In December 2025, Kigali was abuzz with scores of entrepreneurs, business leaders, international media, aspiring entrepreneurs, changemakers, community leaders, highly-respected content creators and thought leaders all coming to witness the moment when Africa’s future takes centre stage at the Africa’s Business Heroes Summit and Grand Finale. The event culminated in the top three ABH finalists pitching their businesses one final time for the grand prize of 350,000 US dollars in business grants.
After months of rigorous pitching and independent judging, Tanzania’s Diana Orembe emerged as the grand prize winner, securing $300,000 in business funding. As co-founder of NovFeed, her innovation transforming organic waste into sustainable fish feed stands as a powerful reminder that, in Diana's words, “success has no gender”.
Kenya’s Abraham Mbuthia of Uzapoint claimed second place with $250,000, while South Africa’s Andre Kruger earned third place and $150,000 for Novuteq.
Ahead of the Grand Finale, Africa’s Business Heroes hosted the Summit, also at KCC, where entrepreneurs and highly respected voices from the business ecosystem delivered thought-provoking speeches, masterclasses and workshops to Africa’s future business leaders.
To drive foot traffic to the two-day event, create awareness online and solidify ABH as Africa’s premier business stage, Africa’s Business Heroes brought South African digital agency, Arora Online, on board to manage multinational influencer campaigns at various phases of the 2026 program.
The creator line-up for the final phase of the 2026 initiative as a phenomenal mix of voices and faces from all regions of Africa, in a wide range of niches and each with distinctly different content styles. Creators such as Joel Talargie, Redemptha William, Maimouna Thiam and Steven Ndukwu travelled from different parts of Africa to be part of a day that placed Africa’s future at the centre stage and brought their followers with them to witness live pitches, workshops and ultimately the intense Grand Finale event.
Led by influencer campaign specialist Paige Mashinini, the results of the campaign truly showed that credibility, authenticity and trust remain as important pillars to drive success in any influencer campaign. The intention of a campaign should never be temporary hype, but rather deep levels of engagement, increased positive sentiment and of course, action.
The campaign put the power of the creators' real influencers to the test, and the results were phenomenal. A mind-blowing 162,000 organic engagements generated from 11 creators with only 2,4 million organic views. Beyond these metrics, there was a deep connection and genuine interest.
One creator who had collaborated with ABH in 2023 reported how participating in the campaign opened many doors for them due to the weight ABH carries. Other creators reported the many questions they received from viewers who were eager to attend the event and wanted more information and travel tips- and this right here is influence. Getting your audience members to take meaningful action, spend time, and money is top-tier.
Commenting on the success of ABH 2025, Marketing Manager, Doreen “Bebina” Ingabire says, "Arora Online was a valued partner for the 2025 ABH finale, supporting us across influencer sourcing and influencer campaign coordination. Their team brought thoughtful strategic input and ensured all influencer activity was closely aligned with the ABH brand. A special thanks to Paige, Arora Online's Influencer Manager, who travelled to Rwanda to support the finale in person - her on-the-ground presence and dedication made a real difference. We appreciate Arora Online's commitment."
About Africa’s Business Heroes:
Africa's Business Heroes (ABH) is the Jack Ma Foundation's flagship philanthropic program in Africa to support entrepreneurs. Our mission is to showcase and grow local talent who are creating positive impact in their communities and beyond, and inspire a movement of African entrepreneurship.
About Arora Online:
Arora Online is a digital marketing agency with capabilities in paid media marketing, influencer campaign development and execution, social media management, and TikTok marketing.
Visit Arora Online to read more about our work and what we can do for your brand.
Email: moc.asenilnoarora@ofni
Press release written by Paige Mashinini
