Her Startup Pitch Inaugural Edition Crowns Trailblazing 3 African Women Entrepreneurs

• The first Her Startup Pitch Program ran successfully, showcasing women entrepreneurial skills
• Three outstanding women entrepreneurs were awarded for their innovative business concepts
• The initiative is emphasizing an emerging effort to empower women

The inaugural Her Startup Pitch Program has concluded, showcasing three incredible women entrepreneurs and finding new momentum behind empowering women to be leading agents of bottom-up economic growth in Africa.

Her Startup Pitch Program wrapped up its inaugural edition by granting three impressive women entrepreneurs, marking a big step towards empowering women as agents of economic development in Africa. Organizers note that the initiative is not about funding alone—most importantly, it's an investment in women's innovation capable of transforming communities, economies, and even public policy.

Denis Daronnat, board member of the Tomorrow Foundation and asset manager, declared the winners, saying, "This program is about finding women with the potential to transform their neighborhoods, cities, and nations. We need visionary economic models that put these women at the center of equitable and inclusive development."

After a rigorous 14-week accelerator with the Founder Institute—one of the most difficult startup programs in the world—three founders were declared winners. All three received $5,000 in convertible capital and a year of mentorship to scale their businesses. The program challenged participants to rethink their business plans, refine their models, and prepare for scale.

“We’re not just handing out checks,” said Augustina Okpechi, Project and Communications Manager at KSH Foundation. “We’re creating a strong base so these women can secure bigger investments and grow sustainably.” One of the winners, Olapeju Nwanganga of Ploutos Page, said the support will help them roll out a new version of their bookkeeping and financial software for small businesses, and expand their sales team.

Another winner, Ngozi Nwabueze, of PocketLawyers—a real-time legal connection platform—indicated that the grant will power digital marketing initiatives and propel user growth. "It's your lawyer in your pocket," she explained. Fayo Williams, a Managing Consultant at Simply Exponential Consult Ltd., underscored that assisting women entrepreneurs is not only equitable—it's crucial for economic development. "To disregard half the population when it comes to leadership and funding is not only unfair, it's economic failure," she added.

Aisha Tofa, Special Assistant on Digital Economy to the Minister of Women Affairs, chimed in that initiatives such as Her Startup are necessary to convert inspiration into action. "Women aren't waiting for permission," she said. "They're stepping into their rightful place in the economy, and we need systems that support them." With next iterations already on the drawing board, Her Startup is not just enabling women entrepreneurs but also redesigning the economic future—one startup at a time.