The Top 30 semifinalists were selected following rigorous evaluation of the Top 100 that emerged from 3,400 applications submitted from 127 countries, reflecting the rapid growth of female entrepreneurship across emerging economies.

The 30 women-led startups selected are drawn from different regions across the globe, with Latin America (46.7%) leading the distribution, while EMEA, APAC, CIS, and others account for 23.3%, 6.7%, 10%, and 13.3%, respectively.

While Latin America comprises countries such as Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Panama, the Middle East & Africa comprises Nigeria, Kenya, Tunisia, South Africa, and Egypt. Asia and the Pacific, and CIS comprise only India and Kazakhstan. In contrast, others include North America and Europe, including Ukraine.

The Top 30 reflects a strong balance between early-stage founders, with 16 startups at the pre-seed stage and 14 at the seed stage.

Key technology trends that dominated the shortlist include;

• Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning – 7 startups,
• Fintech – 7 startups (4 from Latin America),
• HealthTech & MedTech – 6 startups,
• EdTech – 3 startups and
• Enterprise Software – 2 startups.
• Single-representation sectors include AdTech & MarTech, AgriTech & FoodTech, Wellbeing, Longevity & Life Sciences, Energy & Sustainability, and Construction Tech, demonstrating both diversity and depth of innovation.

Each year, thousands of companies are assessed through a multi-layered process that combines independent investor evaluation with Aurora’s own execution benchmarks.

Aurora works with a curated network of over 40 venture capital partners across Latin America, MENA, Africa, and South Asia.

Startups are reviewed by investors with direct experience in their region, sector, and stage, ensuring informed judgment rather than generic scoring.

Every company is evaluated independently by multiple VC partners using a structured assessment framework developed with experienced operators and investors.

Beyond scores, investors signal which founders they would want to engage with, because absolute investor conviction is a critical signal of market readiness.

To arrive at the Top 30 selection, three factors are considered: independent VC evaluations, demonstrated investor conviction, and performance in Aurora’s initial Top 100 assessment.

Speaking on the selection, Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, head of the Aurora Tech Award, said,

“Aurora’s selection process is deliberately designed to address one of the biggest barriers female founders face: access to investors and capital. By involving our global network of VCs directly in the evaluation process, Aurora ensures that relevant investors see founders as they are being assessed, not after a list is published. As a result, the Top 30 is not only a vetted shortlist, but a group of founders who have already been exposed to capital and investor attention, creating momentum on both sides before funding conversations formally begin.”

Finalists gain access to non-dilutive capital of up to US$50,000, alongside strategic engagement designed to move companies forward, including early exposure to relevant investors, fundraising readiness, and informed market insight.

The result is not just attention, but leverage: capital, credibility, and positioning that meaningfully improve a founder’s path to the next stage.

Finalists will be announced in February 2026, with winners being celebrated at a global ceremony later in the year.

The Aurora Tech Award, powered by inDrive, backs the boldest female tech founders in emerging markets. It’s more than recognition, it’s a launchpad.

This year, a record 3,400 applications were submitted from 127 countries, reflecting unprecedented growth from last year’s 2,018 submissions across 116 nations.

The Top 100 highlights the global breadth of women-led innovation, with the highest number of applications coming from Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Colombia, Egypt, Brazil, India, Chile, Pakistan, and Mexico.

According to key sector trends, Healthtech remains the strongest sector across the Top 13 countries represented.

This year’s cohort comprises 23 health-focused startups, continuing last year’s trend, in which health tech also led the field.

Founders are tackling many aspects of this sector, including wellbeing, longevity, digital medical tools, productivity platforms, life sciences, sports tech and more.

Across these sectors, women founders consistently gravitate toward solving real, tangible problems rooted in their local communities, which strongly shapes the types of innovations emerging from each region.

Along with healthtech, agritech, and edtech, these sectors remain highly relevant, reflecting ongoing global demand and innovation. AI continues to expand rapidly across these solutions, paired with blockchain and IoT technologies.

Additionally, this year saw a rise in fintech representation, with 19 fintech startups included in the Top 100. This increase is partly due to the introduction of a dedicated fintech track in partnership with inDrive.

Money that drew high-quality founders developing solutions in financial inclusion, digital payments, lending, and broader fintech innovation across emerging markets.

HR tech applications were dominated by founders from Latin America, followed by those from Africa and the MENA region, while agritech entries, primarily from Africa and LATAM, remain focused on B2B business models. Edtech has also retained its relevance, with 18 startups demonstrating some of the highest adoption of AI-driven tools.

