ASHENEWS reports that the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has today announced the Top 15 finalists for the 2024 VALUE4HER Women Agripreneurs of the Year Awards (WAYA). This year’s selection, drawn from 1,535 applications across 44 African nations, showcases the continent’s top women excelling in agribusiness.
This platform further re ports that VALUE4HER Women Agripreneurs of the Year Awards (WAYA) is an AGRA-led recognition initiative launched in 2021 under AGRA’s flagship VALUE4HER initiative that seeks to strengthen women agripreneurship in Africa.
WAYA recognizes African female agripreneurs who have excelled in the agricultural value chains and have demonstrated remarkable innovation by contributing positively towards food security, climate resilience, and women and youth empowerment.
The finalists have been drawn from Benin, Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda.
“Women represent 50% of the agricultural labor force in Africa where they are responsible for 70% of production, yet they are still underrepresented as agribusiness leaders in the continent. WAYA aims to be one of the initiatives bridging this gap by incentivizing and recognizing these women as the drivers of inclusive agricultural transformation in Africa”, says AGRA’s Director for Gender, Youth & Inclusiveness, Ms. Nana Yaa Boakyewaa Amoah.
This year’s ultimate category winners will each receive a cash prize of $25,000, with the grand prize winner walking away with $40,000. Notably, the 2024 awards have seen a rise in the number of countries represented, increasing from 42 last year to 44 this year, and applicants increasing from 1,430 to 1,535. The winners will be announced at the Africa Food Systems Forum in Kigali Rwanda, which will be held from 2nd to 6th September 2024.
The panel
AGRA has convened a distinguished panel of independent judges committed to women’s economic empowerment to assess and select the final awardees.
This year’s judging panel includes Delphine Traore, AGRA Board Member and CEO of General Insurance, Sanlam Allianz, Jen Ramnath, Chief Digital and Information Officer for the Mastercard Foundation, Mary Boote, Vice Chair of the International Agri-food Network and CEO Global Farmer Network, Judy Matu, the National Executive Chairlady for the Association of Women in Agriculture Kenya and Oluyemisi Iranloye, CEO/Founder, Psaltry International & Psaltry Foundation and the WAYA 2022 Grand Prize Winner.
Oluyemisi is the first WAYA winner to make a judging debut, emphasizing AGRA’s efforts to continue growing and recognizing the winning alumni.
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“Our role as judges is not just to evaluate the achievements of these outstanding women, but to amplify their voices and highlight their contributions to sustainable agribusinesses and economic growth across Africa,” says jury member Judy Matu.
This year’s WAYA features five distinct categories, reflecting diversity and promoting the variety of talents among women agripreneurs in the continent. The categories are: Young Female Agripreneur (Rising Star), Women Empowerment Champion, Resilient and Inspirational Leader, Outstanding Value-Adding Enterprise and Female AgTech Innovator.
This year’s top 15 finalists, listed by category and in alphabetical order, are:
Outstanding Value-adding Enterprises
- Affiong Williams, Nigeria
- Bassono Kabore Windlasida Florence, Burkina Faso
- Caroline Wanjiru Mambo, Kenya
Female Ag Tech Innovators
- Anaporka Adazabra, Ghana
- Aisha Raheem, Nigeria
- Boitumelo Bethesda Frazie, South Africa
Young Female Agripreneurs (Rising Stars)
- Jovia Kisakye, Uganda
- Ogbon Eyitayo Azaratou, Benin
- Tonthoza Uganja, Malawi
Women Empowerment Champion
- Christine Ager, Kenya
- Fannie Gondwe, Malawi
- Judith Endelesi Karia, Tanzania
Resilient and Inspirational Leader
- Daniella Ushindi Virivuswagha, DR Congo
- Konlan Lydia Madintin, Ghana
- Sandra Letio, Uganda
These women have distinguished themselves through their leadership, innovation, ambition, and commitment to community development and social impact. Their business ideas were sparked by existing social and environmental challenges within the agriculture and agrifood sectors in their countries, which they felt compelled to address.
“I am deeply honored to be selected as one of the top 15 finalists for the WAYA awards. This recognition is significant not just for me, but also for the farmers I work with. WAYA celebrates innovation and excellence, and being part of such a prestigious group is both humbling and inspiring. This acknowledgment reaffirms our commitment to pushing boundaries and making a meaningful impact in our communities,” says Judith Karia, WAYA finalist in the Women Empowerment Champion category.
The awards aim to create visibility for successful women and promote them as positive role models, trigger innovation, and spur ambition among women agripreneurs. The awards are a collaboration between AGRA and various partners, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, UKAID, USAID, and in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation.
Other delivery partners include the International Agrifood Network (IAFN), the Association of Women in Agriculture Kenya (AWAK) and the Africa Development Research, Evaluation & Strategy (ADRES) Group.
The 2024 Africa Food Systems Forum is the world’s premier forum for African agriculture and food systems, bringing together stakeholders to take practical action and share lessons that will move African food systems forward.
The Forum, to be held under the theme “Innovate, Accelerate and Scale: Delivering Food Systems Transformation in a Digital and Climate Era”, will be a timely opportunity to convene diverse stakeholders, including world leaders, investors, academia, farmers’ organizations, and the private sector, to spotlight innovations, technologies, best practices, business models, policy delivery mechanisms, and investments to accelerate food systems transformation in Africa and beyond, with youth and women at the helm.
