I am the Founder of GAM-Green at Mind Limited, based in Kenya, with strong passion for access to clean energy solutions for the low-income population in rural areas. With over 7 years of experience in the energy industry, my vision remains to transform access to clean cooking technologies to exciting life experience for all households.

Atuhurra Angella Marjorie is the Founder and CEO of the Gejja Women Foundation and the Safe Girl Initiative, dedicated to advancing women’s empowerment, advocating for girls’ safety, and fostering sustainable community development. With a passion for social change and a commitment to gender equality, she has led initiatives that inspire and empower women and girls to realize their full potential, leveraging innovative programs and strategic partnerships to create lasting impact.

Bahati Mgogwe is a passionate social impact leader and the Founder of Girls First Initiative (GFI), a nonprofit organization based in Tanzania that empowers adolescent girls and young women through education, economic empowerment, and advocacy. With over six years of experience in program design, fundraising, and project management, Bahati is dedicated to dismantling systemic barriers that perpetuate poverty, gender-based violence, and inequality.

Raised by a single mother and deeply rooted in her community, Bahati brings lived experience into her work, designing programs that are responsive to the realities of marginalized girls. Under her leadership, GFI has launched transformative initiatives such as Msichana Kwanza, Binti Kinara, and Coffee on the Shelf, reaching hundreds of girls with mentorship, vocational training, digital learning, and reproductive health education.

Bahati is a recognized advocate for girls’ rights and has partnered with grassroots communities, global networks, and development partners to amplify young women’s voices and create inclusive, sustainable change. She is also a member of the Global Shapers Community and has represented her work at national and international platforms.

Bahati’s vision is to build a generation of bold, informed, and financially resilient young women who lead change in their families, communities, and beyond.

Bayo Adewoye is co-founder and CEO, Agrovesto, an Agritech company powering growth for African farmers with market access, finance and reliable data. With over 9 years combined experience in the agribusiness value chain, banking, financial investment, product design, Data Analysis and climate advocacy, Bayo has played pivotal role in various agricultural projects both with private and public sector with a singular mission of making food available for everyone. Bayo is a certified member of African Food Changemakers, a Fellow of CALA Advanced leadership program led by AGRA and a global council member of the World Agricultural Forum.

Bidemi Ojo is a healthtech entrepreneur and software engineer with over 15 years of experience in technology and innovation. He is the Co-founder and CEO of Gleeworld Pharmacy, where he leads Medfinder—an AI-powered pharmacy marketplace app that connects patients to nearby pharmacies in real time and equips independent pharmacists with digital tools to improve access, affordability, and reach.

He began his career as a network engineer at a leading telecoms company in Lagos, where he led critical infrastructure projects, including co-location initiatives. He later transitioned into tech consulting for small businesses, applying his expertise to help them scale through digital transformation.

His technical expertise and entrepreneurial vision have earned him recognition in prestigious fellowships and accelerator programs, including Startupbootcamp (HealthInc) Accelerator Program in Amsterdam, Netherlands (2021/2022), the UK-Nigeria Tech Hub’s iNOVO Accelerator (2021), and the Stanford SEED Aspire Program 2024. He won the Westerwelle Young Founder Fellowship Program, Berlin, Germany (2022/2023) and was honored with the 2022 Mandela Washington Fellowship for young African Leaders by the US Government. In 2023/2024, he served as Vice President of the Mandela Washington Fellowship Alumni Association of Nigeria (MWFAAN).

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and completed executive studies in Leadership in Business at Rutgers University, New Jersey. His drive to improve healthcare access stems from personal experience with delayed treatment due to medicine unavailability—an issue Medfinder now solves. He is passionate about using technology to digitize Africa’s pharmaceutical value chain and improve health outcomes across underserved communities.

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bidemiojo

Cecil Sagawala is a visionary Tanzanian environmental scientist and social entrepreneur whose work bridges the gap between environmental innovation and community empowerment. With a strong academic foundation and a passion for sustainability, he has dedicated his career to addressing pressing environmental issues through practical, locally driven solutions. From early achievements in climate change mitigation to his continued advocacy for sustainable development, Cecil stands out as a committed changemaker in the growing movement for a greener, more resilient future in Africa.

