On this week's episode, I chat with Lucia Bakulumpaji-Wamala Founder & CEO Bakulu Power a renewable energy company in Uganda.  Born in Kenya to Ugandan parents who fled during the Luwero War, she grew up mostly in Canada. The idea for her company first emerged during a trip to visit family in Uganda.

Lucia was named in Forbes Afrique, Forbes Magazine as one of the 30 Most Promising Young Entrepreneurs in Africa (2017) and by Institute Choiseul as one of the 100 African Economic Leaders for Tomorrow (2018 and 2019). She holds an honors degree in Public Administration, with a specialization in Community Intervention from the University of Ottawa and is a graduate of the Prince of Wales Business and Sustainability Programme at the University of Cambridge.

Lucia's  African Business Story is one of collaboration,  evidenced through her commitment to continually engaging the communities she works for, from project initiation through to implementation and maintenance.

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES WEBSITE:
www.africanbusinessstories.com

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES INSTAGRAM:
https://www.instagram.com/afribizstories/

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/afribizstories

To celebrate International Women's Day , I chat with one of my mentors Temitope  Ilyuemi. Tope is Senior Director, Global Government Relations for Africa at Procter and Gamble (P&G), she rose from a graduate entry position to become one of the most senior leaders in P&G in Africa. She champions women, advocating for gender equality and works tirelessly to see SMEs in Africa grow by helping them plug into global value chains. She is highly sought after as a key contributor to development solutions in  Africa.

We talked about the need to be intentional in building a career or a business, the role of mentors and sponsors, turning contacts into networks, building and leveraging community and what balancing work and family means to her.  Ladies, as we celebrate International Women's day, Tope challenges us to give ourselves permission to Shine!  #ChooseToChallenge


AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES WEBSITE:
www.africanbusinessstories.com

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES INSTAGRAM:
https://www.instagram.com/afribizstories/

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/afribizstories

On this week's episode, I chat with award winning entrepreneur Chidinma  Emodi Chukwuemeka, Co-Founder of The Footwear Academy in Nigeria.  Chidinma was named Network Start-Up Woman of the Year 2019 and  received the Star of Business & Entrepreneurship Award at the YALI West Africa Nigeria Cohort 4. She is currently a YALI RLC Entrepreneurship Mentor and a pioneer member of the administrators of The Young Enterprising Women in Africa network (YEWA), a nonprofit group geared towards empowering and enabling women entrepreneurs in Africa. 

She learnt shoemaking at Accademia Riaci, Florence, Italy and has since used her work at The Footwear Academy to improve the lives of shoemakers in Aba and Lagos state, Nigeria by enabling them produce export standard footwear products through training, job matching opportunities and access to quality/affordable raw materials.  She is pioneering a mastering footwear project that will train 100 young people in Aba, Abia State and 30 youths in Ihiala LGA, Anambra State. 

The Footwear Academy are the recent winners of the Proudly Made in Aba Hackathon - winning a grant prize of $50,000 from Ford Foundation. They also took 2nd place in 2017 at the Open Mic Africa startup Pitch competition organized by Techpreneur Africa and MIT Legatum. They are proud winners of the March 8th Initiative by Friends of Prof, winning a NGN 1 million grant.

Chidinma's African Business Story is dedicated to the creation fo jobs and the empowerment of women and youth.

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES WEBSITE:
www.africanbusinessstories.com

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES INSTAGRAM:
https://www.instagram.com/afribizstories/

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/afribizstories

On this week's episode, I chat with  award winning chef and restauranteur, Siba Mtongana CEO & Co-Founder of The Siba Co, a food solutions and innovations company in South Africa.

From aspiring home cook in the semi-rural Eastern Cape to restaurateur in one of the most prestigious hotel venues on the African continent, Siba has had an amazing culinary career. Through her TV show Siba’s Table on Food Network, Siba became a household name in 135 countries globally, garnering an iconic following. She has gone on to win five U.S. Film and Television Awards and four awards locally. 

She is the author of two books, Welcome to My Table - which she self published and Siba Let’s Cook - a cook book for children and the whole family. Most recently, she launched Siba The Restaurant, a fine dining restaurant at Cape Town’s most sought after address, the Table Bay Hotel at the V&A Waterfront, Cape Town. 

