Kigali, Rwanda – After impressive on-stage pitches to an expert panel of judges earlier this week, 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) at its Gala Dinner and Africa Food Prize Awards Ceremony attended by H.E. President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame and a host of other African heads of state, dignitaries, and esteemed food systems experts from across the world.
With 12 top-class finalists in this year’s GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition, four additional Impact Awards winners were merited and will receive US$2,500: 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 agripreneurs, 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, 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.”
AGRF Chair Emeritus Strive Masiyiwa, Generation Africa co-founder and Executive Chairman of Econet and Cassava Technologies, joined Holsether via video message to motivate the contestants to use their entrepreneurial spirit for positive impact: “From amongst you, are the very people who are going to save our continent and ensure that millions of people do not starve, ensure that millions of other people will be able to overcome the challenges created by climate change. The true winners are not going to be because you got a prize, but because you were inspired and encouraged to go on to do greater things with your entrepreneurial venture, and that you reached out where the need was greatest, and the help was least,” Masiyiwa said in a heartfelt appeal.
Embodying the spirit of Masiyiwa’s message, Generation Africa also recognized four Impact Award Winners for each venture’s potential to empower communities and protect the environment.
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.
Nancy Iraba founded Healthy Seaweed Company to boost the livelihoods for 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 2hrs of cooking gas and 50l of liquid fertilizer from 5kg of organic waste per day.
Eloge Niyomwungere and his business Best Food Solution processes 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 agripreneurs and global leaders in the industry. The GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize, and the networks and connections that come with it, is 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, agripreneurship 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 agrifood sector. Seeing more youth with truly innovate solutions, building companies that create jobs in the food system, makes me really proud. They hold the future of our continent in their hands.”
Meet the 2022 GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize top startups
As the world’s population grows, the demands for increased food production is high and stresses on resources such as land, water and nutrients become even greater. There is an urgent need to find alternative methods to provide this food.
Healthy Seaweed Company is boosting the livelihoods for women seaweed farmers in Zanzibar and bringing the health benefits of seaweed home through local value-addition and the promotion of seaweed products as a sustainable food source.
Maya is a Malian agri-food company that produces sauces, spices, condiments and pastry products made with products from local agriculture. The artisanal production unit is located in Bamako in the district of Kalaban Coro.
We are an aspiring zero-waste, youth-powered agro-processing company that transforms fresh fruit from farmers into all-natural, dried fruit snack products, under our flagship brand Yvaya Farm
Zima Healthy processes the pulp and seeds of organic pumpkins into healthy snacks, food ingredients, cooking oil and cosmetics. They employ youth and source their pumpkins from women and youth farmers in Rwanda.
Kepya is an agribusiness innovation hub with a network of rural shops and an online e-commerce platform. Kepya is improving rural livelihoods by bringing agricultural services and products to smallholder farmers across Angola.
Fidena Agri converts banana peels and eggshells into Eggo Farm, a low-cost organic fertilizer that gives crops the nutrients they need to boost yields by up to 45%. Its helping Uganda’s smallholder farmers to increase their profits.
LONO designed an innovative system that helps farmers in Côte d’Ivoire to unlock value from organic waste with KubeKo. This easy-to-use biogas composting system generates 2 hours of cooking gas and 50 liters of liquid fertilizer from 5kg of organic waste per day.
Solaristique is a recycling company that is tackling Nigeria’s food waste problem with an innovative solution that repurposes old freezers into a range of low-cost, hyper-efficient, solar-powered cold storage units for off-grid use.
Hya Bioplastics is creating biodegradable packaging from re-engineered plant fibers! We have developed an innovative and patent-pending process that re-engineers plant fibers to produce bioplastics.
The 2022 Gogettaz Agripreneur Prize Judging Panel
George Apaka, Agriculture Sector Lead at the Mastercard Foundation.
Barbra Muzata, Head of Corporate Communications and Brand at Corteva Agriscience, Africa and the Middle East.
Edson Mpyisi, Chief Financial Economist and Coordinator of the ENABLE Youth Programme at the African Development Bank.
Ellen Cathrine Rasmussen, Executive Vice President of Scalable Enterprises at Norfund.
Zvichapera Katiyo, Group CEO of Delta Philanthropies.
Jane Lowicki-Zucca, Senior Youth Advisor at USAID.
Temi Adegoroye, Managing partner at Sahel Consulting.
Jean Muthamia-Mwenda, Global Lead for Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship at SNV Netherlands.