For the fifth edition of Africa’s Business Heroes initiative, a philanthropic program to support African entrepreneurs, fifty finalists from 20 countries have been chosen as finalists.
The Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Philanthropy annually conduct a continent-wide search with their partners for 10 outstanding, mission-driven businesspeople who are working to improve their local communities as part of Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) Prize Competition.
A grant fund totalling US $1.5 million will be split among these top 10 finalists. ABH will honour 100 African businesspeople in total over the course of ten years.
The “Top 50 heroes” for the 2023 edition have been chosen out of over 27,000 entrepreneurs who applied from all 54 African nations. They come from 20 different nations, represent 10 different industries, and showcase some of the most significant companies that are present on the continent. Female entrepreneurs make up 38% of the group. The entire list can be found here.
These 50 finalists will gradually be reduced to a final 10, who will take the stage at the Grand Finale later this year to present their companies to a jury of illustrious businesspeople.
Along the way to the finals, competitors will have access to a network of global business innovators, leaders, and experts, as well as investors, accelerators, and multidisciplinary bootcamps and training sessions to help them advance their ventures.
“At ABH, we have long recognised the potential of entrepreneurs as engines of economic and social growth. Now in the fifth year of the competition, we are encouraged to see that ABH has grown into a truly pan-African initiative that is positively impacting the continent’s entrepreneurship landscape,” Zahra Baitie-Boateng, head of partnerships and programmes of ABH.
“We are extremely impressed with the increasing diversity of our Heroes and how they’ve been taking tangible steps to solve some of Africa’s most challenging issues. We encourage entrepreneurs from all countries, especially those from smaller countries, to seize the opportunity of ABH 2023 to tell and inspire millions more with their unique stories.”
