Africa has experienced a significant transformation in the technology sector, and at the heart of these innovations are pioneering women who have impacted the tech ecosystem.
These women have broken traditional stereotypical barriers and overcome notions to become pioneers of impact in the African ecosystem and the world.
Here are 10 women who have impacted Africa’s tech ecosystem with their groundbreaking achievements. They are just a few of the many African “sheroes” — a name I’d dare call these women — driving innovation and breaking records in the industry.
1. Funke Opeke, Founder, MainOne
Renowned as the woman who built the first private submarine cable connecting West Africa to Europe. Opeke assumed the role of Chief Technical Officer at MTN Nigeria in 2005 and then Chief Operating Officer at NITEL after returning to Nigeria from the United States, where she studied.
She launched her company, MainOne, in July 2010 and led it to become one of the premier providers of Internet services in West Africa. Prominent telcos like MTN and 9Mobile were among the first users of MainOne’s broadband services.
2. Ada Nduka Oyom, Founder, SheCode Africa
She boasts a degree in electrical engineering from Obafemi Awolowo University and has since been a career motivation for many women. She stands as one of the “Sheroes” of the telecommunications sector especially in West Africa. In October 2024, Equinix, a US-based data company, completed MainOne’s post-acquisition integration, after acquiring it in 2021 under her guidance as Managing Director. In 2018, she was featured in Forbes’ list of the World’s Top 50 Women In Tech.
Ada Oyom began her journey as a self-taught software engineer and open-source advocate at Interswitch Group, inspiring women in tech along the way. Growing up in the suburban part of Lagos, she went on to study Microbiology at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
During her second year, she attended a Google Student Ambassadors meet-up and realised there were few women in attendance. The only participant was from a non-Computer Science background. This birthed her interest in technology, igniting her passion to address the gender disparity in Africa’s tech ecosystem
Oyom founded the She Code Africa community, which has impacted over 72,000 African women and girls who are into tech through technical training, mentorship, and community support, and the Open Source Community Africa.
Let the best of tech news come to you
Join 30,000 subscribers who receive Techpoint Digest, a fun week-daily 5-minute roundup of happenings in African and global tech, directly in your inbox, hours before everyone else.
Her impact cuts across strategic partnerships with global companies like FedEx, Google, Glovo, and Zoho. She was included in the 100 most inspiring women in Nigeria by Leading Ladies Africa.
3. Tarneem Saeed, Founder, ALsoug
In only a few years, Tarneem Saeed has built her eCommerce startup into the largest online marketplace in Sudan, even offering e-payment and logistics services.
After graduating, Saeed worked as a corporate lawyer at Allen & OveryLLP, a global law firm in over 60 countries. In 2014, she took a sabbatical to visit Sudan, and during that visit, she observed the country’s disconnect from the digital economy, which inspired her entrepreneurial ventures.
As a country whose economy suffered due to an international embargo, Saeed sought to tackle that limitation with her platform, and she has founded the base for its solution. The company secured a $5 million funding in 2021 to scale its digital payment network. It also launched its payments and transfer service, MyCashi, and has recently partnered with Blue Nile Mashreg Bank for a more seamless transfer service.
4. Blessing Abeng, Ingressive for Good
Initially aspiring to become a medical doctor after witnessing a doctor save her father’s life, the native of Cross River State changed her career trajectory toward branding and communications. As an expert in communication, she discovered a passion for helping businesses identify their unique brand identity and effectively communicate with their target audience.
In 2017, Abeng co-founded Disha, a tech platform that assists creatives with showcasing their works. The platform did relatively well before being acquired by Flutterwave in 2021. Beyond that, she launched Ingressive for Good (I4G) alongside Maya Hordan-Famodu and Sean Burrowes, a non-profit organisation dedicated to empowering youths with tech skills, resources, and community support.
The company is backed by prominent organisations like Google’s parent company, Alphabet, and collaborates with training institutions like Coursera, DataCamp, and Meta, with more than 130,000 trained students recorded.
In 2022, she received the African Achiever Award and was listed among the United Nations 100 Most Influential People of African Descent Under 40. The following year, she was honoured as a Forbes Africa 30 under 30 laureate.
