Two Nigerian entrepreneurs have been shortlisted among the top 10 finalists for the 2025 Aurora Tech Award. 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, the Head of Start-up, Aurora Tech Awards, Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, 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 Chief Executive Officer and founder of 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.