Charles Busuulwa is a 28-year-old certified social entrepreneur from Uganda. Growing up in diverse rural communities as the only boy in the family, I took on the role of caregiver and breadwinner at just 14 years old, looking after my younger sisters. This experience exposed me to the many challenges faced by these communities, including poverty, poor education, illiteracy, discrimination, and particularly, menstrual poverty, which not only affected my sisters but also many girls throughout Uganda. These experiences ignited my passion and gave me a life purpose centered around addressing community problems.

After completing my degree in education, I worked for a year before resigning from my teaching position. I realized that the job did not provide enough income to support my family’s needs and that Uganda’s education system primarily trained job seekers rather than creators, which did not align with my life purpose. I was fortunate to join the Social Innovation Academy (SINA), where I had the opportunity to rediscover myself after facing several business failures. I reconnected with the challenges my sisters faced while growing up, particularly regarding menstrual poverty. This led me to co-found She Deserves, a social enterprise dedicated to combating menstrual poverty, a cause I am deeply committed to in my pursuit of gender equity and health.

Through our work at She Deserves, we not only provide menstrual products to those in need but also educate and empower young women to take control of their health and futures. This commitment has earned me recognition from various organizations, including African impact challenge, Because International, Jangu International, and the Social Innovation Academy (SINA). In 2023, I was honored to be recognized as an award winner at the Social Impact Awards.

Chinwendu Nweke is the Founder and CEO of Bridge Merchant Enterprise, an agritech company driving sustainable agriculture and economic empowerment across Nigeria. With a background in geology and over 8 years of experience in agribusiness and supply chain management, she leads a decentralized system that has supported over 20,000 smallholder farmers, created 1,300+ jobs, and reduced post-harvest waste, worked on environmental impact by exporting 2,000+ tons of agricultural byproducts. Chinwendu is a 2022 U.S. TechWomen alumna, winner of the Young Global Changemakers award (2023) and the ACUMEN angels award. She is passionate about food security, rural youth empowerment, and climate-smart agriculture in Africa.

Faiza Ibrahim Taimako is my name. I am a daughter of Taimako the grandaughter of Gbangdan Nabmoo. I am married with four children. I am a herbalist and a horticulturist by profession and has since 1998 served in the following roles.
– Regional Secretary Ghana Federation of Traditional Medicine Practitioners (GHAFTRAM)
– The liaison officer GHAFTRAM/TAMD, Northern Savanna Biodiversity Program
– President – Savanna Tree Growers Association
– Chief Executive Officer – RAINcorp

Sister Josephine Ndinda Kitonyi i am a member of the Orantes Sisters of the Assumption in Tanzania. For the past five years, i have served as the head of Picard Printing Press, a printing company owned and operated by the Orantes Sisters. In addition to my leadership role, am also an active graphic designer, contributing creatively to the company’s visual output.

I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Theology, advanced certificate in Justice and Peace, and certificates in Social Entrepreneurship and Web Design. my unique combination of spiritual grounding, social advocacy, entrepreneurial insight, and creative skills positions me as a dynamic leader dedicated to service, innovation, and community empowerment.

Joyce Waithira Rugano is the founder of Ecorich Solutions Limited, a company that developed the Wastebot, an artificial intelligence-enabled machine that converts organic waste into organic fertilizer within 24 hours. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management. Her passion for starting the company was driven by the excess organic waste disposed into dumpsites, especially in informal urban settlements, a big contributor to environmental pollution, foodborne/waterborne diseases, and climate change through the emission of greenhouse gases causing global warming. Another driver was the lack of affordable organic fertilizer for small-scale farmers to increase their farm yields to improve their livelihoods through increased income. She wanted to find a lasting solution to these problems; this is where the idea of Ecorich came into play.

