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Dala StudioThe Story
Summary
Amadou worked for US companies, moved to Ethiopia in 2016 and co-founded Gebeya with Hiruy Amanuel to train African tech talent. Gebeya later shifted toward digital infrastructure for service businesses. Capital Ethiopia reported in July 2024 that Amadou was a 2022 finalist in Africa's Business Heroes.
Details
IFC's November 2020 profile describes Amadou as CEO and co-founder of Gebeya. It says Amadou studied computer science and worked for several companies in the United States. Amadou saw Western firms outsource IT and support services to Asia and believed a similar model could work in Africa. After settling in Ethiopia in 2016, Amadou co-founded Gebeya with Hiruy Amanuel. IFC says the aim was to give African IT professionals the skills to work for companies on the continent and abroad.
IFC says Gebeya, co-founded by Amadou, began with a focus on training software developers. It now also works with project managers, product managers, graphic designers and other professionals. IFC adds that Gebeya created an incubator for digital entrepreneurs and an online marketplace matching IT talent with companies. The profile says Gebeya raised more than $3.2 million from investors worldwide and received advisory services from IFC. It also says Gebeya trained and awarded diplomas to more than 800 high-tech professionals, and connected a third of them with employers in Africa and elsewhere.
In an undated Africa's Business Heroes interview, Amadou says Gebeya launched in 2016 as a direct response to the tech talent shortage. Amadou says the turning point was realizing the problem was an infrastructure issue: successful graduates were still struggling within a broken system. Gebeya then shifted from connecting talent to building commercial infrastructure. Dala is an AI-powered builder for apps and websites without coding. Jitume gives service providers a digital storefront, portfolio and booking system. Jenga lets entrepreneurs build and launch an AI-powered service marketplace. A photo caption on the page lists Hiruy Amanuel, a co-founder, as a board member.
A Venture the World episode page, also undated, says Amadou manages a team of over 80 across two offices in Ethiopia and Senegal, and that Amadou raised a $3M seed round. Capital Ethiopia reported in July 2024 that Amadou was one of the top 10 finalists, out of 21,000 applicants, in the 2022 edition of the Africa's Business Heroes competition, representing Ethiopia. The outlet says Amadou noted that youth unemployment is a major challenge and chose to build tech talent that can serve the world's IT needs from Africa. It also reports that Gebeya expanded to 32 African countries.