5. Fara Ashiru Jituboh, Co-founder and CEO/CTO, Okra
Jituboh is a software engineer and entrepreneur fluent in over 20 programming languages. Her effective management skills have drawn the attention of many.
She is the Co-founder, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Okra, a Nigerian-based fintech startup that provides open finance infrastructure, enabling developers and businesses to build personalised digital products and services. The company recently ventured into cloud services with the launch of Nebula.
With over a decade of experience, she has worked with several Fortune 500 companies in the United States, including JP Morgan Chase, BMW, and Canva. Before founding Okra, Jituboh co-founded Shixels Studios, where she served as CTO, working for blue-chip clients such as Airtel, AXA Mansard, RenMoney, and MTech.
6. Omobola Johnson, Senior Partner, TLcom Capital
Dr Johnson was Nigeria’s first Minister of Communication Technology, who spearheaded the adoption of the National Broadband Plan and the NigComSat-1R Satellite launch.
Graduating with a bachelor’s degree in electronics and electrical engineering and a master’s degree in digital electronics, Johnson decided to utilise her skills as a public servant from 2011 to 2015, under President Goodluck Jonathan. Before that, she worked at different tech companies, including Accenture, and had co-founded a women’s organisation called WIMBIZ in 2001.
After public service, Dr Johnson became an honorary chairperson for Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) as well as a senior partner at TLcom Capital, an Africa-focused tech VC firm and a board member of Okra, Andela, and Kobo360.
7. Miishe Addy, Jetstreams Africa
Born in Texas, USA, Miishe pursued a degree in philosophy from Harvard University. After winning the London Business School Accel Award for African Startups, she returned to Ghana to pursue her passion for innovation. In 2017, she taught and mentored software entrepreneurs through the MeltWater Entrepreneur School of Technology (MEST).
While mentoring, she met Solomon Torgbor, and they founded Jetstreams in 2018, which has now expanded beyond Ghana to other African countries. The company also operates in the UK, US, Europe, and China, and had recently contributed to the World Economic Forum 2025 Trade Report.
Prior to that, Addy had worked as a strategy analyst for Bain & Company, New York, and had practised transactional law at Watchell, Lipton, and Rosen & Katz. Her impressive work earned her a spot on Forbes Woman Africa as a New Wealth Creator.
8. Nneile Nkholise, Founder, iMed
This South African mechanical engineer and entrepreneur started her career in 2011 as a mechanical engineer in South Africa’s pubic works department. In 2015, she founded iMed Tech Group, a biotech company specialising in custom-made medical solutions using Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAM) techniques.
By 2018, Nkhilose co-founded 3DIMO, a company that leverages technology to enhance livestock management and agricultural productivity. She had been named among the Inspiring 50 women in South Africa in 2017 and was featured in Forbes 30 under 30 list for 2018.
9. Jihan Abass, Founder, Lami Insurance Technology
Currently the founder and CEO of Lami, a Nairobi-based insurtech and a digital vehicle insurance provider, Abass ventured into the insurtech industry after working as a commodity futures trader in London. She quit her job and moved back home to Kenya to pursue her dream in insurance technology.
Her company’s flagship product, the Griffin Motor App, streamlines the process of purchasing car insurance, reducing it to less than two minutes. Lami Insurance Technologies secured $1.8 million in 2021 to grow its API insurance platform, recently secured a $3.7 million funding from Harlem Capital, and has sold over 120,000 policies.
Abass was named among the leading innovators of the continent at the Quartz Africa Innovators 2021.
10. Oladiwura Oladepo, Founder, Tech4Dev
Oladepo is another female tech community builder inspiring African ladies with individual and entrepreneurial skills. Through her work and expertise, she has encouraged women to utilise their skills in making a difference in their communities.
She is a social entrepreneur who is passionate about women in tech development, hence her Technology for Social Change and Development Initiative (Tech4Dev).
This non-government organisation, with grounds in over 22 African countries, has launched the Women Techsters Initiative, aiming to train five million women and girls in digital and tech skills by 2030. Oladepo won the Female Innovator of the Year 2023, AfriTech awards.
