In Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Akhenaton Kayembe, founder of Deliver Express Logistics (DEL), is building a business around a different approach: bringing essential facility management services together under one provider.

Drawing on his experience in procurement and mining logistics, Kayembe saw an opportunity to help organisations coordinate operational services through a more integrated model. DEL now offers a range of facility management and related services designed to help clients manage their facilities and day-to-day requirements more efficiently.

An operational challenge becomes a business opportunity

The idea for DEL emerged in 2015 during a breakfast conversation in South Africa. A discussion about operational challenges prompted Kayembe to consider how businesses could manage facility services more effectively.

His experience in procurement and logistics within the mining industry gave him insight into the demands of complex operations. Organisations often needed different providers for cleaning, electrical work, maintenance and other services. Coordinating these providers could make service delivery more difficult to manage.

Kayembe saw an opportunity to bring these needs together. DEL was established in Lubumbashi with the aim of providing businesses with a single point of coordination for facility management and logistics services.

The business proposition was straightforward: instead of managing several service providers independently, clients could engage one company to coordinate a broader range of operational requirements.

How Deliver Express Logistics brings services together

DEL provides both hard and soft facility management services. Its offering includes cleaning, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) maintenance, electrical systems maintenance, fire safety services and merchandising support.

The company’s model uses a single Service Level Agreement (SLA) to bring agreed services under one framework. This can give clients a clearer basis for coordinating work, defining responsibilities and managing service delivery.

For organisations operating in demanding industrial and commercial environments, effective coordination matters. Maintenance issues, unreliable service delivery and unclear contractor responsibilities can disrupt routine operations. An integrated provider can help reduce the administrative burden of managing separate contractors, although the results depend on the scope and quality of the services delivered.

For DEL, the opportunity lies in more than offering a list of services. It is in coordinating those services around a client’s operational needs and building the systems and technical capacity required to deliver consistently.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation and the next stage of growth

Before participating in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, DEL reportedly generated approximately US$5,000 in annual revenue and employed five people. Its service offering was also more limited.

In 2022, Kayembe joined the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital alongside business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

The programme helped him strengthen his business planning and develop a clearer approach to growth. The seed capital supported the acquisition of essential equipment, the formalisation of service agreements and workforce expansion.

These steps addressed practical requirements for a service business seeking to broaden its offering: the equipment to deliver work, agreements that define expectations and a workforce capable of supporting client needs.

DEL’s reported annual revenue subsequently increased from approximately US$5,000 to US$100,000, while its workforce grew from five to ten employees.

Delivering for clients in the mining sector

DEL’s work for Services Machinery Trucks RDC Sarl (SMT RDC Sarl) provides a practical example of its project delivery.

In 2025, the company completed an on-site construction container office for SMT RDC Sarl in less than three weeks. It also managed the company’s exhibition stands at the Katanga DRC Mining event.

The projects demonstrate DEL’s involvement in assignments that require coordination, timely execution and attention to client requirements. They also offer a more concrete view of the company’s work than a general description of its service offering.

For a growing facility management business, assignments of this kind can help demonstrate its capabilities to prospective clients. Continued growth, however, will depend on the company’s ability to deliver reliably, maintain client relationships and show that it can meet the requirements of larger or more complex contracts.

Building a facility management business for the long term

Kayembe’s ambition is to develop Deliver Express Logistics into one of Central Africa’s leading integrated facility management companies. The business plans to strengthen its services, expand strategic relationships and serve industries that depend on reliable operational support.

Achieving that ambition will require DEL to build on its reported revenue and workforce growth while maintaining consistent service standards. Clear service agreements, capable staff, appropriate equipment and evidence of client satisfaction will remain important as the business pursues new opportunities.

Kayembe’s journey illustrates how experience in an established industry can help identify a practical business need. Through DEL, he is seeking to make facility management easier for clients to coordinate by bringing multiple services under one operating model.

The next measure of the company’s progress will be its ability to sustain growth, retain clients and demonstrate the value of integrated service delivery across the organisations it serves.

The post Akhenaton Kayembe Is Building a More Integrated Approach to Facility Management in the DRC appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

A promising business can struggle to grow even when a market opportunity exists. Financing, regulatory requirements, financial management and investment risk can all stand between an entrepreneur’s plans and the next stage of development.

For Marc Gono, these challenges represent a business opportunity of their own.

Based in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, Marc is the founder of Aziel Consulting, an advisory firm supporting businesses, entrepreneurs and investors through agribusiness consulting, financial and tax advisory, business development and political risk assessment.

His work centres on a question that extends beyond agriculture: what capabilities do businesses need to navigate complex markets, make informed decisions and pursue sustainable growth?

Through Aziel Consulting and his involvement in YAFRICA INVEST, Marc is building a career at the intersection of business advisory, investment facilitation and regional economic engagement.

From geopolitical risk consulting to entrepreneurship

Marc Gono began his professional career as a geopolitical and political risk consultant. This experience gave him a foundation for understanding how political conditions, regulatory environments and economic uncertainty can influence commercial decisions.

In 2019, he transitioned into entrepreneurship, with an ambition to support businesses operating in Côte d’Ivoire’s agribusiness sector.

The move presented challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted his early business plans and created financial difficulties, requiring him to reconsider his approach.

Rather than abandoning the venture, Marc refined his business model around the practical needs of entrepreneurs and investors. His focus shifted towards providing advisory services that could help businesses navigate financial, operational and market-related challenges.

That direction led to the development of Aziel Consulting, a firm designed to help clients assess opportunities, strengthen business operations and make better-informed decisions.

His experience illustrates a significant transition: applying expertise developed in consulting to the task of building an enterprise that provides professional services to other businesses.

Aziel Consulting: Supporting business decisions across African markets

Aziel Consulting is a business advisory firm based in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Its services include agribusiness consulting, tax advisory, financial advisory, business development support and political and market risk assessments.

These services address different aspects of business development.

An agribusiness may need financial advice as it prepares to expand. A company entering a new market may need to understand regulatory requirements and political risks. An investor assessing a potential opportunity may need a clearer picture of the commercial environment.

In each case, informed decision-making depends on access to relevant expertise.

Aziel Consulting brings these advisory capabilities together to support businesses and investors navigating such decisions. Its work places financial knowledge, commercial planning and risk assessment within a single business proposition.

The firm’s focus on agribusiness is particularly relevant to Marc’s original entrepreneurial ambition. Agricultural enterprises must manage challenges beyond production, including financing, taxation, operational planning and access to markets. Advisory support can help businesses identify these requirements and plan accordingly.

However, advice alone does not guarantee financing or commercial success. The value of an advisory relationship ultimately depends on the quality of the analysis, the suitability of the recommendations and the client’s ability to implement them.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation and the development of Aziel Consulting

Building a professional services firm requires more than technical expertise. It also requires operational structure, client acquisition, financial management and the ability to translate knowledge into a sustainable business.

In 2024, Marc Gono participated in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital, alongside business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

The support provided an opportunity to strengthen Aziel Consulting’s operations.

According to the supplied business profile, Marc used the seed capital to formalise the company’s operations, establish a professional office in Cocody Angré, Abidjan, and invest in client outreach tools to support business development.

These investments addressed practical requirements for a growing advisory firm: establishing a professional operating base and improving its capacity to reach prospective clients.

The business profile also reports that Aziel Consulting’s annual revenue increased from approximately US$20,000 to more than US$45,000, while its workforce expanded to 10 employees. The team includes specialists in legal services, finance, business development and investment advisory.

These figures indicate growth in the company’s reported revenue and staffing. However, the period covered by the revenue comparison was not specified in the source material, so the pace of growth cannot be established from the available information alone.

