Winners of the 2022 Africa Tech Festival Awards Revealed

The winners of the 15th Africa Tech Festival Awards (formerly AfricaCom Awards), sponsored by Intelsat, were announced in Cape Town on Nov. 9 as the second day of Africa Tech Festival welcomed yet another record attendance.

Hans Geldenhuys, Director, Intelsat Africa, said, “The awards acknowledge those who are at the pinnacle of innovation in the technology and telecoms industry. “Congratulations to them and to all who were part of the proceedings.”

James Williams, Event Director at Informa Tech said, “The technology and telecoms industry never sleeps and there is always something happening, and perennial innovation, all of which is necessary for the march towards a digitally inclusive global society.”

Williams said selecting the winners from the many entries they received in each of the categories was a difficult task for the jury. “This is especially true of this year, where we had more than 13,000 public votes, expanded categories, and more entries than we have had before.” “I too, congratulate all those that were nominated. Your efforts are making the difference Africa needs.”

The winners of the 2022 Africa tech Festival Awards are:

Startup of the Year: Womenovate

This award recognized the most innovative startup, that has showcased potential over the last year for high growth and purpose-driven impact.

Womenovate is a female-focused online learning platform, based in Nigeria, offering women in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Agriculture, and Mathematics) access to resources, training courses, and jobs from world-class universities and companies, helping to close the gender gap/disparity and increase female participation in STEAM fields and sectors.

HealthTech Innovation of the Year: Nextwear Technologies

This award recognized the emerging technology for healthcare across Africa, that is changing lives, advancing healthcare, and impacting individuals and communities for the better.

Nextwear Technologies which won the award is a wearable technology startup in Nigeria and the inventor of a smart bra that can detect breast cancer in its earliest stages.

VC / Investor of the Year Award: Meridiam

The award recognized the most impactful fund in Africa, which provides investment to support, build, and scale their investee businesses.

Meridiam is an asset and fund manager that has invested in African infrastructure, including 4 solar power plants in Senegal, a geothermal power plant in Ethiopia, a hydropower plant in Gabon, a biomass site in Cote d’Ivoire, and solar home systems in West Africa.

Meridiam has also invested in helping build and develop over 12 tier III carrier-neutral data centers across the African continent.

Fintech Innovation of the Year: Kyanda Africa

This award recognized the organization, project, or individual who has disrupted the African Fintech space.

Kyanda Africa is a Kenyan startup that allows users to make cheap and fast money transfers, purchase airtime, and pay bills, among other things.

Green ICT Champion: Dr. Olufunso Somorin

This award celebrated Dr. Olufunso Somorin, Regional Principal Officer at the African Development Bank for leading the development and integration of sustainable energy solutions.

Connectivity Project of the Year: Nuran Wireless

The award celebrated Nuran Wireless as a network provider going above and beyond to provide connectivity in an environment where demand has never been higher, and broadband has become a lifeline for access to education and economic activity.

CXO of the Year: Samuel Chiwanda

The award recognized the outstanding achievements of CEOs, CTOs, CIOs, CDOs, and others in driving development within the African tech space. The winner in the category was Samuel Chiwanda, the Chief Executive Officer of Click Mobile Malawi

Female Innovator of the Year: Oladiwura Oladepo

Oladiwura Oladepo, Co-Founder and Executive Director at Tech4Dev won the Female Innovator of the Year award as a woman playing a crucial role in African technology and telecommunications

Most Innovative Product or Service: Mahali

The award recognized Orange’s Mahali mobile application as a game-changing product that has provided its target market with significant new opportunities for revenue growth or customer satisfaction.

Africa’s Rising Star

Celebrating the emerging talent in African tech — recognizing and identifying future leaders and disruptors. The award was given to Joseph Lumbahe, Lead Engineer, Computer Vision at Aizatron Group, and a contracted (via Aizatron) Fraud Detection Engineer at MTN South Africa.

Changing Lives Award

Hormuud Telecom – a humanitarian portal (Somalia) received the Changing Lives Award for their significant contribution to helping build a more accessible and inclusive digital world