Across regions like Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa, agritech and foodtech startups stand out, highlighting both agricultural innovation and growing demand for energy solutions essential for the sector’s development.

Across all top countries, AI consistently emerges as a core enabling technology within the leading sectors, underscoring its role as a universal driver of innovation.

Two notable insights from this year’s applications include AI adoption in healthtech and edtech, as a standard component of product development and alignment of Founders missions with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), signaling a shift toward impact-driven entrepreneurship.

Business model trends show a strong lean toward B2B, especially in Chile (84%), India (79%), and Peru (69%), reflecting market maturity and demand for enterprise solutions.

The award’s open call also provides insight into how much capital early-stage founders are seeking across emerging markets. Startups from India are pursuing the highest average investment, at roughly $1.25 million, followed by those in Kenya at around $840,000 and Colombia at approximately $620,000. Founders in Egypt seek close to $540,000, while those in Nigeria are looking for about $510,000 in funding.

Several other countries show more moderate capital needs, generally under $500,000—including Mexico (about $500,000), Brazil and South Africa (both just under $480,000), Pakistan (around $460,000), Chile (nearly $400,000), and Kazakhstan (around $380,000).

The least capital-seeking applicants come from Peru and Morocco, where founders are looking for approximately $300,000–$340,000 to grow their ventures.

“From more than 3,400 applications, our Top 100 represent the top three percent—truly exceptional founders. They’re building commercially powerful, category-defining companies that solve real problems their communities and markets face. We’re thrilled they chose to apply and proud to spotlight their impact” said Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, Head of the Aurora Tech Award.

Aurora’s venture network now spans four major regions – LATAM, MENA, Africa, and South Asia.

Together, these regions represent roughly 70% of the world’s emerging-market innovation hubs, demonstrating both the global investor appetite for the new wave of female founders and Aurora’s growing ability to unlock downstream capital by aligning the right startups with the right investors.

The Aurora Tech Award empowers the most ambitious female founders in emerging markets with more than recognition.

Winners receive up to US$50,000 in non-dilutive funding, tailored support and resources, and access to an industry-leading network of investors and experts.

They also gain global visibility and media exposure, helping to amplify their business impact and scale solutions that shape the future.

Last year’s Aurora Tech Award ceremony in Cairo celebrated the achievements of exceptional female founders from emerging markets.

The 2025 winners were Solape Akinpelu (HerVest, Nigeria) in first place, Loretxu Garcia Arraztoa (Nido Contech, Chile) in second, and Shreya Prakash (FlexiBees, India) in third, Laura Velásquez Herrera (Arkangel AI, Colombia) and Leonie Korn (UpLeap, Switzerland) in fourth and fifth places respectively.

The number of top finalists is set to be announced in February 2026, with the winners being celebrated at a global ceremony later in the year.

Like the Aurora Tech Award itself, the bootcamp selection emphasized innovation, scalability, and social impact, preparing Nigerian founders not just for local growth, but for success on the global stage.

With strategic support and partnership of InDrive’s Aurora Tech Award, The Nest Innovation and Technology Park together with a curated cohort of visionary women from diverse sectors including technology, fashion, agriculture, health, and education engaged the ladies in immersive workshops, mentorship sessions, pitch training, and access to funding opportunities, all tailored to address the unique challenges faced by women in business.

“From storytelling to structure, every session reshaped how I think about building and communicating as a founder, left me with a clear truth: as founders, our stories, systems, and structures must work together that’s how we build ventures that inspire belief and attract opportunity” says Bootcamp participant Edwina Abah

“Can’t wait to share more insights soon there’s so much more for founders to learn from this journey. Shoutout to the amazing women I’m learning and building alongside. Huge thanks to Aurora Tech Award and The Nest Innovation Technology Park Ltd for curating this experience, and to every brilliant woman in this cohort building with courage and vision”.

“The past few days have been empowering, educational, and exciting.

There was so much strength in community, and so much real value gained from learning how to pitch and communicate our message, to developing fundraising strategies, refining personal branding, and positioning ourselves for growth.

A huge thank you to all the incredible speakers and organisers who made this experience so impactful” effuses Zusi Inegbeniki, Founder of FoundexAI and participant in the bootcamp.

A two-week post-program mentorship- with doyennes like  Folake Owodunni, Founder of Emergency Response Africa, who famoulsy responded “I rarely focus on it because I don’t have the time. I’m just trying to make things work.” when asked about biases and prejudice- follows the bootcamp.

