIT Abuja Centre in 2005, has assumed the role of Managing Director at Co-creation Hub (CcHub). Her appointment was officially announced on Thursday, December 14, 2023.
Taking over as Managing director from co-founder Bosun Tidjani, who currently serves as Nigeria's Minister of Communication, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Ojoma Ochai is now responsible for overseeing the strategy and team of Co-creation Hub Africa. This includes the management of CcHub Design Lab Rwanda, CcHub Namibia, CcHub Syndicate, Creative Economy Practice at CcHub, and iHub Kenya.
"I am proud of the work that CcHUB has achieved since 2010 and it is a great honor of my life to take a deeper step into CcHUB as its Managing Director. I stand on the shoulders of giants Dr. Bosun Tijani, Femi Longe, and Adetunji Eleso and previous leaders and managers at CcHUB who have built a phenomenal African organization that I am now truly honored to lead," she posted on her LinkedIn page.
Before this appointment, the Nigerian was the Managing Partner of Creative Economy Practice, a CcHub unit dedicated to stimulating innovation and the application of technology for the development of the creative economy in Africa.
Ojoma Ochai sits on several boards, including ₿trust, backed by tech and creative industry leaders Jack Dorsey and Jay Z to support the development of Bitcoin Open Source in the Global South. She has also been a member of the UNESCO Expert Group since 2012. Between 2010 and 2021, she worked for the British Council. There, she successively held the positions of Director of Arts in Nigeria (2010-2017) and East Africa (2017-2018), Director of Programmes in the Sub-Saharan Africa region (2018-2020) and Regional Director of Programmes for the Arts and Creative Economy in Sub-Saharan Africa (2020-2021).
For her work and dedication, Ojoma Ochai was named, by Y Naija Magazine, as one of the 10 most influential people under 40 in arts and culture in Nigeria in 2014, as well as one of the 100 most influential Nigerians and 100 most inspiring women in Nigeria in 2015.
Melchior Koba
The incubator provides six months of intensive support to companies in the ideation stage. Its incubation program has empowered over 200 projects in Tunisia across three editions.
Founded in 2015, Afkar Incubator is a Tunis (Tunisia) -based incubator currently led by Walid Hached and Houssem Aouidi.
The incubator aims to empower individuals with innovative ideas for social change. It supports social innovators by nurturing them into change catalysts, content creators, and influential figures in civil society- individuals poised to become tomorrow's leaders of change. It particularly focuses on projects in the ideation phase that demonstrate creative solutions to existing problems.
Its flagship initiative is a free six-month incubation program that provides a collaborative and diverse environment that encourages collaborative intelligence, friendship, and a wealth of experiences. Entrepreneurs in the program concentrate on formulating their value proposition, conducting experiments, testing and validating hypotheses, developing business plans, creating proof of concept and minimum viable product (MVP), building their brand, and raising awareness.
Addressing the need for greater inclusion of women in the entrepreneurial sector, Afkar Incubator has introduced a program called Afkar Mubadirat. This initiative creates networking opportunities for women across different regions of the country, with recent launches in Jendouba and Sidi Bouzid.
In terms of impact, the incubator has supported 264 projects and 450 grantees, with 56% being men and 44% women. It has financed 54 projects and incubated 42 entrepreneurs in regional innovation hubs spread across seven regions of Tunisia. Thanks to the program, 131 startups have been launched, and 63 have received accreditation.
Among the notable technology companies Afkar Incubator has supported are JTKids, a series of technological construction games for children promoting creative experiences and playful learning; ODIOFIL, a platform offering a variety of audio content, from radio podcasts to audiobooks; IDARA, an online guide facilitating access to administrative procedures in Tunisia; and JAM, an artist matchmaking and creative space reservation application.
Afkar Incubator achieved these results with the help of its partners, including the National Deposit and Consignment Fund (CDC), French technical cooperation agency Expertise France, French development agency AFD, the European Union, Germanic Development Agency GIZ, Agence française de développement, the European Union, GIZ, capacity-building project ProGreS Migration and global incubator Faster Capital.
Melchior Koba
A biomedical engineering doctor, he dedicates his efforts to enhancing radiology services. Through his work with Intixel, an artificial intelligence-based platform, he empowers radiologists to minimize diagnostic errors, enhance productivity, and mitigate the risk of disease progression.