The Foundation’s contribution should be understood within this context. Seed capital supported specific operational investments, while training and mentorship formed part of Marc’s entrepreneurial development. The available information does not establish that the programme alone caused the company’s subsequent growth.

Beyond advisory services: Marc Gono and YAFRICA INVEST

Marc’s interests extend beyond the day-to-day requirements of individual businesses.

In 2022, he co-founded YAFRICA INVEST, described in the supplied profile as a pan-African lobbying and investment platform operating across 25 Sub-Saharan African countries.

The initiative reflects a broader interest in regional investment engagement and economic collaboration.

While Aziel Consulting focuses on advisory services for businesses and investors, YAFRICA INVEST operates at a wider regional level. Together, the two initiatives reflect Marc’s work across enterprise development and investment-related engagement.

Marc has also undertaken investment banking training through the New York Institute of Finance, adding to the financial knowledge relevant to his professional work.

The distinction between these activities matters. Business advisory, investment facilitation and policy advocacy involve different functions, even when they intersect around the same broad objective of improving commercial opportunities. Their effectiveness depends on the services delivered and the outcomes they produce.

For Marc, developing these capabilities offers a way to engage with African business growth at more than one level: through the needs of individual enterprises and through relationships spanning regional markets.

What investment readiness means for African businesses

Access to capital is an important consideration for entrepreneurs, but it is not the only requirement for business growth.

Companies seeking investment may need reliable financial records, clear business plans, appropriate governance arrangements and a credible understanding of their market and operational risks. Investors, in turn, need sufficient information to evaluate opportunities and make informed decisions.

Advisory services can help businesses identify gaps in these areas and prepare more effectively for expansion or financing discussions.

For agribusinesses, the requirements can be especially varied. Businesses may need to plan around production cycles, changing input costs, logistics, taxation and market access. The relevance of each consideration depends on the business model and the market in which it operates.

Aziel Consulting’s services address several of these areas through financial, tax, agribusiness and risk advisory.

Marc’s experience therefore points to a practical lesson for entrepreneurs: building a business capable of attracting investment involves more than presenting an attractive idea. It requires the financial discipline, operational systems and commercial understanding to support that proposition.

The extent to which advisory services improve investment outcomes must ultimately be assessed through evidence, such as financing secured, operational improvements achieved or successful market expansion. The available profile does not provide those client-level outcomes, but it establishes the business focus around which Marc is building his firm.

The next stage for Marc Gono

Marc’s stated ambition is to develop Aziel Consulting and YAFRICA INVEST into influential organisations in agribusiness advisory, investment facilitation and economic policy advocacy across Africa.

For Aziel Consulting, that ambition involves expanding its capacity to support businesses and investors. For YAFRICA INVEST, it centres on strengthening regional engagement and connections across African markets.

Both ambitions will require more than a wider geographic presence. Sustained growth will depend on the quality of the services provided, the expertise available within the organisations and their ability to demonstrate value to clients and partners.

Marc’s entrepreneurial journey also offers a reminder that expertise can itself become the foundation of a business. His transition from geopolitical risk consulting to building an advisory firm shows how professional knowledge can be developed into a commercial service when it responds to identifiable business needs.

Marc Gono is building Aziel Consulting around that proposition: helping businesses understand their operating environment, make more informed decisions and prepare for the opportunities they want to pursue. The next measure of its progress will be how effectively the firm translates those capabilities into demonstrable results for the businesses and investors it serves.

The post Marc Gono Is Building the Expertise Behind African Investment appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

The contrast stayed with him.

Rather than treating waste as simply an environmental problem, Haroun Mahamat Adoum saw an opportunity to build a service that could improve urban sanitation while creating employment and laying the groundwork for recycling.

That vision became The First Waste Management, a growing environmental services company providing household waste collection in N’Djamena and working towards a more sustainable approach to waste management in Chad.

Turning an everyday problem into an enterprise

Waste management may not immediately seem like an area for entrepreneurship, but for Haroun, the need was clear.

As cities grow, so does the volume of waste they produce. Without reliable collection systems, rubbish can accumulate in residential communities, affecting the cleanliness of neighbourhoods and creating wider environmental and public health concerns.

Haroun’s experience abroad gave him a practical reference point for what organised waste management could look like.

He returned with the conviction that Chad needed businesses capable of providing structured services rather than relying solely on informal or inconsistent approaches.

The result was The First Waste Management, built around a straightforward proposition: make waste collection more accessible, organised and reliable for households.

From an idea with no equipment to a working waste collection service

The First Waste Management started with little more than Haroun’s vision.

Before joining the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, the business had no revenue, equipment or operational infrastructure. Turning the concept into a functioning service therefore required both financial resources and the business knowledge to establish a sustainable operating model.

Today, the company provides door-to-door household waste collection in N’Djamena’s 4th arrondissement.

Residents can subscribe to the service for 500 CFA per household, giving them access to a more structured way of disposing of household waste.

The business has also created its first jobs, growing to a team of five employees, including one woman.

While household collection is the company’s starting point, Haroun’s ambitions extend further. He is working towards introducing recycling initiatives that can recover useful materials from collected waste, reduce environmental pollution and create additional economic value from resources that would otherwise be discarded.

How the Tony Elumelu Foundation helped Haroun Mahamat Adoum move from vision to action

For Haroun, turning an environmental idea into a functioning business required more than identifying a problem. He needed the capital, entrepreneurial knowledge and support network to build the foundations of the company.

In 2021, he joined the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital, alongside business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

The support helped move The First Waste Management from concept to operation.

Haroun used the seed capital to acquire essential equipment, launch household waste collection and recruit his first employees. The Foundation’s training also strengthened his understanding of business planning, operations and growth management.

The programme’s value extended beyond the funding itself. Through mentorship and connection to a wider community of African entrepreneurs, Haroun gained access to perspectives and knowledge that could support him as he navigated the challenges of building an emerging environmental services business.

Building a business around cleaner communities

The significance of The First Waste Management goes beyond the collection of household rubbish.

For communities, reliable waste collection can make everyday life more organised and contribute to cleaner residential environments. For the business itself, the model creates opportunities to build an emerging environmental services industry in Chad.

Employment is another part of that equation.

As the company grows, opportunities can emerge across collection, logistics, administration, recycling and other areas of waste management. Haroun’s early decision to build a formal enterprise around waste services therefore creates a foundation for economic activity alongside its environmental objectives.

His planned move into recycling could take that model further by treating waste not simply as something to remove, but as a resource that can be recovered, processed and reused.

That shift—from waste disposal to resource recovery—is central to the longer-term opportunity Haroun sees for the business.

A bigger vision for waste management in Chad

Haroun Mahamat Adoum’s ambition is not limited to one neighbourhood in N’Djamena.

He plans to expand The First Waste Management into other major cities across Chad while developing recycling facilities and community education programmes around responsible waste disposal and waste segregation.

The objective is to build a more integrated waste management model—one that combines collection, environmental awareness and resource recovery.

For a country where structured waste management remains an emerging area, that represents an opportunity to build the sector alongside the growth of its cities.

Haroun’s journey also illustrates how entrepreneurship can emerge from personal experience. His exposure to organised sanitation systems abroad did not simply change his perspective on waste; it helped him recognise a service gap that could be addressed through a locally built business.

The road ahead for Haroun Mahamat Adoum

The First Waste Management is still at an early stage, but its direction is clear.

Haroun wants to expand household collection, introduce recycling and build systems that can serve communities at a larger scale. His longer-term ambition is to contribute to sustainable urban sanitation across Chad and position the country as a stronger example of environmental entrepreneurship in Central Africa.

For Haroun Mahamat Adoum, cleaner cities are not an abstract environmental goal. They are the result of practical systems, reliable services and people willing to build them.

