Meet Four African Women Change-Makers; Changing the Face of Africa!

As an African it always brings joy to my heart when I hear something positive about Africa. It’s rare that you see a news reporter or journalist cover a story on the change makers of Africa or the young leaderships who are passionate about creating a better future for Africa. New reporters or journalist are quick to cover a story on Madonna adopting a child from Africa or Oprah building a school in South Africa and oh how can we forget Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt adopting an orphan in Africa. Though, informing the world about what going on is important, I think it’s also important to give coverage to those young Africans who are trying to make a difference in their community. The media often gives covers the  celebrities who give to Africa, but gives very little to African civilians who are making a difference in their community. It wasn’t until recently when The World Economic Forum announced its Young Global leaders class of 2013 on CNN that we see these change-makers receive recognition for their achievements. Every year The World Economic Forum describes the best of todays leaders under the age of 40. Here are some of the most inspiring Africans who made this list, we here at BCG call them Change-Makers and I for one salute them with the utmost respect for giving back and changing the face of Africa!

Marieme Jamme

Marieme Jamme, is  one of the first Senegalese- born African females to make the list. Jamme is a writer and blogger, who owns a company called Spot One Global Solutions. Her company is UK-based  and aims to help information technology organizations gain a foothold in emerging markets; she encourages global investments in African IT infrastucture. By encouraging these investors she hopes that it will bring modern technology to Africa and help its growing economy.  ” The very Simple thing we are trying to do is changing the continent. I think now we’re influencing governments in Africa, we’re working with many technology companies in the continent, so there’s an identity there right now, so we’re trying to keep it up– we’re very proud in what we do in Africa,” she says.  Mariéme is also a co-founder of Africa Gathering, the first global platform bringing together entrepreneurs and others to share ideas about development in Africa. Africa Gathering has already held successful events in London, Paris, Washington DC, Nairobi and Kampala. She has also used her knowledge of African dialects and languages to facilitate communication, working closely with local communities, businesses, investors and governments both inside and outside the continent. These efforts have enabled her to forge a reputation as an advocate for African development in a number of areas: education, governance, healthcare, poverty, the role of women, sustainable development and new media & technologies. Marieme recently helped Google, UEMOA, IBM and Shell to organise strategic conferences in Africa.

Rosebell Kagumire

Ugandan multimedia journalist Rosebell Kagumire  also made the list! Her work focuses  on peace and conflict issues in the Eastern Africa region. Kagumire is the coordinator for Africans Act for Africa, a network of citizens and activists from across the continent to put pressure on African governments to step up to various challenges. The organization advocates for increased responsibility of African governments in African conflicts, disasters and other emergency situations. Rosebell has worked as an Editor and Rights in Crisis Digital Campaigner.  Through her experience in documenting and communicating women’s war experiences in Uganda, South Sudan and DR Congo, she has seen the worst of the worst. Through her work with Isis-Women’s International Cross Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE)  as a communications assistant, she has published several articles on women in conflict and post conflict settings on the African continent. Her blog won the Waxal – Blogging Africa Awards,  first African journalist blogging awards hosted by Panos Institute of West Africa in 2009.

 Dr. Ola Orekunrin is another African that made the list, Orekunrin is a young doctor, trainee

Dr. Ola Orekunrin

pilot, and founder of Flying Doctors of Nigeria ,West Africa’s first air balance service. Flying Doctors Nigeria is a social enterprise providing urgent air ambulances to leading health institutions, insurance companies and private individuals throughout West Africa.  Her company uses planes and helicopters to provide emergency response for health institutions, companies, and individuals throughout the region. Passionate about Africa, Orekumrin is interested in improving standards of healthcare in the continent, particularly trauma management. At just 26 years old,  Dr. Ola Orekunrin has already acheived more than most of us will acheive in a lifetime.  Her story is both compelling and inspiration as a doctor by age 21, we can only imagine what the future has in store for Dr. Orekunrin.  Born and raised in England and of Nigerian heritage,she made history when at the age of 21 she became a medical doctor thus becoming one of the youngest medical doctors in the country. She started her medical degree at the University of York; raised by foster parents, her family often struggled to make ends meet. According to her, her foster mother, Dorren was a tremendous influence in shaping her life. , Orekunrin says she was prompted to start the new venture after her younger sister died of anaemia. Her sister was always in and out of hospitals and eventually died for lack of the availability of an air ambulance.

Saran Kaba Jones

And rounding out out four fabulous African Change Makers, meet Saran Kaba Jones she is the founder of FACE Africa, a group working to provide access to clean drinking water to tens of thousands of people in rural parts of Liberia. Since its launched in 2009, FACE Africa has implemented several water and sanitation projects in under-served communites in the country, including building hand-duf wells, rehabilitating existing wells, and constructing communal wells. Their mission is  ambitious yet simple, provide clean, safe drinking water for every single person in  Liberia. The organization funds and supports sustainable clean water, sanitation and hygiene projects through partnerships with local communities, partner organizations and government agencies. Under Jones’s leadership FACE Africa implements a host of water solutions including: Hand Dug Wells,  Drilled Wells, Rehabilitation of Existing Wells, building Communal Latrines, Distribution of Point-to-Use Water Treatment Solutions, Training Water & Sanitation Committees  and Hygiene Workshops. A Liberian national, Jones, now 29, fled her country at the age of 8 with her family in the wake of a devastating civil war which lasted well over a decade. Returning home in 2008– nearly 20 years later, she came face to face with the harsh economic realities of a post-conflict Liberia. “The long and devastating civil war had left Liberia’s infrastructure in ruins – roads, buildings, health clinics, schools, farms and factories were almost totally destroyed,” she says. “There was no electricity, no running water or sewage system, and an inadequate education system.” Liberia was broken. Sara Kaba Jones is on a mission, and we support her 100%!

Changing the face of Africa these four women are no doubt on a mission, Change Makers they are indeed, life savers, humanitarians and women with a mission. Don’t you agree this is more newsworthy than Madonna adopting an African baby, we’re just saying! Do support these women and their causes, giving is good!