Egyptian-born Mustafa Elattar (photo) is a biomedical engineering, image analysis, medical imaging, and artificial intelligence expert. He is also the founder and CEO of Intixel, a company specializing in cutting-edge artificial intelligence solutions for medical imaging.
He holds a master's degree in communication and information technology from Nile University, earned in 2010, and a PhD in biomedical engineering and physics from the University of Amsterdam, completed in 2016.
Established in 2018, his company, Intixel, empowers medical imaging companies to leverage artificial intelligence for product enhancement. Functioning as a supplementary diagnostic tool, Intixel aids radiologists in swiftly identifying anomalies, thereby reducing diagnostic errors. Intixel also assists radiologists in prioritizing high-risk patients, ultimately enhancing their overall productivity. By optimizing workflow efficiency, the platform enables professionals to examine more patients each day, thereby mitigating the risk of disease progression exacerbated by prolonged waiting lists.
Since 2017, Mustafa Elattar has served as an assistant professor at Nile University. His earlier career includes roles as a research assistant and PhD student at the Academic Medical Center from 2012 to 2016, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the Netherlands Cancer Institute in 2016. From 2017 to 2018, he served as the Head of Research at Myocardial Solutions Inc., a medical technology company dedicated to transforming cardiac and cancer care.
He is also a prolific author with over 68 journal articles and conference publications, disseminating his research ideas and innovations. In 2019, he won the pitch deck and best health-tech startup award at the Takeoff Istanbul International Startup Summit. He also received the Fareed Bader Award at the World Entrepreneurs and Investment Forum (WEIF). In addition, his company was in the top 5 start-ups at the Young Business Hub Entrepreneurship Investment Summit in Bahrain. In 2022, he received the IVLP Impact Award from the US State Department for an artificial intelligence hackathon project he launched on behalf of Nile University.
Melchior Koba
Driven by a bold vision to transform eSwatini into a tech titan, King Mswati III spearheaded the creation of the Royal Science & Technology Park, a hub fostering scientific advancement and innovation.
The Royal Science & Technology Park (RSTP) is a science and technology hub established in 2007 in the Kingdom of eSwatini. Its inception, fueled by the forward-thinking vision of King Mswati III, was formalized through the enactment of the Royal Science & Technology Park Act in 2012. Spearheading this innovative initiative is Vumile Dlamini.
RSTP's main mission is to champion science, technology, and innovation within Eswatini, fostering an environment that cultivates research, development, and entrepreneurial endeavors. Spanning an expansive 317.17 hectares, the park comprises two distinct sites: the Nokwane Site and the Phocweni Site.
Dedicated to information technology services and products, the Phocweni Site boasts a specialized training center known as the Advanced School of IT. Affiliated with Aptech, a global leader in training solutions, this center caters to both retail and corporate sectors. Furthermore, the site hosts a business incubator designed to stimulate innovation in pivotal sectors such as information and communication technologies, biotechnology, agriculture and food, climate and the environment, waste management (green solutions), and indigenous knowledge systems.
Notably, the Phocweni Site is equipped with essential infrastructure, including a national contact center and a national data center. The latter plays a crucial role in delivering secure, efficient, and reliable ICT services to businesses while actively contributing to the advancement of e-government and championing digital inclusion throughout the Kingdom of eSwatini.
The second site, Nokwane, houses a research unit that serves as a multi-purpose platform for research and development in biotechnology-related technologies, production, product marketing, and trade.
Under the Kingdom's Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Act 2018, the Royal Science & Technology Park has been designated a Special Economic Zone.
Melchior Koba
For more than 19 years, he has dedicated his efforts through Silulo Ulutho Technologies to narrow the digital divide and enhance the quality of life for his fellow citizens. His impactful work has earned him numerous national and international awards.
Luvuyo Rani (photo) is a South African entrepreneur and the CEO of Silulo Ulutho Technologies, a company that sets up community businesses and career centers in South Africa's slums and rural communities, creating employment opportunities for thousands of unemployed young people.
He completed his studies at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, obtaining a Bachelor of Commerce and Education in 2002, followed by a Bachelor of Business Administration in 2004. He furthered his education by earning an Associate's Degree in Management from the University of Cape Town's Graduate School of Business in 2007. In 2018, he enhanced his leadership skills by completing the Certificate in Leadership for System Change from Harvard Business School Executive Education.
The entrepreneur founded Silulo Ulutho Technologies in 2004 with his brother Lonwabo Rani. The company provides slum and rural populations with accessible infrastructure, a support network, skills development services, and digital connectivity through its community-centric career and business centers.