Through The First Waste Management, he is turning that belief into a business—one household, one employee and one cleaner community at a time.

The post Haroun Mahamat Adoum Is Transforming Waste Management in Chad for a Cleaner Future appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Cameroon grows cocoa, but for Christian, producing the raw ingredient was only part of the opportunity. The bigger question was what could happen if more of that cocoa was transformed locally into premium products carrying an African identity.

That question led him to create Royal Chocolate, a Cameroonian confectionery company producing handcrafted chocolates that combine locally inspired ingredients, artisanal techniques and contemporary branding.

Founded in Yaoundé in 2018, Royal Chocolate is building a premium chocolate brand while demonstrating how African entrepreneurs can capture more value from the continent’s agricultural resources.

From cocoa production to African-made luxury

For Christian Donfack Djoumessi, chocolate represents more than an indulgent product. It is an opportunity to connect agriculture, manufacturing, creativity and African identity.

Cameroon is a major cocoa-producing country, yet much of the value associated with cocoa is generated after the raw commodity leaves the continent. Christian saw an opportunity to change that equation by developing finished chocolate products closer to the source.

At Royal Chocolate, cocoa is transformed into handcrafted products designed for consumers who value quality, distinctive flavours and thoughtful presentation.

The company also incorporates African-inspired ingredients such as moringa, creating products that give familiar chocolate experiences a distinctly local character.

This approach places value addition at the centre of the business. Instead of stopping at cocoa production, Royal Chocolate takes the product further—from raw agricultural commodity to finished, branded consumer product.

Royal Chocolate is growing a premium confectionery brand from Cameroon

Royal Chocolate began as a relatively small operation.

Before joining the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, the company generated approximately US$20,000 in annual revenue, employed five people and primarily served customers in Yaoundé. Much of its production was manual, limiting how quickly the business could respond to growing demand.

Christian recognised that building a stronger chocolate brand would require more than a good product. Production capacity, packaging, branding and distribution would all have to evolve alongside the business.

Today, Royal Chocolate’s portfolio includes artisan chocolate bars, chocolate-covered treats and premium chocolate collections designed for corporate gifting, celebrations and special occasions.

Its distribution footprint has also expanded beyond Yaoundé. The brand has secured placements in major supermarkets and extended its reach to Douala, Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea, while also working with a distributor in Morocco.

The expansion reflects a broader ambition: to build a chocolate company from Cameroon that can compete in regional and international markets while retaining its African identity.

How the Tony Elumelu Foundation helped Royal Chocolate scale

For an early-stage manufacturing business, moving from artisanal production towards a more structured operation requires capital, knowledge and the right business networks.

In 2019, Christian Donfack Djoumessi joined the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital, alongside business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

The support gave Royal Chocolate an opportunity to strengthen several areas of the business at the same time.

Christian used the seed capital to invest in improved production equipment, enhanced packaging and a more structured distribution model. The programme’s training also strengthened his approach to financial management, branding and business strategy, while mentorship provided additional guidance as the company worked towards greater scale.

The change was reflected in the company’s performance.

Royal Chocolate’s annual revenue grew from approximately US$20,000 to US$45,000, while its workforce increased from five employees to ten. Women now make up the majority of the company’s team, creating additional employment opportunities within the local economy.

For Christian, the growth represents more than increased sales. It demonstrates what can happen when a locally developed product is supported with the resources and business capabilities needed to move from small-scale production towards a stronger commercial operation.

Building value beyond the chocolate bar

The significance of Royal Chocolate extends beyond confectionery.

Chocolate sits at the intersection of agriculture and manufacturing, making it an example of how African economies can create greater value from commodities produced on the continent.

By processing cocoa into finished products in Cameroon, Christian Donfack Djoumessi is participating in a value chain that creates opportunities in production, packaging, sales, distribution and branding.

The company’s journey has also attracted international attention. Royal Chocolate was selected by UNIDO/ITPO as one of Africa’s most scalable businesses and represented Cameroon at the World Entrepreneurship Forum in Dubai.

These milestones have helped place the company within a wider conversation about African businesses moving beyond raw material production and building globally competitive consumer brands.

For Christian, the opportunity is ultimately about changing perceptions—both of what African businesses can produce and of where premium products can come from.

A chocolate brand carrying an African story

The global chocolate industry has traditionally placed considerable emphasis on European craftsmanship and branding, even though cocoa is predominantly grown in tropical regions, including Africa.

Royal Chocolate offers a different proposition.

Its identity is rooted in Cameroon, its primary raw material is cocoa, and its products incorporate ingredients and ideas drawn from the African context. The result is a brand that does not simply participate in the global chocolate market but seeks to bring an African perspective to it.

That distinction matters.

For consumers, it creates an opportunity to discover chocolate through flavours and stories connected to the continent. For African entrepreneurs, it demonstrates the commercial possibilities of transforming locally available resources into finished products with higher value.

What comes next for Christian Donfack Djoumessi and Royal Chocolate

Christian’s ambition is to establish Royal Chocolate as one of Africa’s leading luxury confectionery brands.

The company plans to strengthen automation, improve production efficiency, expand sustainable cocoa sourcing and develop strategic partnerships that can support growth across African and international markets.

The long-term opportunity is significant. As consumers increasingly seek products with distinctive origins, authentic stories and responsible supply chains, African-made premium foods have an opportunity to compete on more than price.

Christian Donfack Djoumessi is building Royal Chocolate around that possibility.

His journey shows that Africa’s cocoa story does not have to end when the beans leave the farm. It can continue through manufacturing, creativity, branding and entrepreneurship—creating products that carry African value from the farm to the finished product and, ultimately, to consumers around the world.

Through Royal Chocolate, Christian is not simply making chocolate in Cameroon. He is building a case for what African value addition can look like when local resources, entrepreneurial ambition and premium branding come together.

The post Christian Donfack Djoumessi Is Redefining Luxury Chocolate in Cameroon: A 2019 TEF Success Story appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Fashion can preserve history without being confined to the past.

Across Africa, designers are drawing on traditional fabrics, silhouettes and craftsmanship while creating clothing designed for contemporary consumers. For Adama Bologo, that balance is at the heart of his work.

From his base in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, Adama has built Bologo Tunique, a fashion brand creating bespoke tunics, contemporary shirts, ceremonial attire and reimagined traditional garments.

The brand draws inspiration from African craftsmanship and fabrics including bogolan, handwoven cotton and linen, while giving traditional influences a distinctly modern expression.

For Adama, fashion is therefore more than a commercial product.

It is a way to carry culture forward.

Adama Bologo sees fashion as a language of identity

Clothing has always communicated something about the person wearing it.

In African societies, traditional garments and textiles can carry associations with community, history, occasion and status. Patterns, fabrics and silhouettes can communicate identity without a single word being spoken.

Adama Bologo’s approach starts from this cultural significance but looks towards the present.

He founded Bologo Tunique with the ambition of creating clothing that allows customers to engage with African heritage while dressing for contemporary life.

The brand’s collections include bespoke garments for men and women, ceremonial pieces, modern and classic shirts, reimagined traditional suits and themed collections.

Among its distinctive creations is Dynastie Guerrière, a collection that explores African heritage through a contemporary fashion lens.

The objective is not to reproduce tradition exactly as it was.

It is to reinterpret it.

Bologo Tunique is building a fashion brand around African craftsmanship

At the centre of Bologo Tunique’s aesthetic is an appreciation for African materials and craftsmanship.

The brand incorporates fabrics such as bogolan, alongside handwoven cotton and linen, into contemporary garments.

That choice gives the clothing a connection to African textile traditions while allowing Adama to experiment with modern cuts, styling and presentation.