Joyce has been able to make an impact in society through the establishment of a waste recycling center in Ruiru, Kiambu, Kenya and organic waste collection centres in informal urban settlements, followed by packaging and distribution of organic fertilizer that has greatly changed the lives of almost 8,000 small-scale farmers in Nyandarua, Kiambu, and Murang’a Counties. In addition, her innovation has led to the employment of over 180 women and 120 young men either directly or indirectly in the organic waste conversion cycle therefore contributing to improved livelihoods with a lasting impact in society.

I am a trained accountant with a Masters degree in Business Administration. I am currently a Treasurer General at the Association of Religios in Uganda.

It is an enterprise processing agro products aimed at boosting the immune system of the customers.

Edgar Mathew Karuhanga is a 28 year old journalist based in Kampala, Uganda. He cofounded Debunk Media Initiative, Uganda’s first and only fact checking organisation. Here, he identifies disinformation shared on the media and debunks it using fact checking tools backed up by evidence or data. He is also a fact checking trainer and has trained students, journalists and CSOs on how they can fact check information in real time. Edgar has produced more than 50 fact checks and trained over 1500 students in Uganda in fact checking disinformation. He has conducted fact checking trainings with Journalists from Africa in countries like South Sudan, Ethiopia and Liberia.

Edgar also serves as a news anchor and Show host at The Alternative Digitalk TV station. He hosts a daily morning show known as THE MIGHTY DRIVE SHOW from 8 to 10 am where he invites various leaders and experts to talk about some of the issues that happen in Uganda and globally. He also hosts the weekly FACE THE NATION SHOW, an hour long exclusive with various influential and prominent figures to devise means of tackling the many challenges happening in Uganda. Edgar also hosts the INTERFACE SHOW with Ugandan Opposition figure, Dr Kiiza Besigye. The INTERFACE SHOW is on halt now as Dr Kiiza Besigye is incarcerated in Prison for Treason.

Edgar is also a 2020 Media Challenge Fellow trained by the Media Challenge Initiative, an organisation that identifies Young Journalists and equips them with skills to be a one army journalist. He is also a certified Fact checker and fact checking trainer of trainers from AFRICA CHECK, the oldest fact checking organisation in Africa. Edgar holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from Kampala University.

Ecobora is a Kenyan-owned social enterprise that provides solar-powered institutional cookstoves to schools, hospitals, and other large-scale institutions across Africa. We offer clean, cost-effective, and sustainable alternatives to traditional cooking methods like firewood and LPG. Ecobora’s solutions reduce fuel costs, eliminate smoke emissions, and improve cooking efficiency, while also enabling institutions to generate revenue through carbon credits.

Olapeju is the Founder and CEO of MyFoodAngels. An Electrical Engineering graduate, and alumni of Lagos Business School’s Enterprise Development Center, Flourish Africa, WIMBIZ Capital, Academy For Women Entrepreneurs (AWE), Daystar Leadership Academy, Future Females, Nourishing Africa, and African Tech Vision, just to mention a few.
Olapeju stands as a remarkable and visionary leader within the Nigerian food industry, solidifying her status as a global thought leader to be reckoned with. As the founder of MyFoodAngels, her tech-enabled and user-friendly platform has emerged as a game-changer, showcasing her unwavering dedication and exceptional leadership in transforming the way food is produced, distributed, and consumed in Nigeria.
She has garnered accolades from renowned organizations such as Mrs Folorunsho Alakija’s Flourish Africa, Lagos State Government, and won the Entrepreneurship World Cup. She has also been featured in the newspapers, TV and blogs including The Guardian Newspaper, ThisDay Live, Punch and Puse TV. One of her recent appointment is as a Business Mentor by the Lagos State Government at The Lagos Innovate Idea Hub program.
With her steadfast commitment to creating a sustainable and equitable food system, she has pioneered a profitable food supply chain system through meticulous planning and ingenious strategies. The staggering increase in accessibility, quality, and excellence of fresh and nutrient-dense food in Nigeria has been nothing short of extraordinary. Through MyFoodAngels, she has empowered several small-scale farmers, connecting them to new markets, elevating their livelihoods, enhancing their profitability and has ensured that fresh, healthy, and affordable food is accessible to more people, significantly contributing to the achievement of SDG 2: Zero Hunger.