Research suggests that the first 3-5 years are among the most crucial: those are the years where many firms either establish strong operational discipline, leadership resilience, and access to networks, or they collapse under cumulative burdens of cash flow problems, burn-out, and governance lapses.

According to the African Future Leadership, Over 60% of Nigerian startups fail within their first two years, primarily due to leadership shortcomings.  Additionally, Approximately 70% of startups globally fail by the fifth year of operation.

Let’s imagine one of those mornings that founders dread. Laptops open, spreadsheets flashing red, and a team trying to make sense of what just happened.

For Ada and her two-person crew wearing all the hats of business dev, admin, accounts, compliance, COO, CTO, CRM, the news of their investor pulling out hit like a power surge – unexpected and destabilizing.

By noon, she had already opened ten tabs on her browser, searching for grants, accelerators, and anything that could keep their dream afloat.

Then, in a startup forum thread buzzing with stories, a headline (or lifeline if you will) caught her eye: “Applications open for the Foundry for HER Bootcamp.”

At first, Ada almost scrolled past it. But as she read on, the description stopped her. This didn’t seem like another generic training. It was a focused accelerator built for women like her, founders who had bold ideas but limited access to capital, networks, or mentorship.

Programs like this often provide the bedrock on which many Nigerian and African tech entrepreneurs are able to exist while building their solutions.

Officially announced in early September 2025, the Foundry for HER Bootcamp, powered by Aurora Tech Award in partnership with The Nest Innovation Technology Park Ltd, is a three-day virtual accelerator designed exclusively for early-stage women-led tech startups in Nigeria.

Running from October 15 to 17, 2025, the program promises to deliver practical tools, expert mentorship, and investor readiness strategies to help founders like Ada not just survive, but scale. Over 120 female founders will be trained in critical growth areas such as fundraising, pitching, and expanding beyond local markets, with masterclasses led by some of Africa’s most seasoned investors and ecosystem builders.

Speaking on the initiative, Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, head of the Aurora Tech Award, said:

“At Aurora Tech Award, we focus on one thing: giving the world’s boldest women founders the fast track to scale. Nigeria has already proven itself on the global stage through our past winners, and with the Foundry for HER Bootcamp, we’re doubling down, giving early-stage founders the tools, network, and visibility to compete at the highest level.”

That night, Ada didn’t sleep much. But for the first time in weeks, her thoughts weren’t about what her startup had lost, they were about what it could become.

Because sometimes, the turning point for a startup isn’t a new investor. It’s the right opportunity. The Aurora Tech Award is a prestigious annual global prize set up by inDrive for women entrepreneurs in IT. Its goal is to give global recognition to emerging markets’ boldest female tech founders.

Following high interest from women founders across the country, the deadline for applications for this bootcamp intervention has now been extended till October 9, 2025, giving more startups the opportunity to take part in the transformative experience.

Apply for the Foundry for HER bootcamp here. For Aurora Tech Award, see details here.

Running from October 15–17, 2025, the bootcamp will equip female founders with the practical tools, expert mentorship, and investor readiness needed to scale  and successfully apply for the global Aurora Tech Award Open Call 2026.

Applications for the fully online bootcamp are open from September 8 to October 3, 2025.  The three-day program (October 15–17, 2025) will train 120 early-stage women founders from Nigeria in core areas such as  pitching, fundraising, and scaling beyond local markets, with sessions led by top ecosystem leaders and investors.

If you are a female founder or team lead of a Nigeria-based startup under five years old, founded or co-founded by a woman, apply now via link.

Nigeria is home to one of Africa’s most vibrant startup ecosystems, yet female founders still face significant barriers to capital and visibility. By partnering with The Nest Innovation Technology Park, a focal point for entrepreneurial innovation in Lagos, the Aurora Tech Award is ensuring that women entrepreneurs  access  knowledge, networks, and opportunities that enable long-term success.

“At Aurora Tech Award, we focus on one thing: giving the world’s boldest women founders the fast track to scale. Nigeria has already proven itself on the global stage through our past winners, and with the Foundry for HER Bootcamp we’re doubling down, giving early-stage founders the tools, network, and visibility to scale their companies and compete at the highest level”, said Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, head of the Aurora Tech Award.

Nigerian founders have won the Aurora Tech Award for two consecutive years: Folake Owodunni, founder of Emergency Response Africa (2024), and Solape Akinpelu, Co-Founder and CEO of HerVest (2025) Their success not only highlights the strength of Nigeria’s women-led startups on the global stage, but also provides inspiration for the next generation of founders.