The result is a fashion proposition built around two ideas that are sometimes treated as opposites: heritage and modernity.

For Bologo Tunique, they can coexist.

Traditional inspiration can inform contemporary design.

Cultural identity can become part of a modern brand.

And craftsmanship can become a commercial skill that creates livelihoods.

That final point is particularly important to Adama’s entrepreneurial journey.

From US$10 a month to a growing fashion business

The scale of Adama Bologo’s ambition becomes clearer when measured against where Bologo Tunique began.

Before joining the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, Adama operated the business alone with basic equipment.

Monthly revenue was approximately US$10.

Limited resources restricted production capacity, consistency and the number of customers the business could serve.

Yet the small operation contained the foundations of a larger fashion enterprise: a clear creative identity, a commitment to African craftsmanship and an ambition to reach audiences beyond Ouagadougou.

Adama’s challenge was turning those foundations into a business capable of producing consistently and competing for a wider market.

That required investment.

It also required business knowledge.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation helped Adama Bologo build capacity

In 2019, Adama Bologo participated in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital, business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

The funding allowed him to invest directly in the productive capacity of Bologo Tunique.

He purchased industrial sewing equipment, cutting tables and premium fabrics, strengthening the infrastructure required to produce garments at a higher standard and greater volume.

Adama also recruited two apprentices, creating an opportunity for young people to develop practical tailoring skills through hands-on training.

The programme’s business training complemented that investment.

Adama strengthened his financial planning, business management and strategic approach to growing the brand.

The results were measurable.

Monthly revenue increased from approximately US$10 to US$500, while the team grew from one employee to four.

For a small fashion business, that shift represents more than increased sales.

It represents increased capacity to create.

Adama Bologo is turning craftsmanship into opportunity

Fashion businesses are often judged by their finished garments.

But behind every garment is a chain of skills.

Designers need tailors. Tailors need technical expertise. Apprentices need opportunities to learn. Businesses need people who understand cutting, sewing, finishing, styling and production.

That makes fashion an important part of the wider creative economy.

Through Bologo Tunique, Adama Bologo is creating opportunities for young people to develop practical skills while building a commercial enterprise around African design.

The two apprentices recruited as the business expanded are part of that story.

Rather than treating craftsmanship as something that exists only as cultural heritage, Adama is using it as a pathway to professional development and employment.

The value of the work is therefore found not only in what customers wear, but also in the capabilities being built behind the brand.

Taking African fashion beyond Ouagadougou

A strong fashion brand needs more than good garments.

It needs an audience.

Adama has worked to expand Bologo Tunique’s visibility through professional photography, social media, collaborations with stylists and engagement with members of the African diaspora.

The brand has also used cultural events, fashion showcases and regional exhibitions to introduce its work to wider audiences.

The launch of Dynastie Guerrière became one of the brand’s notable moments, attracting attention during a fashion showcase featuring Burkinabè designers.

These efforts point to an important shift in how African fashion brands can grow.

The customer base does not have to be limited by the location of the workshop.

Digital platforms can make collections visible to audiences elsewhere, while exhibitions and cultural events can create physical connections between designers and new markets.

For Bologo Tunique, this creates a pathway from a local fashion business towards a regional brand.

Why Adama Bologo’s work matters

Africa’s fashion industry sits at an interesting intersection of culture and commerce.

The continent has deep textile traditions, distinctive aesthetics and generations of craftsmanship. At the same time, a younger and increasingly connected consumer base is reshaping how African fashion is designed, marketed and consumed.

Entrepreneurs such as Adama Bologo are operating within that transition.

His work shows that cultural heritage does not have to be preserved by leaving it unchanged.

It can also be preserved through reinterpretation.

A traditional textile can become part of a modern silhouette.

A ceremonial garment can influence contemporary design.

A tailoring skill can become a source of employment.

And a local fashion label can aspire to compete beyond its home market.

That is where the commercial and cultural dimensions of Bologo Tunique meet.

Building a Burkinabè brand with a regional ambition

Adama’s next ambition is to take Bologo Tunique beyond Burkina Faso.

He plans to expand into Mali, Côte d’Ivoire and Benin, building a wider West African customer base for the brand.

Regional expansion will bring new challenges, from production and distribution to branding and customer acquisition.

But West Africa also offers a natural environment for a fashion business rooted in shared cultural influences while maintaining a distinct Burkinabè identity.

For Bologo Tunique, the opportunity is to demonstrate that a brand can be locally grounded and regionally ambitious at the same time.

The clothes can carry the story of where they come from while speaking to customers across borders.

The future of African fashion will not be defined solely by international recognition.

It will also depend on the strength of the businesses, skills and creative ecosystems being built across the continent.

Adama Bologo is contributing to that ecosystem from Ouagadougou.

Through Bologo Tunique, he is building a business where African fabrics meet contemporary design, where craftsmanship creates employment and where cultural identity becomes part of a modern commercial proposition.

The journey from US$10 to US$500 in monthly revenue shows what can happen when creative ambition is matched with investment in equipment, skills and business management.

His next challenge is scale.

If Bologo Tunique can successfully take its aesthetic and craftsmanship into new West African markets, Adama will be doing more than expanding a fashion label.

He will be showing how a designer can take something deeply rooted in African heritage and give it a place in the future.

For Adama Bologo, the goal is not simply to preserve African fashion. It is to keep evolving it.

The post Adama Bologo: Redefining African Fashion Through Heritage appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Every harvest brings a window of opportunity.

For farmers growing mangoes, bananas and pineapples in Benin, that window can also be a race against time. Fresh fruit is highly perishable, and when it cannot be sold, stored or processed quickly enough, its value can disappear.

For Ivette Biokou, that loss presented a business opportunity.

Instead of allowing surplus fruit to become waste, she began transforming it into products with a longer shelf life and new commercial possibilities.

Through Ewatomi Market, founded in Parakou, Ivette is processing locally grown fruits into dried snacks and fruit-based products while building a business around sustainability, employment and local agricultural value.

Her approach is simple but consequential: if fresh produce cannot always reach the market in time, the market can find another way to preserve its value.

Ivette Biokou saw opportunity in what others might discard

Benin has a strong agricultural base and produces a variety of tropical fruits.

But producing food is only one part of building a resilient food system.

Farmers also need ways to preserve, process, distribute and sell their harvests. Without those systems, seasonal abundance can become a liability. When supply temporarily exceeds demand or processing capacity, fresh produce can spoil before it generates income.

It was this challenge that caught Ivette Biokou’s attention in Parakou.

She saw that fruit that might otherwise be lost could be transformed into products that remain useful and marketable for longer.

That insight became the foundation of Ewatomi Market.

The business was designed not simply as a food-processing venture, but as a way to create more value from agricultural produce while responding to the environmental and economic costs associated with food waste.

What does Ewatomi Market do?

Ewatomi Market is a Beninese food-processing business that transforms locally grown fruits into value-added products.

Its product range includes dried fruit snacks as well as pineapple and mango fruit liqueurs, giving the company multiple ways to turn locally available produce into products for different consumer markets.

The business supplies products to restaurants, hotels and student communities in Parakou, connecting locally processed food with everyday consumers.

The model has an important advantage.

Instead of relying entirely on the short commercial life of fresh fruit, processing creates products that can remain available for longer and reach customers through different channels.

For farmers and agricultural communities, this creates another potential route to market.

For consumers, it creates access to locally processed fruit products.

And for the business itself, it creates an opportunity to build a brand around an abundant local resource.

From a one-person operation to a growing food business

The scale of Ewatomi Market today is difficult to understand without looking at where it started.

Before participating in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, Ivette operated the business alone with basic equipment.

