Two agripreneurs clinched top honours in the fifth annual GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition Finals held at the Africa FoodSystems Forum Summit 2023.
During a Youth Town Hall event chaired by H.E. President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania, Generation Africa awarded two grand prizes of $50,000 to Ms Hasina Andriatsitohaina, Founder and CEO of Mad’Arom in Madagascar, andMr Ikenna Nzewi, co-Founder and CEO of Releaf Africa in Nigeria.
Four African youth were also awarded the GoGettaz Impact Award announced at the closing Youth Innovation Awards Celebration the following day. Each Impact Award winner received a US$2,500 prize. Recognising the contributions of all twelve GoGettaz young entrepreneurs who travelled to Tanzania to compete in the live pitch contest from across the continent, Generation Africa partner USAID donated a further US$1,000 to each of the remaining six finalists.
This year, the annual competition received completed applications from 43 African countries, with 9 countries represented in the Top 12 finalists. Application data also shows an increase in female applicants this year. This is an encouraging shift in an industry that is perceived as male dominated, while the reality of African food production is very much in the hands of women small-holder farmers.
GoGettaz Overall Award Winners
1. Hasina Andriatsitohaina – Madagascar – Grand prize in the female-led category.
Hasina’s company, Mad’Arom encourages the development of the spice and aroma value chains by promoting the agroforestry system with around 2,000 producers in rural areas of Madagascar, and by collecting and transforming the products into essential oils before wholesaling it to the food, cosmetics, and perfume industries on the national and international markets. The agroforestry system not only preserves and restores Madagascar’s soil and biodiversity, but also generates income for small-scale producers throughout the year. The post-harvest processing of spices is an important activity, generating jobs for young people and women in rural areas. These activities enable small-scale producers to be more resilient in the face of climatic disasters, such as the cyclones that attack the eastern part of Madagascar each year.
2. Ikenna Nzewi, of Releaf Africa in Nigeria – Grand prize in the male-led category
His company’s value proposition is lowering food costs through efficiency, which it achieves with both software and hardware solutions. Returning six years ago to his home country of Nigeria after growing up and studying in the USA, Nzewi’s multi-pronged approach features geospatial software to find viable farms and a mobile platform to purchase oil palm fruit from rural small-holders. To process the palm nuts in a sustainable and environmentally sensitive way, Releaf designed the world’s most advanced palm nut de-sheller, named “Kraken”. So far, Releaf has worked with 5,600 farmers with a retention rate of 86% and put an additional $500,000 in their pockets while eliminating child labour, providing access to finance, and improving traceability using artificial intelligence. Releaf plans to add 20,000 more farmers in the next five years.
GoGettaz Social and Environmental Impact Award Winners
1. Biotechnology entrepreneur Pelkins Ajanoh, founder of CassVita in Cameroon, impressed the judges with his proprietary process using microbes to extend the shelf-life of cassava from 3 days to 18 months. Community development specialist
2. Margaret Wanjiku, founder of Pollen Patrollers in Kenya, developed an IoT smart device to track beehive metrics that are analysed by AI to create actionable insights and precision pollination maps to help farmers more effectively pollinate their fields. Hailing from Sierra Leone, electrical engineer
3. Martin Dainbaquee, founder of Eco-friendly Incubator Company, designed an innovative high-capacity solar-powered incubator, its own chicken breeds, and high-quality feed, tackling several needs in the egg and poultry industry including over-dependence on foreign imports.
Impact Award winner
1. Crescentia Mushobozi of Tanzania Vijana Agribusiness Enterprises (VIABLE). Her company has developed a superior potato strain, engineered with Africa’s largest gene bank, in her vision to solve malnutrition and food insecurity. In the process, VIABLE involves thousands of Tanzanian youth in “making agriculture fun”.
2023 GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Judges
Marisa Soares – Senior Vice President Innovation & Impact – Yara International
Dr. Kelley Cormier – Food Safety Division Chief – USAID Bureau for Resilience and Food Security
Jean Muthamia-Mwenda – Global Lead, Youth Employment & Entrepreneurship – SNV Netherlands
Mildred Nadah Pita – Head Public Affairs Science & Sustainability Africa – Bayer AG
Agnes Asiimwe Konde – Vice President – PID – AGRA
Jubilate Lema – Senior Investment Analyst – Africa Opportunity Fund
William Nyaoke – Regional Director East-Africa – Norfund
Paul Newnham – Director – SDG 2 Advocacy Hub
Wambui Chege – Director, Agriculture, PANA – The Mastercard Foundation