“The Aurora Tech Award is more than recognition, it’s the opportunity to be part of a community that champions women in tech who are shaping the future. This award isn’t just mine, it belongs to every woman who dares to dream, build, and lead in spaces where she wasn’t expected to be. I’m proud to stand alongside bold founders creating high-growth businesses, not just for themselves but for others to follow,” said Solape Akinpelu, Nigerian entrepreneur and 2025 Aurora Tech Award winner.

The two trailblazing Nigerian entrepreneurs, the founder of Farmatrix, Manzo Nyifamu Ogechi and the Founder of Hervest, Solape Akinpelu, run start-ups that are driving impact through technology.

Other finalists include founder of FlexiBees (India), Shreya Prakash, founder of Arkangel AI (Colombia), Laura Velásquez Herrera, founder of Mama Space (Kyrgyzstan), Gulnaza Khalmanbetova, founder of Elephan (Brazilia), Thais Sterenberg de Oliveira, founder of UpLeap (Switzerland), Leonie Korn, founder Borderless (Uzbekistan), Veronica Lee, founder of Nido Contech (Chile), Loretxu García, founder of E-Reo (French Polynesia), Heiura Itae Tetaa.

Speaking on the award, Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, the head of Start-up, Aurora Tech Awards, explained that the award was conceived to support the next generation of entrepreneurs building ventures to redefine industries.

“Aurora isn’t just a tech award—it’s a launchpad for the next generation of unicorn founders in emerging markets. With funding, high-profile investor access, and a global network, we back the boldest women in tech who are building ventures that will redefine industries”, Ghassemi-Smith said.

She said the recognition of Nigerian female founders in the Aurora Tech Award 2025 highlights the growing influence of women-led start-ups in tackling societal challenges through technology.

She stressed that the recognition also underscores Africa’s role in driving innovation that promotes gender equality, financial inclusion, and economic empowerment on a global scale.

“This year’s shortlist features trailblazing founders from MENA, LATAM, Central Asia, and APAC, each leading start-ups offering solutions across industries ranging from artificial intelligence and fintech to health tech and beyond. This year’s finalists have demonstrated exceptional leadership and technological advancements in their respective fields. Half of the start-ups are at the seed stage, three projects are at the pre-seed level, and the rest are at the FFF and angel investment stages. Three start-ups focus on health tech, one on agrotech, one on eco-tech, two on ed-tech, one on fintech, and one on HR-tech,” she added.

Farmatrix, an Agro-Allied Technology Company, is transforming agriculture in Nigeria by leveraging technology to improve market access and sustainability for smallholder farmers.

Founded by Nyifamu, a certified Food System Specialist and Climate Reality Leader, the company has impacted over 3,000 farmers, reducing post-harvest losses and increasing profitability.

With a background in Computer Science and an MBA, she is committed to building a more resilient food system across Africa.

Nyifamu’s journey began when she moved from Lagos to Northern Nigeria, witnessing firsthand the challenges farmers face—from post-harvest losses to limited market access.

This inspired her to launch Farmatrix, a tech-driven platform that connects farmers to markets, financing, and storage solutions, ensuring they earn more. Unlike traditional agricultural platforms, Farmatrix integrates logistics, climate-smart inputs, and financial tools, creating a seamless farm-to-market ecosystem.

Farmatrix is advancing multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 1: No Poverty; SDG 2: Zero Hunger; SDG 8: Decent Work & Economic Growth; SDG 5: Gender Equality; SDG 9: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure.

Another finalist from Nigeria, Solape Akinpelu, the founder/CEO, HerVest, has her start-up focused on tackling the gender equality gap in Nigeria by empowering women through inclusive financial services (SDG 5: Gender Equality).

HerVest provides targeted savings, impact investments, and credit financing to smallholder women farmers and women-led SMEs, addressing the $42 billion gender finance gap in Africa (SDG 8: Decent Work & Economic Growth).

By leveraging technology for peer-to-peer capital reallocation, HerVest connects female entrepreneurs to flexible loans and resources, enabling them to scale their businesses and achieve financial independence (SDG 9: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure).

With women making up 41% of micro-businesses in Nigeria yet receiving less than 15% of conventional loans, HerVest is reshaping financial access by providing low-interest financing to credible female entrepreneurs and smallholder farmers (SDG 1: No Poverty).