Since 2021, Luvuyo Rani has been a board member of the Entrepreneurs' Organization, a high-quality support network of over 18,000 business founders and owners. Before founding Silulo Ulutho Technologies, he taught accounting and business economics at KwaMfundo Secondary School from 2001 to 2004.
His entrepreneurial endeavors and significant social impact have earned him numerous accolades. Notable awards include the 2007 Cape Times/KPMG Entrepreneur of the Year, the 2008 SAB Kick-Start Award as second runner-up in the Western Cape, the 2011 Endeavour Global Entrepreneur recognition, and the 2014 acknowledgment as one of the "Ten Outstanding People of the Year" by Junior Chamber International. In 2015, he was honored with a diploma from Tsiba Education, and in 2016, he received the prestigious title of Social Entrepreneur of the Year from the Schwab Foundation.
Melchior Koba
For over 15 years, I&F Entrepreneuriat has been helping entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas through the business creation process. Through its programs and activities, it has supported over 1,000 entrepreneurs.
I&F Entrepreneuriat, established in 2007 with collaborative guidance from the Institut de la Francophonie pour l'Entrepreneuriat (Mauritius), the University of Bordeaux (France), and Incubateur régional d'Aquitaine (France), is a dedicated organization supporting entrepreneurs in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Currently led by Val Masamba, an entrepreneur with decades of experience, the organization's core activities encompass training, incubation, mentoring, and financing of innovative projects designed to have a substantial social impact. Boasting over 15 years of experience, I&F Entrepreneuriat has successfully incubated 1,456 companies, including 803 initiated by individuals under the age of 35, with 39% being young women. These companies operate across diverse sectors such as agribusiness, high technology, building materials production, and information and communication technologies.
"I&F Entrepreneuriat is dedicated to the transfer of technology and aims to foster the promotion and development of a systematic approach to detecting, evaluating, economically validating, and supporting both innovative business startups and existing companies—whether or not they are linked to scientific research. This mission is carried out within the framework of a collaborative incubation and incubator structure," the organization explains on its website.
Its incubation program spans 12 to 18 months, adapting to the unique progress of each project. It opens its doors to aspiring entrepreneurs, providing them with physical and legal accommodation, comprehensive support, coaching and mentoring, entrepreneurial and managerial training, and ongoing refinement courses. I&F Entrepreneuriat aids entrepreneurs in constructing their business models and plans, integrates them into business networks and offers post-creation follow-up.
In the post-creation phase, I&F Entrepreneuriat extends its support through a comprehensive incubator. This phase assists new entrepreneurs in setting up and launching their businesses, conducting initial recruitment, establishing relationships with customers and suppliers, managing accounting, negotiating with market players, overseeing bank accounts, participating in trade fairs and conferences for product promotion, and implementing effective marketing strategies.
Finally, I&F Entrepreneuriat's incubation journey culminates in an industrial district designed specifically for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). This environment serves as a springboard for incubated entrepreneurs, providing them with the resources and infrastructure needed to thrive. From shared workspace and production facilities to mentorship programs and networking opportunities, the district fosters collaboration and growth, ultimately leading to high-impact, sustainable businesses that empower DR Congo.
Melchior Koba
His career in the pharmaceutical industry has given him valuable expertise in health economics. In 2019, he founded an app to facilitate access to healthcare for disadvantaged people in Africa.
Brice Kitio Dschassi (photo) is a pharmacist and health economist with over 15 years of experience. He is the founder and CEO of WiiQare, a Congolese startup whose mission is to improve access to healthcare for people in Africa by connecting healthcare providers, patients, and payers.
Established in 2020, WiiQare is an innovative loyalty and rewards-based health savings and payment solution that empowers individuals to take control of their healthcare with fun and easy ways to build health savings and provides hospitals with a seamless way to receive payments from patients.
WiiQare aims to meet the needs of populations who lack access to social coverage or health insurance, or who face financial difficulties in accessing healthcare. The platform also reduces the risk of corruption or misappropriation of funds sent by expatriates.
Dschassi holds a doctorate in pharmacy from Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University (2001) and a master's degree in pharmaco-epidemiology and pharmacovigilance from Bordeaux University (2005). He is also a graduate of Université Paris-Sud, where he obtained a Master's degree in Public Health (MPH) specializing in methodology and statistics in 2005.
