Six African tech startups have been named by the World Economic Forum (WEF) among its selection of the 100 most promising Technology Pioneers of 2022 – companies that are shaping industries from healthcare to retail and many more.
The WEF Technology Pioneers are early to growth-stage companies from around the world that are involved in the use of new technologies and innovation that are poised to have a significant impact on business and society.
This year’s cohort, which can be viewed here, includes six from Africa, three of which are from Kenya. They are e-health startup Access Afya, e-commerce fulfillment platform Sendy, and agri-tech solution Pula.
The other startups named as WEF Technology Pioneers are Nigerian API fintech startup Okra, Rwandan e-moto platform Ampersand, and Cameroonian fintech Ejara.
“By joining this community, Technology Pioneers begin a two-year journey where they are part of the World Economic Forum’s initiatives, activities and events, bringing their cutting-edge insight and fresh thinking to critical global discussions. Technology Pioneers are an integral part of the Forum’s Global Innovators community, which is an invitation-only group of the world’s most promising start-ups and scale-ups that are at the forefront of technological and business model innovation,” said WEF in a statement.
Last year, seven African startups made the list. They were Kuda (Nigeria), 54gene (Nigeria), Moringa School (Kenya), Sokowatch (Kenya), mPharma (Ghana), FlexFinTx (Zimbabwe), and Cambridge Industries (Ethiopia).