By doing so, HerVest fosters a more inclusive financial ecosystem where women can thrive, invest, and contribute to sustainable economic growth (SDG 2: Zero Hunger).

Speaking on the award and its influence, Nyifamu noted, “Doing business in Nigeria is not for the weak, and being a woman in agritech demands even more resilience. Seeing past winner Chinwendu of Bridge Merchant Connect succeed inspired me. The Aurora Tech Award aligns perfectly with my vision for Farmatrix and scaling our impact,”.

The Aurora Tech Award is an annual global prize established in 2020 by inDrive to support and recognize women founders of early-stage technology start-ups. The award champions female entrepreneurs who drive innovation and create meaningful social impact through technology.

The finalists were selected based on their start-ups’ innovation, scalability, and social impact. A distinguished panel of industry experts and investors will evaluate their work before announcing the winner at the upcoming Aurora Tech Award Ceremony on April 11-13 in Cairo. The final pitch competition will be held at SHE CAN 2025 and will be organized by Entreprenelle.

The Aurora Tech Award recognizes the most promising female founders in emerging markets and celebrates visionary women entrepreneurs redefining the technology landscape.

Out of a record-breaking 2,018 applications from 116 countries, Nigeria leads the Longlist with an impressive 21 founders, cementing its position as a hub for innovation and female entrepreneurship.

Brazil and the United States follow, with Egypt close behind.

Other notable contributors include Colombia, Kenya, the United Kingdom, India, and Kazakhstan, reflecting the award’s truly global impact.

This year’s Aurora Tech Award not only highlights the remarkable talent emerging from Nigeria but also underscores its growing influence in the tech and startup ecosystem, further inspiring female founders across the continent and beyond.

“The Aurora Top 120 is a first for us this year, created from a three-month open call that attracted over 2,000 applications from female founders. Through a rigorous selection process, we’ve identified 120 standout women entrepreneurs who are building bold and innovative businesses in emerging markets. These founders are poised to shape the future of their industries and countries, making them the ones to watch in 2025”, said Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, head of the Aurora Tech Awards.

The initiative also garnered increased support from venture capital firms, with the number of VC partners rising from 23 to 35 and new partners coming from Egypt, Brazil, and Pakistan, thus underscoring the growing global recognition of the award and its mission.

The four leading sectors that dominated the nomination list were Healthtech, Agrotech, Edtech and e-commerce.

The majority of agrotech startups are from Africa while only a few startups made the nomination list from the renewable energy sector.

Over the years, there has been growing participation of women in entrepreneurship which marks a significant global trend. According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), women’s startup activity rates rose from an average of 6.1% (2001-2005) to 10.4% (2021-2023) across 30 countries.

Research conducted by Research WE-FI revealed that 17% of working-age women in developing economies are already entrepreneurs, with 35% aspiring to join them.

In 2023, emerging economies received 17% of global Venture Capital investment, underscoring their resilience.

For instance, according to a report released by the African Private Capital Association, funding from Venture capitalists in Africa skyrocketed to $6.5 billion in 2022 (AVCA), from $1.3 billion in 2020.

In a similar development, a report released by BCG shows that female-led startups generate 78 cents of revenue per dollar of funding, compared to just 31 cents for male-led ventures, which is a further confirmation that women outperform their male-led counterparts in revenue efficiency.

It has been established at the local level that women-owned businesses fuel economic development and inspire future generations.

Reports from ProMujer highlight the critical role female entrepreneurs play in strengthening communities and breaking barriers, reinforcing their long-term societal impact.

Meanwhile, the list of top finalists will be announced in February 2025, with winners celebrated at a global ceremony later in the year.

The Aurora Tech Award celebrates the boldest and most ambitious female founders in emerging markets, offering more than just recognition. It provides access to expertise, resources, and transformative opportunities to scale their businesses and shape the future.

Award applicants gain mentorship, guidance on fundraising and pitching, support in preparing pitch decks, and validation of their efforts.

They also connect with investors, VC funds, and PR support, opening doors to valuable networks and resources to drive their success.

Owodunni made the remarks on Saturday, September 28, 2024 during a panel session at the 2024 Wetech Conference sponsored by inDrive.

She described her success at the last edition of the Aurora Tech Award as a product of resilience, signalling a turning point in her career.

While advising eligible women in tech to apply for the 2025 Aurora Tech Award, she maintained that the initiative remains the best platform to get the desired recognition and support.

