Twenty-one-year-old female Egyptian entrepreneur Alaa Moatamed, whose venture provides business owners with an affordable and convenient delivery service for customers, has been named winner of the 2020 Anzisha Prize, taking home US$25,000.
The Anzisha Prize, which is a partnership between African Leadership Academy and Mastercard Foundation, celebrates African entrepreneurs aged 22 years and younger, and has so far supported 122 entrepreneurs.
Disrupt Africa reported in September that 20 finalists had been selected for the 10th edition of the competition, who would compete for a share of US$100,000 in grant funding. Moatamed has now been named winner for her work as co-founder of Presto, a leading delivery management service.
“Across upper Egypt, I saw people suffering from the problem we are solving and I wanted to try my best to help them, especially small businesses owned by women. I want to expand my service across Africa to help women who are suffering from operational hassles,” she said.
Ed-tech entrepreneur Matina Razafimahefa, 22, from Madagascar, emerged as the first runner up, banking US$15,000, while 22-year-old infrastructure entrepreneur Mohamed Bah, from Sierra Leone, was the second runner up, taking home US$12,500.
Each of the other 17 finalists will receive US$2,500, and all finalists will receive venture building support and mentorship.
