AWIEF Names 2026 Finalists as Africa’s Women Entrepreneurs Gain Recognition

The Africa Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF) has announced the finalists for its 2026 Awards, recognising women entrepreneurs and business leaders whose work is contributing to economic growth, innovation and social development across Africa.

Launched in 2017, the annual AWIEF Awards recognise women building businesses, creating jobs, developing new products and services and addressing challenges in their communities. This year’s finalists come from markets across the continent and represent sectors ranging from technology and agriculture to healthcare, creative industries and social impact.

The 2026 awards have been updated to reflect changes in Africa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, with five competitive categories: Woman to Watch, Agri, Impact for Good, Creative Visionary and Tech Pioneer. AWIEF has also introduced a Male Ally Award for a male leader who has made a meaningful contribution to advancing women’s economic empowerment.

Women Leading Across Africa

The Woman to Watch Award features three entrepreneurs at an early stage of their leadership journeys. Nigeria’s Omotoke Ajidagba, co-founder and COO of 10mg Health, is shortlisted alongside Kenya’s Faith Nafula, founder and CEO of Solar Spark Energy, and Uganda’s Rowena Turinawe, founding CEO of Ruka Pay. The category recognises younger female leaders or founders of relatively young ventures that are already showing traction through revenue, partnerships, users or beneficiaries.

The Agri Award highlights women using entrepreneurship and innovation to address challenges in Africa’s food and agricultural economy. The finalists are Ghana’s Violet Awo Amoabeng, founder and CEO of Skin Gourmet; Uganda’s Stella Doreen Namulondo, co-founder and COO of Essymart Africa Business Link; and Kenya’s Joyce Rugano, CEO of Ecorich Solutions.

In the Impact for Good Award, AWIEF has shortlisted Nigeria’s Ola Brown, general partner at HealthCap Africa; Tunisia’s Nada Ghammem, co-founder and CEO of Bionic Soul; and Eswatini’s Echo Nomsa VanderWal, executive director of The Luke Commission.

The category recognises women whose ventures or initiatives have moved beyond simply identifying social or environmental problems and can demonstrate measurable impact in areas such as healthcare, sustainability, climate, energy, education and community development.

Technology and Creative Industries

The Creative Visionary Award brings together leaders working across Africa’s creative and media industries.

The finalists are Egypt’s Rasha Aita, managing director of SMACRS LLC; South Africa’s Renuka Methil, managing editor of Forbes Africa; and Egypt’s Hadeer Shalaby, co-founder and CEO of Freeziana.

The Tech Pioneer Award focuses on women using technology and innovation to address African challenges and build scalable businesses.

Mauritius’ Varuna Devi Bangaleea, group CEO of nVisionIT, is shortlisted alongside Senegal’s Ndeye Fatou Mboup, CEO of The Smart Granary, and Kenya’s Quinter Ochieng, founder and CEO of Chargebyte Africa.

AWIEF says the Tech Pioneer category is designed for female founders or senior leaders with significant experience in technology or innovation who are using digital tools, data or deep technology to tackle challenges around access, inclusion, efficiency or scalability.

New Award for Male Allies

This year’s awards also introduce the Male Ally Award, expanding the programme beyond women entrepreneurs to recognise men who actively support women’s economic participation.

The award is open to male leaders, founders, executives, policymakers and senior decision-makers whose actions have contributed to breaking barriers for women and creating sustained, systemic change around women's economic empowerment.

AWIEF has not yet announced the recipient. The winner will be revealed at the awards ceremony in November.

The Lifetime Achievement Award recipient will also be announced at the ceremony. The award recognises a female leader whose decades of leadership, entrepreneurship or public service have made a significant contribution to Africa’s economic, social or institutional development.

Winners to Be Announced in Cape Town

The finalists will be recognised at the AWIEF 2026 Conference and Awards Gala Dinner in Cape Town.

The conference will take place from November 10 to 11 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, with the awards ceremony scheduled for November 11. The event will bring together entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers, business leaders and development organisations from Africa and beyond.

The conference theme for 2026 is “Beyond Access: Owning Capital, Markets & Power,” reflecting AWIEF’s broader focus on helping women move beyond access to opportunities and take greater ownership of capital, markets and economic decision-making.

For the finalists, the awards offer more than recognition. The event puts women-led businesses in front of potential investors, partners, policymakers and other players in Africa’s growing entrepreneurship ecosystem.

With finalists spanning 15 businesses and organisations across 11 African countries, the 2026 awards also highlight the geographic and sectoral diversity of women-led entrepreneurship on the continent. The winners will be announced at the November gala in Cape Town.