The Tech Entrepreneur noted that her initiative, Emergency Response Africa,  aims to address the issue of inadequate response to emergencies in Africa by connecting ambulances and first responders to patients through technology.

The initiative, which has received tremendous acceptance from various state governments in Nigeria, continues to attract successful partnerships aimed at improving emergency response, such as transporting pregnant women in labor to hospitals.

According to her, the need for better emergency response systems motivated the set up of Emergency Response Africa. An inspiration she attributed to high-profile deaths and numerous unreported cases of death in Africa due to the knowledge gap on the part of the public during the period of emergencies.

The initiative, designed to confront issues such as public panic and misconceptions about emergency services, aims to improve emergency care by educating the public and ensuring timely and effective responses to medical emergencies.

In her remarks, the Acquisition Manager, inDrive Nigeria, Catherine Akindele speaking to the success of the Aurora Tech Award, said;

“The Aurora Tech Award was borne out of the need to foster fairness, inclusivity and empowerment of women in technology.”

Akindele stated that the award has received a significant number of applications from participants with innovative tech ideas, with only a few selected each year. Shedding more light on the company’s commitment to the awardees, she said, “Beyond the reward, we monitor the progress of participants by providing resources and guidance on how to grow their businesses.”

The Aurora Tech Award, now in its 5th edition, is structured to enable participants to learn from each other and gain inspiration from one another’s experiences.

This sponsorship aligns with the award’s mission to empower women entrepreneurs in the IT sector by providing a global platform to showcase their innovations and contributions to the tech industry.

As part of this year’s collaboration with Wetech, Folake Owodunni, the 2024 Aurora Tech Award first prize winner and CEO & Co-Founder of Emergency Response Africa (ERA), will contribute her wealth of knowledge and expertise during a prestigious panel discussion at Wetech 2024.

The panel, titled “Strategies for Career Advancement in Tech,” is scheduled to take place on September 28. This highly anticipated session will convene a diverse group of influential leaders, innovators, and change-makers from the tech industry to discuss key strategies for advancing one’s career in the rapidly evolving tech landscape.

Wetech 2024 marks the 5th anniversary of this groundbreaking event, which brings together over 1,500 women from diverse tech backgrounds.

The conference will showcase leading female voices in technology, foster career advancement discussions, and provide invaluable networking opportunities.

“We are thrilled to be the Gold Sponsor of Wetech 2024, a platform that resonates deeply with our mission to empower women entrepreneurs in the tech sector. This collaboration not only highlights the innovative contributions of women like Folake Owodunni, our 2024 Aurora Tech Award winner, but also underscores our commitment to fostering diversity and inclusion in the technology landscape.

We believe that by providing platforms for dialogue and collaboration, we can inspire the next generation of female leaders and drive meaningful change in our industry,” said Asya Vildt, Operations Excellence and Sustainability Director at inDrive.

The event aimed to commemorate the immense potential of girls as catalysts for progress and change globally.

This year, the UN spotlighted the theme of “Digital Generation,” advocating for digital inclusion and literacy as powerful tools to unlock opportunities for girls in learning, earning, and leading.

Elizabeth Mwangi, the Aurora Tech Award Winner, personifies this theme. Her innovative startup, which connects cleaners in Nairobi’s slums with employment opportunities, exemplifies the potential of technology in addressing social challenges.

During her interaction with the girls at St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Elizabeth emphasized the significance of curiosity in leveraging technology to create tailored solutions for local challenges. Her startup not only earned her the prestigious Aurora Tech Award but also highlighted the growing number of female leaders boldly addressing Africa’s pressing issues.

“Empowerment through technology isn’t just about connectivity; it’s about connecting with purpose,” shared Elizabeth. “When we combine innovation with intention, we can transform communities from the inside out.” Her words reverberated with the audience, inspiring young girls to explore the endless possibilities that technology offers.

Ekaterina Smirnova, Executive Director of the Aurora Tech Award, praised Elizabeth’s achievements as a testament to the potential that lies within every individual. “Elizabeth’s accomplishments showcase what’s possible when we recognize and nurture potential. The Aurora Tech Award not only honors these exceptional founders but also provides tangible support to help them further their visions. We’re dedicated to offering mentorship resources to amplify the success of our participants,” stated Smirnova.

The collaboration between inDrive’s Aurora Tech Award and Elizabeth Mwangi demonstrates the power of technology and innovation in empowering the Girl Child. This initiative paves the way for a future where girls can thrive, lead, and shape the world around them.