Monthly revenue stood at approximately US$300.

Limited storage and rudimentary processing methods constrained both production capacity and product consistency, making it difficult to respond to increasing demand.

The challenge was therefore not simply finding more customers.

Ivette needed the capacity to serve them.

That meant investing in better equipment, improving production processes and developing the business systems needed to move from small-scale production towards a more structured enterprise.

The transformation has been significant.

Ewatomi Market’s monthly revenue increased from US$300 to US$4,821, while the business expanded from a one-person operation to a team of five employees.

The growth represents more than a fifteen-fold increase in monthly revenue.

It also illustrates how improving production capacity can change the possibilities available to a small agricultural business.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation helped Ivette Biokou build capacity

In 2024, Ivette Biokou joined the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital, alongside business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

For Ewatomi Market, the capital addressed one of its most immediate constraints: equipment.

Ivette invested in industrial-grade drying and storage equipment, strengthening the company’s production capacity and helping improve consistency across its products.

The business training provided another layer of support.

Ivette developed her knowledge of financial management, business planning and operational growth, while mentorship provided guidance around food safety and market positioning.

The combination was important.

Equipment could increase what the business was capable of producing. Business knowledge could help determine how that increased capacity should be managed.

Together, they helped create the conditions for Ewatomi Market’s next stage of growth.

Why processing matters as much as production

Agricultural development is often measured by how much a farmer can produce.

But there is another question worth asking:

How much of that production becomes economic value?

A kilogram of fresh mango that spoils before reaching a customer creates little or no income.

The same fruit, when processed into a product with a longer shelf life, can potentially reach a different market, at a different time and in a different form.

This is the economic logic behind Ewatomi Market.

By processing fruits locally, Ivette Biokou is adding another layer of value between farm and consumer.

That creates opportunities for activity beyond agriculture itself, including processing, packaging, sales, distribution and employment.

It also demonstrates why agro-processing can be an important part of strengthening local food systems.

The goal is not simply to produce more.

It is to lose less and create more value from what is already produced.

Ivette Biokou is building a business with women at its centre

For Ivette, the impact of entrepreneurship does not stop with her own company.

The expansion of Ewatomi Market has created employment opportunities for women and young people, but she also wants to extend the business’s knowledge beyond its immediate workforce.

Her plans include developing training programmes that teach young women practical food-processing skills alongside the fundamentals of entrepreneurship.

That combination matters.

Technical skills can create the ability to produce a product. Business skills can provide the knowledge required to price, market and manage it.

Together, they can create a stronger foundation for people seeking to build their own livelihoods.

For Ivette Biokou, sharing those skills is part of the wider opportunity embedded in Ewatomi Market: turning local resources into businesses while helping more people develop the capacity to create businesses of their own.

From food waste to economic value

There is a tendency to discuss food waste primarily as an environmental problem.

It is one, but it is also an economic problem.

When food is lost, farmers lose potential income, businesses lose potential revenue and the resources used to produce that food generate less value.

Food processing offers one way of changing that equation.

By converting perishable agricultural products into products with different shelf-life and market characteristics, entrepreneurs can create additional opportunities within the food value chain.

That is the space Ewatomi Market occupies.

The company is still growing, but its trajectory illustrates what can happen when an entrepreneur treats a seemingly familiar agricultural challenge as a product and business opportunity.

Looking ahead

Ivette Biokou wants Ewatomi Market to become one of Benin’s leading sustainable food brands.

The immediate ambition is to expand distribution across Benin before exploring opportunities in neighbouring West African markets.

The company also plans to invest in eco-friendly packaging, digital marketing and distribution partnerships, with the aim of reaching more consumers and strengthening the brand’s market presence.

That expansion will require more than production.

It will require reliable supply chains, consistent quality, strong branding, efficient distribution and the ability to compete across increasingly sophisticated consumer markets.

But Ewatomi Market has already demonstrated the value of building capacity around a clear problem.

Ivette Biokou is not simply preserving fruit. She is preserving the economic value inside it.

By turning Benin’s seasonal abundance into products that can travel further, last longer and reach new customers, she is building a business that connects sustainability with commercial opportunity.

And her journey points to a wider possibility for African agriculture: the next opportunity may not always be found in growing more—it may be found in making more of what is already grown.

The post Ivette Biokou Is Turning Benin’s Fruit Surplus Into Opportunity appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Every harvest creates a question.

What happens next?

For tomatoes, that question is particularly important. Fresh produce has a limited shelf life, and when markets, storage or processing systems cannot absorb a harvest quickly enough, part of its economic value can disappear through spoilage.

For Louis Wilfried Yehouessi, the opportunity was therefore not simply to grow more food.

It was to preserve and transform more of what was already being grown.

Drawing on his background in genetics and food biodiversity conservation, Louis established CEVADEL-BENIN, an agro-processing company transforming locally grown tomatoes into tomato purée under the SWEETOUNVI brand.

From its base in Porto-Novo, the company is demonstrating a fundamental principle of agricultural development: sometimes the greatest opportunity is not in producing another crop, but in creating more value from the harvest already available.

Louis Wilfried Yehouessi saw value beyond the harvest

Agriculture plays an important role in Benin’s economy, supporting livelihoods and supplying food to communities across the country.

But agricultural production is only the beginning of the value chain.

Between a farmer harvesting a tomato and a consumer buying a finished food product are several opportunities to create additional economic value: aggregation, preservation, processing, packaging, distribution and retail.

When those capabilities are limited, fresh produce can become vulnerable to post-harvest losses.

Louis Wilfried Yehouessi saw an opportunity within that gap.

His background in genetics and food biodiversity conservation had given him an appreciation for the value of agricultural resources. Entrepreneurship offered him another way to protect that value—not simply by conserving biodiversity, but by turning locally available raw materials into marketable products.

That thinking became the foundation of CEVADEL-BENIN.

What does CEVADEL-BENIN do?

CEVADEL-BENIN is a food processing company that transforms locally sourced agricultural produce into value-added food products.

Its flagship product, SWEETOUNVI, is a tomato purée produced from locally cultivated tomatoes for consumers in Benin.

The business addresses a simple imbalance.

A fresh tomato has a relatively short commercial life. Processing it into another food product can extend the ways in which that agricultural output reaches consumers while creating additional economic activity around manufacturing, packaging and distribution.

CEVADEL has since expanded its portfolio with SWEETEPICES, a range of spice blends that further diversifies the company’s presence in the processed food market.

Its products are available through retail outlets including Nol Market, La Divine and Le Chariot de Damiaky, giving more consumers access to food products processed within Benin.

For Louis, this is about more than putting another brand on a supermarket shelf.

It is about capturing more of the agricultural value chain locally.

The economics of turning tomatoes into products

A tomato sold immediately after harvest generates value for the farmer.

But when that tomato becomes an input for a locally manufactured product, the economic chain becomes longer.

Someone processes it.

Someone manages quality.

Someone packages it.

Someone distributes it.

Someone sells it.

Each stage represents another point at which skills, employment and commercial activity can be created.

This is what makes agro-processing strategically important for economies seeking to generate more value from agriculture.

For Louis Wilfried Yehouessi, CEVADEL-BENIN sits within this opportunity.

By sourcing agricultural produce and transforming it locally, the company can contribute to a system in which more of the value associated with food production remains within the domestic economy.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation helped Louis Wilfried Yehouessi scale production

Before participating in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, CEVADEL-BENIN operated on a relatively modest scale.

The business generated approximately US$1,412.92 in monthly revenue and employed two people. Limited processing equipment constrained its production capacity and created barriers to expansion.

In 2019, Louis Wilfried Yehouessi participated in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital, alongside business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

Louis directed the capital towards one of the company’s most important constraints: production.