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES WEBSITE:
www.africanbusinessstories.com

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES INSTAGRAM:
https://www.instagram.com/afribizstories/

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/afribizstories

Welcome to Season 2 of the African Business Stories podcast!

African Business Stories is your insight into female innovators and entrepreneurs building and running businesses in Africa. In this new season, we will continue our journey across the continent learning more about the experiences of female founders in different African countries. 

Another goal for the season is to go beyond the stories and explore solutions to some of the issues identified. We will also hear from those supporting female businesses and SME's in Africa and  explore the tools and resources available to help them grow and thrive.

My hope is that the podcast  will inspire and multiply success not only on the continent but around the world.

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES WEBSITE:
www.africanbusinessstories.com

AFRICAN BUSINESS STORIES INSTAGRAM:
https://www.instagram.com/afribizstories/

This episode is part of a special series recorded to celebrate Father’s Day.

For the series I interviewed some friends and mentors. I asked them to reflect on the greatest lessons that shaped the men they have become and also to reflect on how these lessons have influenced them as parents.

About my Guest:
Ejike Egbuagu is lawyer turned banker. He is the CEO on Moneda Investment Company a financial advisory company in Lagos Nigeria. www.modenainvest.com.

Ejike is my brother and this particular conversation is in memory of our incredible parents. Happy Father’s Day!

This episode is part of a special series recorded to celebrate Father’s Day.

For the series I interviewed some friends and mentors. I asked them to reflect on the greatest lessons that shaped the men they have become and also to reflect on how these lessons have influenced them as parents.

About my Guest:
Mohammed N. Mijindadi is the Managing Director of GE Gas Power Systems (GPS) Nigeria & Anglo West Africa, responsible for driving the growth and development of the sub regions power market while working with critical commercial functions to execute transactions and implement power projects.

He was inducted into the Nigerian Leadership Initiative (NLI) in October 2011, Institute of Directors in January 2014 and serves on the Board of Directors for GE International Operations Nigeria, Free Trade Zones and the ‘Kid for Kid’ foundation.

In his spare time, Mohammed enjoys traveling, watching sports, and spending time with his Wife, Children & Dogs.

This episode is part of a special series recorded to celebrate Father’s Day.

For the series I interviews some friends and mentors. I asked them to reflect on the greatest lessons which have shaped the men they have become and also on how these lessons have influenced how they parent or wish to parent.

About my Guest:
Dr Nuno Alves is a senior energy professional with 19 years of experience at BP. Based in Washington, Nuno works in BP’s representative office where provides strategic operational and business advice on company policies related to energy and climate change issues. He also represents bp with advocacy with Washington-based institutions.

This episode is part of a special series recorded to celebrate Father’s Day.

For the series I interviewed some friends and mentors. I asked them to reflect on the greatest lessons that shaped the men they have become and also to reflect on how these lessons have influenced them as parents.

About my Guest:
Gori is the MD/Chief Investment Officer at Ascension Asset Management – a private equity firm with investments in UK commercial and residential real estate.

He’s a Private Sector Infrastructure Financing Specialist with over 15 years experience in commercial and financial due diligence, policy and contract management, PPP/PFI policy, capacity building and transaction advisory services, and private sector development policy and advisory services.

In 2007, he was a member of the team that helped raise £80bn for transport improvements in London ahead of the 2012 Olympic games.

This episode is part of a special series recorded to celebrate Father’s Day.

For the series I interviewed some friends and mentors. I asked them to reflect on the greatest lessons that shaped the men they have become and also to reflect on how these lessons have influenced them as parents.

About my Guest:
Henry Kasonde Musoma’s roots are in Zambia, Southern Africa. He spread his wings as a young adult, moving to the United States, to work on his higher education.

Dr. Musoma has dedicated his professional career to education. Serving as an educator in a traditional collegiate classroom and beyond the classroom through speaking at events and facilitating trainings for a variety of organizations. He believes education is a transformational experience.

Henry teaches and lives his life to serve and his actions reflect this by how he treats the people in his life, whether it is a life-long relationship or the person in line at the grocery store. Henry believes and lives kindness, compassion and honesty. He has been called the Professor of Kindness.
www.henrymusoma.com