Between 2005 and 2009, he was a lecturer in pharmaco-epidemiology at Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, and project manager for the Haute autorité de santé, an independent French public scientific authority that promotes quality in the health, social, and medico-social sectors. In 2009, he joined the pharmaceutical company Sanofi, where he worked for six years. In 2016, he became Lundbeck's Director of Global Health Economics and Outcomes Research. Lundbeck is a pharmaceutical company specializing in brain diseases.
Melchior Koba
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Since its inception, the hub has been committed to enabling young people to unleash their full potential through a variety of programs. It provides a supportive community space that enables young people to meet, network, and learn, among other things.
Founded in 2016 by Mahmoud Noor, Swahilipot Hub began as a Kenyan non-profit focused on technology and innovation. In 2017, it expanded its mission to include art, becoming the Swahilipot Hub Foundation and amplifying its impact on young people's lives.
Swahilipot Hub Foundation equips young people with the tools they need to thrive in the digital age. Its Data and Research program trains participants in data collection and analysis, while other programs enhance digital skills and enable young people to navigate the ever-evolving digital landscape.
Through its Industry Attachment program, participants gain practical experience in areas such as web development, networking, and soft skills such as working with young people and effective communication.
Its enterprise program, known as "Pitching Thursday", provides a platform for young people to present their ideas and projects, gaining valuable feedback and visibility. This program serves as a springboard for growth and development. The hub also provides a unique space where young artists and technologists can build sustainable projects. In 2018, it hosted the first edition of Pwani Innovation Week (PIW), its activity focused on promoting technology. The organization also launched a heritage event in 2022. Named Modern Heritage of Africa (MoHoA) and organized in a hybrid format (face-to-face and virtual workshop), the event brought together speakers and participants from all over the world.
To date, it has trained over 100 young people in data collection and analysis, and over 150 young people have acquired digital skills. It has supported more than 10 businesses to date, helping them on their entrepreneurial journey.
Earlier in 2023, the organization was certified as the equivalent of a certified public charity in the United States of America. This means it can be directly funded by US grant-making bodies.
Melchior Koba
A leader in healthcare innovation across Africa, she leverages her company Kaaro Health to bridge the urban-rural healthcare gap, ensuring access to quality care for underserved communities.
Angella Kyomugisha (photo) is a social entrepreneur and financial management specialist dedicated to enhancing healthcare accessibility in rural Africa. A graduate of Kyambogo University, where she earned her bachelor's degree in economics and statistics in 2013, she serves as the co-founder, co-CEO, and CFO of Kaaro Health.
Her entrepreneurial journey was motivated by a harrowing experience during which she nearly lost her life and that of her prematurely born baby. This incident revealed the stark health disparities faced by rural women in Uganda, prompting Kyomugisha to establish Kaaro Health.
Reflecting on her experience earlier this year, she stated, "My baby and I spent three months fighting for our lives. In short, we survived, but it was really traumatic. I didn't understand what women who live in rural areas go through."
Founded in 2014, Kaaro Health pioneers the use of "container clinics," equipped with solar power, laboratory facilities, and an Internet connection, serving as telehealth centers for villages lacking clinics within a 25 km radius.
Beyond healthcare provision, Kaaro Health offers targeted financial management training to both current and potential customers, empowering them with the skills necessary to develop and sustain their businesses. The organization's goal is to support medical entrepreneurs and their SMEs in delivering increasingly sophisticated healthcare to rural and peri-urban communities.
In addition to her role at Kaaro Health, Kyomugisha serves as a board member of the Delight Children's Health Rights Initiative, a non-governmental organization dedicated to safeguarding the rights of mothers and children. Prior to her entrepreneurial endeavors, she held positions such as banking mission manager at Centenary Bank (2013-2014), project manager for Smart Telecom (2014), and fundraising manager for the Forum for African Women Educationalists (2015).
Angella Kyomugisha received the Women Empowerment Award from the Bayer Foundation in 2021. She was selected as one of the Cartier Women's Initiative Fellows in 2023. These awards underscore her commitment to driving positive change and making healthcare more accessible across the continent.
Melchior Koba
In Africa, agriculture plays a critical role in driving economic development, social stability, and food security. Recognizing its importance, organizations like 3AgHub are actively supporting agricultural startups to bolster the sector's growth and impact.
