George Baaka launched the business incubator Angels Finance Cooperation (AFC) in order to provide a supportive environment in which young people could start entrepreneurial ventures that would bring them out of poverty. While George’s home country of Uganda has one of the highest indices of Total Entrepreneurial Activity, more than 80% of these ventures collapse…
During secondary school Frederick Swai often noticed his neighbors’ frustration when they were forced to make a 2km trek to print or copy documents. They complained not only about the inconvenient journey, but also about the printing center’s limited resources. Frederick recognized an opportunity to provide a more convenient, superior quality offering, and he began…
Denise Mulenga has always felt most comfortable expressing her ideas and emotions through art and music. As a child, she would imagine herself on stage, performing music for large crowds – and would visualise herself in different outfits that suited the mood of the song that she was singing. She went on to sketch hundreds…
When war forced Antoinette Furaha to flee her homeland of the DRC for the Kyangwali Refugee Settlement in western Uganda, every day became a struggle to survive. Life in the settlement was particularly hard for children like Antoinette, who could no longer go to school. Seeking a way out of her circumstances, Antoinette invested $1…
On each trip to the bustling local market, Adamma Umeofia saw a powerful opportunity: grimy market stalls sold the best local produce, but created a shopping experience that left much to be desired. With a better-designed market stall, she thought, everyone could win: shoppers would enjoy the experience, and traders would sell more of their…
During the January 2011 revolution in Egypt, law enforcement in many parts of the city of Cairo became virtually non-existent. Ordinary citizens were forced to fight their own battles against criminals who took advantage of the political instability in their country, and the city experienced a dramatic increase in incidents of theft and bribery. A…
Ludwick Marishane is constantly brainstorming fresh solutions to everyday challenges. By grade 11, he had launched his own company, HeadBoy Industries, to design and commercialize new products and services. When one of his school friends was too lazy to take a bath, it gave Ludwick an idea: what if there was a way to stay…
