The 50 young finalists of the 4th edition of the awards contest are already known Africa's Business Heroes (ABH), a flagship philanthropic program created by the Jack Ma Foundation to highlight and support African entrepreneurs.
For the 2022 edition, the contest received over 21.000 submissions and saw applicants from all 54 African countries.
There was a 20% increase in applications from Central Africa, representing 9% of the total number of applications received. Southern Africa accounted for 17%, while East Africa and West Africa accounted for 17% and 43% of all applications respectively.
Additionally, there was a 26% increase in applications from North Africa compared to last year, representing 7% of the total applications received.
This year, the number of applications from 34 countries increased by more than 50%. Countries such as Egypt, Burkina Faso, Malawi and Burundi have especially seen huge growth in applications, further strengthening the position of ABH as a true pan-African initiative.
Women entrepreneurs were well represented among the candidate pool, representing 31% of the applications. Participants also ranged between 19 and 72 years old, a demonstration that there is no age limit for being an entrepreneur.
Entering its fourth year, ABH has become a well-recognized philanthropic program in Africa.
A panel of more than 60 judges will now interview the top 50 candidates who come from a wide variety of industries, including agriculture, energy, healthcare, retail and manufacturing.
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Among the top 50, 10% are French-speaking, 42% are female and 60% operate in rural areas. For the first time, candidates from Burkina Faso, Somalia, Guinea and Burundi are represented in the top 50.
The 50 ABH 2022 finalists recently participated in a virtual boot camp in preparation for the next round of interviews with the judges.
The training camp featured sessions led by partners and judges. Topics include using data to better understand markets, identifying business opportunities, running effective digital marketing campaigns, and selling in the digital age.
The top 10 will be announced in October before heading to the grand finale where they will pitch live to global business legends and secure their share of the $1,5 million prize pool.