My name is Pauline Charlotte Barra, and I have a background in finance and project management. After obtaining my Master’s degree, I joined an investment firm as a financial analyst, where I analyzed projects in the bakery and aquaculture sectors. These experiences enabled me to work closely with people from the informal sector and to learn to work with people who have different work processes. They also enabled me to discover the world of entrepreneurship, which seemed interesting and I wanted to learn more. That’s why I joined Haskè Ventures as a Venture Architect, which is considered an entrepreneur-in-residence, where I was able to co-create an Edtech startup where, over the course of a year, we went from the challenge phase with the identification of problems in the education sector, the proposal and testing of solution hypotheses to the launch phase. Education was a challenging sector and one that presents a real challenge for our society; nevertheless, I wanted to do even more for society. With this great experience in entrepreneurship with a serial entrepreneur, and all that I had learned, I wanted to come back to the studio and take up the process again to create another startup.

I, Phumzile Khoza, am the founder and CEO of Lathitha Biodiesel, a South African green energy company I launched in 2021 to create sustainable fuel solutions. Driven by my commitment to environmental sustainability, I developed a model that recycles waste cooking oil into biodiesel, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and pollution in waterways, while creating employment for youth in township communities.

I have been entrepreneurial from a young age, starting my first business at 13 and later running a successful beauty business until the COVID-19 pandemic, which inspired my shift toward climate action. In 2024, I was honored to win the BRICS Women’s Startups Contest award (Ecology category), and I am proud to be a member of the BRICS Women’s Alliance, the Startup School Alumni network, and a participant in their 2024 funding competition.

Currently, I am expanding my expertise as a student at GIBS, engaging in projects like the CSIR Capacity Building Training and collaborating with La Cité Bordeaux to advance global sustainability initiatives.

Samuel Kumi-Gyau is a sustainable fashion founder, climate action and TVET advocate based in Ghana, with a global perspective and a passion for driving change through innovative solutions. A proud German Falling Walls Lab alumnus, Samuel is the founder of Gold Coast Tokota, an eco-shoe company that merges economic empowerment with climate action through what he calls “Happy Feets.”

Shallon Atuhaire Mugabe serves with the East African Community as the Head of the Hansard Department also known as the Official Report Department of the East African Legislative Assembly. She has spent all her career life as a public servant starting off as a lecturer of Literature and English at Makerere University, Kampala soon after her graduation. She later joined the Parliament of Uganda where she served in various roles including within the Hansard, the communications and the research departments before joining the East African Community. Shallon is the founder of the Franklyn Institute of Leadership and Public Management a not-for-profit organisation with a mission to nurture competent and selfless leaders in the public sector through training, coaching and mentorship. She runs the Public Management and Leadership (PML) fellowship program in collaboration with the US Embassy and the Syracuse University with an impact of over 450 alumni, over 10,000 students and many professionals in various organisations. Shallon believes that every citizen deserves a good service and every public servant deserves a good leader.

She holds a Master of Business Leadership from the University of South Africa (UNISA), a Masters in Literature and a Bachelor of Arts in Literature and Communication from Makerere University; Shallon was awarded the 2016 Mandela Washington Fellowship at Syracuse University, New York and she is at this conference as an alumna of the same fellowship. Shallon is the author of “I was Born to Lead; Essential Leadership Values for Young people.

Suleiman Salum Suleiman is the Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Bantu Technologies, a Zanzibar-based social enterprise tackling environmental challenges through sustainable energy and waste management solutions. With a background in Bachelor of Business Administration and over three years of experience in clean energy innovation, Suleiman leads the development and scaling of biomass briquettes made from biomass waste . Under his leadership, Bantu Technologies has secured competitive grants, including the USAID-YALI Transformation Fund, and built strong community engagement in urban Zanzibar and beyond. Suleiman is also an alumnus of the YALI Regional Leadership Centre East Africa and the Swedish Institute Management Programme Africa, reflecting his commitment to impactful, locally-driven climate solutions.