CEVADEL invested in modern food-processing equipment to strengthen its manufacturing capabilities and improve production consistency.

The company also began product certification processes—an important step for a food business seeking to strengthen consumer confidence and reach wider markets.

The subsequent growth was measurable.

Monthly revenue increased from approximately US$1,412.92 to US$4,415.36.

At the same time, CEVADEL’s workforce expanded from two employees to nine.

For Louis, the progression illustrates what targeted entrepreneurial capital can unlock when it is applied to a clear operational constraint.

The funding did not create the agricultural opportunity.

It helped the entrepreneur build more capacity to capture it.

Louis Wilfried Yehouessi is building beyond a single product

SWEETOUNVI may have provided CEVADEL with an entry point into food processing, but the introduction of SWEETEPICES points towards a broader ambition.

Diversification can be important for an agro-processing company.

A broader product portfolio can allow a business to serve different consumer needs, create additional revenue streams and develop a stronger brand presence.

It can also enable a company to apply existing capabilities in production, packaging and distribution across multiple products.

For CEVADEL, this means the infrastructure being developed around tomato processing can contribute to something larger: a growing locally rooted food-processing company.

That evolution matters because successful African food brands will increasingly need to compete not only on origin, but also on quality, consistency, convenience, packaging and consumer trust.

Being locally made creates an opportunity.

Building a trusted brand turns that opportunity into a business.

Why Louis Wilfried Yehouessi’s work matters for farmers

The success of an agro-processing company can have implications beyond the factory.

Processors need raw materials.

That creates potential demand for agricultural production.

By sourcing tomatoes from local producers, CEVADEL-BENIN participates in a value chain connecting farmers with processing and consumer markets.

Greater processing capacity can create additional channels through which agricultural produce reaches the market, particularly where fresh produce is vulnerable to deterioration.

For farmers, stronger domestic value chains can potentially mean more opportunities to sell what they grow.

For processors, stronger relationships with producers can improve access to raw materials.

For consumers, local processing can increase the range of domestically produced food products available in the market.

This interdependence is why Louis’s work matters beyond CEVADEL itself.

The company is part of a much larger question about how African economies can extract greater value from their agricultural resources.

From biodiversity to enterprise

There is also something distinctive about Louis Wilfried Yehouessi’s professional journey.

His background in genetics and food biodiversity conservation might initially appear separate from entrepreneurship.

In reality, the two are closely connected.

Biodiversity has ecological value, but agricultural resources can also generate economic value when they are sustainably developed into products that people need.

Louis’s journey represents a shift from understanding biological resources to building commercial systems around them.

That combination of scientific knowledge and entrepreneurship can be particularly valuable in agriculture, where questions of crop characteristics, food quality, processing and sustainability frequently intersect.

Through CEVADEL-BENIN, Louis is translating that knowledge into enterprise.

Building stronger local food systems

Across African markets, conversations about food security often begin with production.

How much food can farmers grow?

It is an essential question, but it is not the only one.

Equally important is what happens between harvest and consumption.

Can produce be stored?

Can it be processed?

Can businesses manufacture competitive food products locally?

Can those products reach consumers efficiently?

And can the value created along that journey support farmers, workers and businesses within the same economy?

Entrepreneurs such as Louis Wilfried Yehouessi operate within this often-overlooked middle of the food system.

By transforming agricultural raw materials into finished consumer products, agro-processors can help bridge the distance between farms and markets.

Looking ahead

Louis Wilfried Yehouessi wants CEVADEL-BENIN to grow beyond its current footprint.

His ambition is to build the company into a leading African agro-processing business focused on transforming locally sourced raw materials.

That next phase includes advancing product certification, increasing production capacity, strengthening logistics and pursuing opportunities for wider distribution.

The long-term opportunity extends beyond Benin.

If SWEETOUNVI and SWEETEPICES can establish stronger domestic market positions, regional expansion could open access to consumers across West Africa.

But the larger idea behind CEVADEL remains remarkably simple.

Africa does not only need to grow more.

It also needs to create more economic value from what it already grows.

Louis Wilfried Yehouessi is building his business in that space between harvest and consumption—where a locally grown tomato can become a product, a job, a brand and, ultimately, a larger economic opportunity.

The post Louis Wilfried Yehouessi Is Turning Benin’s Tomato Harvests Into Economic Value appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

When a pipe bursts, an electrical fault disrupts a business or a home urgently needs repairs, finding the right technician can be as challenging as fixing the problem itself.

Across Cameroon, households and businesses have long relied on informal artisans for repair, maintenance and construction services. Many of these technicians possess valuable skills, yet customers can still face inconsistent pricing, limited accountability and uncertainty about the quality of work they will receive.

For Bamai Namata, the problem was not a lack of skilled workers. It was the lack of a trusted system connecting them to customers.

That insight led to Maibeta, a digital marketplace designed to connect customers with verified service providers while bringing greater transparency, efficiency and structure to everyday technical services.

In doing so, Bamai is tackling a deceptively simple question with significant economic implications: how do you make trust easier to access?

Bamai Namata saw the gap behind the informal economy

Across African cities, informal workers provide many of the services that keep homes, businesses and communities running.

Electricians, plumbers, carpenters, builders and maintenance technicians are essential to everyday life. Yet the systems connecting these professionals to customers have often remained informal themselves.

For customers, finding a qualified professional may depend on a recommendation from a neighbour, colleague or friend. For artisans, securing new work can depend heavily on personal networks and word-of-mouth referrals.

That creates a structural gap.

A skilled technician may have the ability to complete a job but lack the digital tools to reach more customers, manage bookings or build a professional track record. Meanwhile, a customer may need a service but have little information with which to assess who to hire.

Bamai Namata recognised that technology could address both sides of the problem.

Maibeta was built around the idea that a more organised marketplace could make skilled services easier to discover, book and manage.

What is Maibeta?

Maibeta is a digital on-demand marketplace connecting customers with verified technicians and service providers in Cameroon.

The platform covers services including:

• Electrical repairs
• Plumbing
• Carpentry
• Construction
• Home maintenance
• Corporate facility management

Rather than leaving the entire transaction to informal networks, Maibeta introduces digital tools into the process.

Customers can book services through the platform, while service providers can access a more structured way to receive and manage jobs.

The platform incorporates features such as technician verification, digital service booking, automated job matching, workflow management and secure payment channels.

Each feature addresses a different part of the trust problem.

Verification can give customers more information about who they are hiring. Digital booking creates a clearer record of the service request. Job matching can help connect demand with available professionals. Workflow tools can make service delivery more organised, while digital payments can reduce friction in the transaction.

The technology is important, but the underlying proposition is straightforward: make it easier for people to trust the service they are paying for.

Bamai Namata is bringing structure to skilled work

The formalisation of informal work is often discussed as a policy challenge.

But it can also be approached as a product and technology challenge.

For millions of skilled workers, the issue is not necessarily the absence of expertise. It is the absence of infrastructure that allows that expertise to become a more predictable business.

A technician who previously depended on referrals can potentially reach customers through a digital marketplace.

A customer who previously relied on a friend’s recommendation can access a structured service platform.

This creates value on both sides.

For artisans, digital platforms can create additional routes to customers and help them organise their work. For customers, they can make professional services more accessible and easier to navigate.

That is the opportunity Bamai Namata is pursuing through Maibeta.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation helped Bamai Namata take the idea further

Turning a marketplace concept into a functioning business requires more than technology.

It requires an understanding of customers, pricing, operations, growth and the realities of building a sustainable company.

Through the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, Bamai Namata received US$5,000 in seed capital, alongside business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

The support provided resources to strengthen Maibeta’s development while giving Bamai access to a wider community of African entrepreneurs navigating similar challenges.