Agripreneurs Africa Agribusiness Hub (3AgHub) is a virtual incubator and accelerator, designed to develop agripreneurs capable of revolutionizing the agribusiness landscape. Operating out of Ghana, it provides comprehensive and interactive startup support, training, mentoring, and industry best practices.
Established in 2021, this incubator takes a hands-on approach, coaching, engaging, inspiring, and equipping agripreneurs from the initial stages of ideation through the creation of dynamic agribusinesses with transformative potential. By leveraging these initiatives, 3AgHub actively contributes to the creation of sustainable employment opportunities, curbing migration, mitigating youth unemployment, boosting household incomes, promoting agripreneurship, and strengthening food and nutritional security.
The centerpiece of 3AgHub's offerings is its six-month incubation program, affording agripreneurs the chance to test and develop prototypes, ultimately laying the foundation for their startup ventures. Through this program, 3AgHub not only recommends innovative and sustainable solutions but also provides implementation support, streamlining access to essential resources. The goal is to assist young graduates in translating their ideas into viable businesses capable of generating employment and offering inventive solutions within the agri-food sector.
Its 3-month 3AgHub accelerator program aims to equip young agri-businesses to become resilient, competitive, and sustainable. During the program, the center shares its expertise, networks, and resources. It helps entrepreneurs develop a better go-to-market strategy, prepare for investment, and raise financial resources.
3AgHub's comprehensive suite of services encompasses investment in accelerators and incubators, business development, market facilitation, technical assistance, and advisory services, input facilitation and mechanization, value chain development, investment appraisal and facilitation, financial support for SMEs, as well as internship and volunteering opportunities.
Fostering collaboration and expanding its reach, 3AgHub has forged strategic partnerships with numerous organizations, both within Ghana and on the international stage. Noteworthy collaborators include the Ghana Export Promotion Authority, the National Board Small Scale Industries, Agripreneurs Africa, and the African Agribusiness Incubators Network.
Melchior Koba
Alex Sea is a prominent figure driving innovation and development in the digital finance sector across French-speaking Africa. His work with the Africa Fintech Forum catalyzes groundbreaking initiatives and advancements.
Alex Sea (photo) is a key player in the fintech ecosystem in French-speaking Africa. As founder and director of the Africa Fintech Forum (AFF), a non-profit organization, Alex fosters connections and collaboration across the continent's diverse financial innovation ecosystems.
Established in 2017, AFF is dedicated to fostering the growth of Africa's fintech industry. The organization serves as a valuable information hub, demystifying the intricacies of the market and enriching knowledge through initiatives like the Africa Fintech Chair and in-depth mapping of the French-speaking African fintech landscape.
"Africa Fintech is an international forum convening over 400 digital finance players from five continents for two days annually. We collaborate to build the foundation for thriving fintech ecosystems across Africa through a diverse range of initiatives. Additionally, the Africa Fintech Tour reaches over 10 African countries every year, unlocking the vast potential of digital finance. To this end, we actively establish and support vibrant fintech communities throughout French-speaking West and Central Africa," Alex Sea explained in 2020.
AFF actively collaborates with regulators, government agencies, financial centers, and technology parks to strengthen the ecosystem. In 2020, the organization launched Fintech Village, a continental hub dedicated to fostering synergy between African fintech ecosystems, financial centers, and technology hubs. This initiative aims to identify and support innovative, inclusive technologies.
The Next Fintech Forum is AFF's flagship annual event. The fifth edition, held in Côte d'Ivoire on November 16-17, 2023, focused on fintech and commerce in Africa.
Beyond AFF, Alex Sea's commitment to the African financial landscape extends far and wide. He holds a Master's degree in business and strategy management and co-founded AFRICAM ACADEMY, an innovation hub specializing in market finance. He also serves as Vice-Chairman of the Africa Fintech Network, a platform that unites leaders, organizations, and stakeholders in the African fintech space. Additionally, he is the Secretary General of the Côte d'Ivoire Fintech Association. He co-founded Africa Lab, an incubator and accelerator, and Finov Africa, a consulting and investment firm dedicated to the fintech ecosystem, where he has served as CEO since 2019. He is also the founder and CEO of IDIA AFRICA, a consultancy specializing in business intelligence, market penetration, and risk analysis.
In 2016, he established Africa Telecom & Technology Review, a platform to educate and inform audiences about Africa’s dynamic and rapidly evolving market. The following year, he founded Datacenter & Cloud Conference, which highlights market trends and opportunities for African players in the digitalization space.
Melchior Koba