The Africa Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF) has announced the finalists for its 2026 AWIEF Awards, recognising women entrepreneurs and business leaders contributing to Africa’s economic growth, innovation and social development.
Launched in 2017, the annual awards celebrate women entrepreneurs and business owners across different sectors and African markets. This year’s finalists emerged from a highly competitive nominations process highlighting the continent’s growing pipeline of entrepreneurial talent and innovation.
The 2026 awards categories have been refined to reflect Africa’s evolving business landscape. They include the Woman to Watch, Agri, Impact for Good, Creative Visionary and Tech Pioneer Awards, alongside the Male Ally Award and Lifetime Achievement Award.
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For the Woman to Watch Award, the finalists are Omotoke Ajidagba, Co-founder and COO of 10mg Health in Nigeria; Faith Nafula, Founder and CEO of Solar Spark Energy in Kenya; and Rowena Turinawe, Founding CEO of Ruka Pay in Uganda.
The Agri Award finalists are Violet Awo Amoabeng, Founder and CEO of Skin Gourmet in Ghana; Stella Doreen Namulondo, Co-founder and COO of Essymart Africa Business Link in Uganda; and Joyce Rugano, CEO of Ecorich Solutions in Kenya.
The Impact for Good Award finalists include Ola Brown, General Partner at HealthCap Africa in Nigeria; Nada Ghammem, Co-Founder and CEO of Bionic Soul in Tunisia; and Echo Nomsa VanderWal, Executive Director of The Luke Commission in Eswatini.
In the Creative Visionary Award category, the finalists are Rasha Aita, Managing Director of SMACRS LLC in Egypt; Renuka Methil, Managing Editor of Forbes Africa in South Africa; and Hadeer Shalaby, Co-Founder and CEO of Freeziana in Egypt.
The Tech Pioneer Award finalists are Varuna Devi Bangaleea, Group CEO of nVisionIT in Mauritius; Ndeye Fatou Mboup, CEO of The Smart Granary in Senegal; and Quinter Ochieng, Founder and CEO of Chargebyte Africa in Kenya.
AWIEF has also introduced the Male Ally Award this year. The award will recognise a male leader, founder, executive, policymaker or senior decision-maker whose actions have contributed significantly to advancing women’s economic empowerment and creating sustainable systemic change.
The recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award, which recognises a woman whose decades of leadership, entrepreneurship or public service have contributed significantly to Africa’s development, will also be announced during the ceremony.
The winners will be announced on November 11, 2026, during the AWIEF Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner, which will serve as the grand finale of the AWIEF 2026 Conference. The conference is scheduled for November 10–11 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in Cape Town, South Africa.
The event is expected to bring together women entrepreneurs, business leaders, investors, policymakers, development partners and other stakeholders from across Africa and beyond to celebrate achievements and discuss the future of entrepreneurship and innovation on the continent.