For an entrepreneur building at the intersection of technology and the informal economy, that combination matters.

Capital can help build the product. Training can strengthen the business model. Mentorship can challenge assumptions. And networks can create opportunities that are difficult to build alone.

Why Bamai Namata’s model matters beyond Cameroon

The challenge Maibeta is addressing is not unique to Cameroon.

Across Africa, informal businesses and independent service providers account for a significant share of economic activity. Yet many operate outside the digital systems that increasingly shape how customers discover, purchase and evaluate services.

This creates an opportunity for technology companies to build infrastructure around existing economic activity rather than attempting to replace it.

Maibeta does not need skilled artisans to become something entirely different.

It can give them another way to operate.

That distinction is important.

Digital transformation is often framed around sophisticated technologies. But some of its most meaningful applications can be remarkably practical: helping someone find a plumber, schedule an electrician or arrange maintenance for a business.

For Bamai Namata, technology becomes valuable when it solves those everyday problems.

Trust may be Maibeta’s most important product

Marketplaces succeed when both sides believe the transaction will work.

Customers need confidence that a service provider is capable and accountable. Service providers need confidence that customers are genuine and that the platform can help them access worthwhile opportunities.

This makes trust more than a feature.

It becomes infrastructure.

By combining verification, booking, matching, workflow management and payment tools, Maibeta is attempting to build that infrastructure into the service experience.

The wider implication is significant.

As African cities grow and digital adoption increases, consumers are likely to expect greater convenience from more parts of their lives. The next generation of digital marketplaces will not only sell products. They will help people access the skilled human services that keep urban economies functioning.

That creates room for businesses like Maibeta to play a larger role in the evolution of Africa’s service economy.

Building the future of everyday services

Bamai Namata’s ambition goes beyond putting technicians online.

It is about changing how customers and skilled workers interact with one another.

The traditional model relies heavily on proximity and personal connections. The digital model can make those connections more searchable, structured and scalable.

If Maibeta can continue strengthening its network of verified professionals and improving the customer experience, it could help demonstrate what happens when technology is designed around an existing economic reality rather than imposed on it.

The opportunity is especially relevant as African consumers become increasingly comfortable booking services digitally.

The same person who orders food from a smartphone or transfers money through a mobile application may eventually expect the same convenience when looking for an electrician, plumber or maintenance professional.

Looking ahead

For Bamai Namata, the future of service delivery is one where finding a reliable technician does not depend on who you happen to know.

Maibeta is building towards a marketplace where customers can discover and book skilled professionals through a more structured digital experience, while artisans gain new ways to access work and develop their businesses.

The larger opportunity is to help transform the informal service economy from a collection of disconnected transactions into a more connected marketplace.

Cameroon’s digital economy will not be built only through fintech, e-commerce or software.

It will also be built through the technologies that make everyday economic activity more visible, accessible and efficient.

Bamai Namata is betting that trust can be the starting point.

And through Maibeta, he is building the digital infrastructure to make that trust easier to find.

The post Bamai Namata Is Building Trust Into Cameroon’s Informal Service Economy appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

For a patient waiting for a prosthetic limb or a specialised medical device, time matters. So does fit.

A device that does not adequately reflect a patient’s anatomy can affect comfort, usability and quality of life. Yet across many African healthcare systems, patients and clinicians have historically had to work with medical technologies developed and manufactured far from the communities they serve.

For Nneile Nkholise, that gap represented an opportunity for engineering to become more responsive to patients.

As the Founder of iMed Tech, Nkholise is developing locally manufactured prosthetics, bio-implants and other medical technologies using biomedical engineering, digital design and advanced manufacturing.

Her work sits at the intersection of healthcare and technology—but its starting point is human: how can medical devices be designed to better respond to the people who use them?

Nneile Nkholise is bringing engineering closer to healthcare

Medical innovation is often associated with large research institutions and global manufacturers.

But healthcare challenges are also shaped by local realities.

Availability, cost, production timelines and the ability to customise a device can all influence a patient’s experience. When specialised products have to be sourced internationally, healthcare providers may also face additional logistical and procurement challenges.

With her engineering background, Nneile Nkholise saw an opportunity to approach these challenges differently.

Instead of relying exclusively on technologies developed elsewhere, she founded iMed Tech to develop medical products closer to the healthcare professionals and patients who need them.

The company’s work combines biomedical engineering with digital manufacturing, creating a process in which clinical requirements can be translated into digitally designed and locally produced medical solutions.

What does iMed Tech do?

iMed Tech is a medical technology company focused on biomedical engineering, digital design and the development of customised medical devices.

Its work includes the design and production of:

• Customised prosthetic devices
• Bio-implants and medical devices
• Three-dimensional anatomical models
• Surgical planning and visualisation tools
• Biomedical engineering solutions
• Rapid prototypes for healthcare applications

A key part of the company’s approach is the use of 3D design and digital modelling.

These technologies allow engineers to create and refine digital representations before producing a physical device. For medical applications, that can be particularly useful where anatomy, dimensions and individual patient requirements need to be considered.

The process also creates opportunities for faster iteration: a design can be modified digitally before another physical prototype is manufactured.

For iMed Tech, advanced manufacturing is therefore not simply about producing objects differently. It is about creating a more flexible approach to medical device development.

From digital model to medical solution

The journey from a clinical problem to a finished medical device involves several disciplines.

Doctors and surgeons understand the clinical requirement. Engineers translate that requirement into a technical design. Digital manufacturing technologies then make it possible to produce increasingly customised physical solutions.

Nneile Nkholise operates within that intersection.

Through iMed Tech, she is helping connect clinical knowledge, engineering and manufacturing within a single innovation ecosystem.

Three-dimensional anatomical models, for example, can help clinicians visualise complex structures before procedures. Custom prosthetics can be developed around individual measurements rather than relying entirely on standardised dimensions.

This convergence of medicine and engineering is creating new possibilities for African healthcare systems—particularly as digital manufacturing becomes more accessible.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation strengthened Nneile Nkholise’s entrepreneurial journey

Technical expertise is only one part of building a medical technology company.

Turning engineering capabilities into a sustainable enterprise requires commercial strategy, capital, mentorship and access to networks.

Through the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, Nneile Nkholise received US$5,000 in seed capital, business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

The support gave iMed Tech additional resources to strengthen its innovation and business development efforts.

For Nkholise, the experience brought together two sides of her professional journey: her expertise as an engineer and her ambition as an entrepreneur.

That combination is particularly important in medical technology, where successful innovation must ultimately work within real healthcare environments while also developing a viable commercial model.

Nneile Nkholise is also changing who gets to build medical technology

The significance of iMed Tech extends beyond the products it develops.

Biomedical engineering, advanced manufacturing and technology remain fields where women are often underrepresented.

Through iMed Tech, Nkholise is creating opportunities for young professionals to participate in areas including biomedical engineering, digital prototyping, additive manufacturing, research and development and clinical collaboration.

That matters because Africa’s healthcare technology ecosystem will require more than imported equipment.

It will require engineers, designers, scientists, technicians and entrepreneurs capable of developing technologies that respond to local needs.

Nneile’s journey provides an example of what that ecosystem can look like.

Why Nneile Nkholise’s work matters

Healthcare innovation is ultimately about access to effective solutions.

Hospitals need appropriate equipment. Clinicians need tools that support their work. Patients need medical devices that are available, functional and suited to their circumstances.

Local medical technology companies can contribute to that ecosystem by developing products closer to the markets they serve.

For Nneile Nkholise, this is the opportunity behind iMed Tech.

The company’s work demonstrates how African engineers can participate in the development of sophisticated medical technologies rather than remaining solely consumers of products manufactured elsewhere.

