---
title: "Africa’s Business Heroes 2026 Names Top 10 Finalists"
description: "Africa’s Business Heroes 2026 has picked its Top 10 from 24,000+ applications. Finalists, including Dawa Mkononi, pitch in Kigali for $1.5M grants."
canonical_url: "https://liners.com/news/africas-business-heroes-2026-top-10-finalists"
markdown_url: "https://liners.com/news/africas-business-heroes-2026-top-10-finalists.md"
type: "article"
language: "en"
published_at: "2026-09-02T22:29:58.409Z"
updated_at: "2026-09-02T22:30:00.087Z"
---

# Africa’s Business Heroes 2026 Names Top 10 Finalists

Africa’s Business Heroes 2026 has picked its Top 10 from 24,000+ applications. Finalists, including Dawa Mkononi, pitch in Kigali for $1.5M grants.

## Breadcrumbs

- [News](/news)
- [Africa’s Business Heroes 2026 Names Top 10 Finalists](/news/africas-business-heroes-2026-top-10-finalists)

## Content

## In Short
Africa’s Business Heroes 2026 has selected its Top 10 finalists from more than 24,000 applications across all 54 African countries.

## What Happened
Africa’s Business Heroes 2026 announced its Top 10 after two days of live semi-final pitches in Nairobi on August 21 and 22. The finalists were chosen from a Top 20 by a judging panel.

Judges assessed companies on business strength, leadership, impact, growth potential, and ability to scale. “Ability to scale” means whether a business can grow fast without breaking its operations, like serving 10x more customers without 10x more staff.

The Top 10 founders and businesses are:

1. Salma Tammam, REME-D Company for Laboratory Equipment and Chemicals, Egypt, healthcare
2. Ahmed Shaaban, Simplex for Software Development and Industrial Solutions, Egypt, manufacturing
3. Kelvin Umechukwu, [Bumpa](/bumpa), Nigeria, enterprise software
4. Naom Monari, Bena Care Limited, Kenya, health tech
5. Louisa Gathecha, Bottle Logistics East Africa Ltd, Kenya, industrial
6. Samson Fentaye, Thur Biotech Manufacturing Plc, Ethiopia, agri tech
7. Jess Roussos, BluLever Education Pty Ltd, South Africa, edtech
8. Joseph Paul, [Dawa Mkononi](/dawa-mkononi), Tanzania, health tech
9. Gildas Zodome, BIO PHYTO, Benin, agri tech
10. Appessika Adanin Laurent Koffi, GREEN AGRO VALLEY CI, Côte d’Ivoire, agri tech

Naom Monari of Bena Care said she applied for four years, and that the ABH financials section pushed her to review her business model more deeply.

## Why It Matters
The Top 10 will compete at the ABH Grand Finale in Kigali, Rwanda on December 1 and 2 for US$1.5 million in grant funding. The winner gets US$300,000, the first runner-up gets US$250,000, and the second runner-up gets US$150,000. The remaining seven finalists each receive US$100,000.

ABH also provides mentorship, training, and global exposure. An additional US$100,000 is set aside for global immersion training.

For finalists like Dawa Mkononi, being named in the Top 10 is not the same as winning a grant yet. Awards will only be confirmed after the Kigali finale.

## Sources and products

- [Disrupt Africa](https://disruptafrica.com/2026/09/02/meet-the-2026-abh-top-10)
- [Dawa Mkononi](/dawa-mkononi)

## Related pages

- [Startups & Ecosystem](/news)

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