Two young Nigerians have been shortlisted for the 2019 Edition of Anzisha Prize.

The two young Nigerians, Abdulwaheed Alayande and Emmanuel Okon, are two of the 20 shortlisted persons drawn from 16 African countries.

The ultimate finalist takes the grand prize of $25,000.

A Press release distributed by the African Media Agency on behalf of Anzisha Prize stated that Alayande, 21, is the founder of TREP LABS, an enterprise offering a product called REALDRIP, which is an infusion meter that makes blood transfusion and drip treatment simpler and safer.

Okon, 22, founded Vmedkit — a health company that focuses on alleviating mental illnesses using virtual reality technology.

The statement explained that Anzisha Prize is an African Leadership Academy and Mastercard Foundation partnership dedicated to identifying, supporting and celebrating young African entrepreneurs between the ages of 15-22 on the continent whose ideas, ventures and businesses harness the power to redefine and re-imagine Africa’s growth trajectory.

According to the statement, titled, ‘Anzisha Prize announces their Top 20 Young African Entrepreneurs For 2019,” AMA noted:

“After months of searching the African continent, The Anzisha Prize has unveiled its top twenty finalists for 2019.

“The winner will be announced at the ninth Anzisha Prize Forum on 22 October in Johannesburg, South Africa.”

It noted that, with over 500 applicants this year, the Prize received more submissions from remote and fragile communities, widening the selection pool for the top 20.

“From Somalia to Chad, applicants showcased their business acumen with enterprises that provide solutions to some of the continent’s biggest problems,” it stated.

The top 20 finalists will gather in Johannesburg for a 12-day accelerator boot camp, where they will be coached by local and global experts in preparation for the independent judging panel who will decide the winner of the $25,000 Grand Prize.

The boot camp marks the start of the Anzisha Prize fellowship, through which each entrepreneur will access coaching support, market access services and further funding opportunities, the release added.

In addition to the two Nigerians who have been shortlisted, other 2019 finalists for the Anzisha Prize are:

Asia Saeed, 20, Somalia: Founder of 2doon, a social enterprise established to reduce unemployment for the Somalian youth.

Godiragetse Fareed Mogajane, 21, South Africa: Founder of Goodie tutors, a tutoring agency which provides extra tutorial classes by offering one-on-one tutoring; university pre-exam workshops, and exam-focused math workshops for high school students.

Marvellous Nyongoro, 22, Zimbabwe: Founder of The Housing Hub, a service provision platform founded by Marvellous that uses smart technology.

Velache Coker, 19, Sierra Leone: Founder of Canaan Farms. Canaan Farms is an agribusiness and distribution company with two branches that grow various produce (watermelon, okra, cassava, etc.).

Emmanuel Owusu Agyei, 22, Ghana: Founder of Campus Trends Ghana, a marketing firm providing advice, as well as qualitative and communications services to bridge the gap between the firm and the student market.

Jaritou Jallow, 21, Gambia: Founder of Yonima Errands Runner, an enterprise founded by Jariatou which provides business errands such as business registration, bank account openings, administrative duties, etc.

Caleb Annobil, 21, Ghana: Founder of High School Water Product, an enterprise which customises sachet water to sell to students at affordable prices.

Christian Kassahun, 21, Ethiopia: Co-founder of GebeyaNet, an agricultural E-Commerce platform that connects smallholder farmers with the market and also facilitates logistics and payment systems for them.

Mamadjang Jallow, 20, Gambia: Founder of Jallow Trading, a small-scale horticultural gardening venture founded by Mamadjang. It produces a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, which he then sells to vendors and households around his region.

Saudah Birungi, 22, Uganda: Saudah co-founded Tusafishe, which is an enterprise that constructs water filters using locally available materials for students in rural schools and in their homes to provide them with safe drinking water.

Olipah Chomba, 22, Zambia: Founder of Poultry, an enterprise which orders broiler chicken, nurtures them for a period of six weeks by providing them with the necessary vaccines and medicine.

Osvaldo Mokouma, 19, Republic of Congo: Founder of AquagriTech, an enterprise that enhances urban bio-waste to produce natural food from fish that are put in a closed circuit with plants that assimilate the droppings of fish for their growth.

Segbe Accrombessi, 22, Benin: Founder of Kawan Africa, an enterprise which produces and sells tomato puree. They set up workshops to train young girls to produce the puree and then become wholesalers who buy their products to sell them afterwards.

Balbina Gulam, 21, Tanzania: Founder of Huduma Smart, an enterprise that trains domestic workers and provides a job market for them.

Catherine Nalukwago, 22, Uganda: Catherine is the co-founder of Vertical and Micro Gardening, an enterprise that has developed a product called The Vertical Farm, which makes urban farming a viable micro-enterprise for low-income households.

Cecil Chikezie, 21, Kenya: Founder of Eco Makaa, a company that connects local fuel briquette producers to a client base by recruiting the community’s small-scale briquette producers who collectively produce standardised briquettes.

Raghda Medhat, 22, Egypt: Founder of Internsvalley, a system that connects fresh software engineers who seek work experience with international early stage start-ups through practical remote internships and job opportunities.

Yannick Kimanuka, 21, DRC: The KIM’s School Complex, founded by Yannick in 2018, is a nursery and primary school which aims to reduce the trend of intellectual disability found in children from her community.