It also illustrates the potential of digital manufacturing to change how medical devices are designed and produced.

When a patient’s needs can inform a digital design, and that design can then be translated into a physical product locally, the distance between clinical need and engineering response becomes smaller.

Building Africa’s biomedical manufacturing capacity

There is a broader industrial question behind Nkholise’s work.

Africa’s healthcare systems depend on complex global supply chains for medicines, equipment and medical devices. Building stronger local capabilities does not mean eliminating international trade or expertise.

It means developing more capacity within African economies to design, manufacture, maintain and improve the technologies their healthcare systems use.

That is the space iMed Tech occupies.

By combining engineering expertise with entrepreneurship, Nneile Nkholise is contributing to a growing ecosystem of African companies exploring what is possible in medical manufacturing.

The opportunity is significant: local expertise can generate new products, new technical skills and new businesses while creating pathways for African innovators to participate in global health technology markets.

Medical technology is becoming increasingly personalised.

Advances in digital modelling, 3D printing, biomedical engineering and data-driven design are creating new possibilities for devices tailored to individual patients.

Nneile Nkholise believes Africa should be part of that future not simply as a consumer, but as a creator.

Through iMed Tech, she is building a business around that belief—developing medical technologies that connect engineering expertise with real healthcare needs.

The journey will require continued investment in research, manufacturing capabilities, clinical partnerships and regulatory systems.

But the direction is significant.

The future of African healthcare will depend not only on who can provide treatment, but also on who can build the technologies that make better treatment possible.

For Nneile Nkholise, that future is one where innovation begins closer to the patient.

And where Africa’s medical technology is increasingly designed, engineered and built on the continent.

The post Nneile Nkholise Is Building Medical Technology Around African Patients. appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

Tatenda Mungofa saw a gap between vehicles and the roads they travelled

African drivers operate in an unusually diverse range of conditions.

Urban roads sit alongside rural routes. Smooth highways can quickly give way to rough terrain. Vehicles may encounter intense heat, dust, flooding and infrastructure that varies considerably from one location to another.

For drivers and businesses, reliability is therefore not a luxury.

It directly affects the cost of moving people, transporting goods and running businesses.

Mungofa’s experience of these conditions helped shape his thinking about automotive design.

The question was not whether imported vehicles could work in Africa. Many do.

The more fundamental question was whether Africa could develop vehicles with its own operating realities in mind from the beginning.

That question became the starting point for Mureza Auto.

What is Mureza Auto?

Mureza Auto is an automotive company founded by Tatenda Mungofa that is focused on developing and assembling vehicles for African markets.

The company’s approach combines automotive engineering, digital design and flexible manufacturing concepts to develop vehicles intended for demanding operating environments.

Rather than treating local conditions as an afterthought, Mureza’s design philosophy considers factors such as:

• Ground clearance
• Suspension performance
• Heat management
• Durability
• Maintainability
• Manufacturing flexibility
• Local component integration

Digital design and virtual prototyping also play a role in the development process, allowing engineers to evaluate different vehicle configurations before committing to physical production.

That matters because automotive manufacturing is capital intensive. Testing ideas digitally can help engineering teams identify problems earlier and refine designs before they reach the production stage.

Building a car is also about building an industry

The significance of Mureza Auto extends beyond the vehicle itself.

Automotive manufacturing sits at the intersection of multiple industries. A functioning vehicle ecosystem requires engineers, component manufacturers, technicians, software specialists, assembly workers, logistics providers, distributors and after-sales service networks.

That means a locally manufactured vehicle can potentially create value far beyond the factory floor.

Mungofa’s ambition therefore fits into a larger industrial question facing Africa:

Can the continent move from being primarily a consumer of manufactured products to becoming a producer of them?

For Mureza Auto, local manufacturing and supplier development are part of that equation.

The company’s modular approach is intended to provide flexibility as production develops, while creating opportunities to incorporate locally sourced components as supplier networks mature.

It is an incremental approach to industrialisation rather than a claim that an entire automotive ecosystem can appear overnight.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation backed the entrepreneur behind the ambition

Large industrial ideas require capital, but they also require entrepreneurial discipline.

In 2020, Tatenda Mungofa participated in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, receiving US$5,000 in seed capital, business training, mentorship and access to the Foundation’s pan-African entrepreneurial network.

For an entrepreneur pursuing a capital-intensive manufacturing business, this kind of early-stage support can provide useful room to develop the business behind the engineering vision.

The programme also placed Mungofa within a broader community of African entrepreneurs building businesses across different sectors and markets.

The Foundation’s role was to provide catalytic support.

The ambition, technical development and persistence required to build Mureza Auto remained Mungofa’s.

Tatenda Mungofa is creating more than vehicles

The automotive industry is one of the clearest examples of how entrepreneurship can create value through an ecosystem rather than a single product.

Mureza Auto’s multidisciplinary operations span areas including automotive engineering, digital design, assembly and industrial development. The company has reported a workforce in the 11–50 employee range, creating skilled opportunities around its manufacturing activities.

But the potential economic impact goes further.

A growing automotive manufacturer can generate demand for suppliers of components, electronics, tyres, bodywork, maintenance equipment and other services.

It can also create opportunities for technicians, designers, software developers and other skilled professionals.

This makes automotive entrepreneurship particularly relevant to Africa’s industrialisation agenda.

The objective is not simply to produce a finished vehicle.

It is to develop the capabilities, knowledge and commercial relationships that make more manufacturing possible.

Why building African vehicles matters

Africa’s automotive market is large and diverse, but the continent’s position in the global automotive value chain remains uneven.

Many African countries import finished vehicles while opportunities for local design, component production and manufacturing remain comparatively limited.

Mureza Auto’s proposition challenges that pattern.

Even at an early stage, the company demonstrates the value of asking different questions about African manufacturing.

What should a vehicle designed around African conditions look like?

What components can eventually be produced locally?

What skills can be developed around automotive manufacturing?

And how can African companies participate in a sector historically dominated by global manufacturers?

Tatenda Mungofa is attempting to answer those questions through a business rather than simply through theory.

From Zimbabwean entrepreneur to African automotive builder

Mungofa’s story is ultimately about changing the starting point.

Instead of asking how an imported vehicle can be adapted to African conditions, he is asking what becomes possible when African conditions influence the design process from the outset.

That distinction may appear subtle.

Industrial strategy rarely is.

Design decisions influence manufacturing requirements. Manufacturing creates supplier demand. Supplier networks create jobs and skills. Skills strengthen future manufacturing capacity.

Over time, these connections can become the foundations of an industrial ecosystem.

That is the longer-term opportunity behind Mureza Auto.

Looking ahead

Mureza Auto’s next challenge is also its biggest: turning engineering ambition into repeatable, commercially viable production at scale.

The company is working towards production readiness, manufacturing configurations and partnerships that can support future vehicle assembly.

Success will require capital, reliable supply chains, engineering talent, regulatory approvals and customers willing to adopt locally developed vehicles.

Those are significant hurdles.

But they are precisely why entrepreneurs such as Tatenda Mungofa matter to Africa’s industrial future.

The continent cannot build manufacturing capacity simply by declaring that it wants more of it. Someone has to attempt the difficult work of designing products, testing them, finding customers, developing suppliers and building the companies that can make production possible.

Mungofa is doing that with automobiles.

His story is therefore bigger than a car.

It is about whether Africa can increasingly become a place where products are not only bought, but imagined, engineered and made.

And for Tatenda Mungofa, that future begins on the road.

The post Tatenda Mungofa Is Building Vehicles for Africa, Not Just Selling Cars to It appeared first on The Tony Elumelu Foundation.