6 Women Who Are Challenging The Male-Dominated Technology Sector in Africa

The technology industry is majorly male-dominated, but there are some women that are making giant strides in the industry. These women have proven that they have what it takes to go head to head in a competitive industry and make innovative changes. They head teams, and they are disrupting the tech industry and doing what many people think a woman can’t do. Without further ado, here are the top six women in technology in Africa. 1. Funke Opeke: rnFunke Opeke is the CEO of Main One Cable Company in Nigeria. She obtained an undergraduate degree in Electronic and Electrical Engineering from Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria before proceeding to the United States for a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University, New York. Opeke rose to become the executive director of Verizon Communications Wholesale Division. She served on an advisory board that oversaw the sale of the Nigerian owned telecommunication company, NITEL to Transcorp. She then became the Chief Technical Officer of MTN Nigeria before founding Main One Cable Company. Main One Cable Company is the foremost network solution provider and leading communications services in Nigeria. Main One built the first privately owned undersea cable submarine In West Africa. The 7000km long high capacity cable stretches from Portugal to South Africa with landings in Ghana and Nigeria. 2. Elizabeth Rossiello: rnElizabeth Rossiello is the CEO and founder of BitPesa which is a payment and FX platform that utilizes Bitcoin for fast and cheap payment. She founded the company in 2013 in Nairobi, Kenya. BitPesa now has offices in Nigeria, Senegal, London and Luxembourg. Users of the platform can buy Bitcoin and send money easily to anyone. By August 2017, BitPesa had raised over $10 million in funding from investors. Before founding BitPesa, Elizabeth Rossiello was a financial analyst and investment associate. In February 2018, BitPesa bought the European payment company TransferZero to expand their operations. BitPesa is a champion for women in tech or Femtech in Africa as the company hires a lot of females. The top three executives are female, and all members of its executive team at a point were all female. 3. Rebecca Enonchong: Rebecca Enonchong is a world-recognized promoter of African tech, and she has been recognized by several international bodies including Forbes and the World Economic Forum. Rebecca Enonchong founded AppsTech, a provider of enterprise application solutions in 1999. The company is a partner of Oracle and has served clients from about 40 countries worldwide. Rebecca Enonchong is the founder of the Africa Technology Forum which is dedicated to promoting technology in Africa. She is a member of the board of directors of Salesforce, and she has worked with the United Nations in various capabilities. 4. Judith Owigar: rnJudith Owigar is the founder of AkiraChix. AkiraChix is a non profit organization that was created to inspire and develop the interest of women in technology. It was founded in Kenya in 2010, and it has programs for women in various levels. Judith Owigar is also the founder and CEO of JuaKali Workers, an organization that connects skilled manual workers to clients. She has won various awards, and she has been recognized by Forbes magazine. 5. Doreen Ramphaleng-Motlaleng: Doreen Ramphaleng-Motlaleng is the Managing Director of Informatix, a software company in Botswana. She is the president of Citizen Owned Businesses in Information Technology (COBIT) in Botswana. In 2009, she won the Top ICT Businesswoman award in 2009. 6. Ory Okolloh: Ory Okolloh is a Kenyan lawyer, activist and blogger. She has an undergraduate degree from the University of Pittsburgh, and she graduated from the Harvard Law School in 2005. She is the co-founder of Ushahidi.com, a non-profit tech company that develops open source software for interactive mapping, information collection and virtualization. She is also the Director of investments at Omidyar Network. She has worked at Google, the World Bank, and Covington and Burling. Ory Okolloh has been recognized by Forbes and other international bodies for promoting internet access for African women.