World
Daystar Power Founders Honoured as High Impact Entrepreneurs
By Adedapo Adesanya
The international jury of the non-governmental organisation, Endeavor, recently honoured two German founders and managing directors of the Nigerian solar energy company, Daystar Power, as High Impact Entrepreneurs.
Messrs Christian Wessels and Jasper Graf von Hardenberg, the only selected entrepreneurs from Nigeria, were honoured at the 93rd International Selection Panel (ISP) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, after being picked from 23 high-impact entrepreneurs from 11 markets.
Christian Wessels and Jasper Graf von Hardenberg founded the solar energy company Daystar Power in Lagos in 2017 and have since installed more than 170 solar systems for schools, hospitals, banks, factories and other facilities in West African countries such as Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Togo with a total capacity of 8 megawatts.
This has already saved more than 800 tons of carbon dioxide. Daystar Power relies primarily on local workers and offers them above-average income as well as health insurance according to European standards and further training opportunities.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Daystar Power, Mr Christian Wessels, who had once been named Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum in 2012, said, “A lack of electricity is the central obstacle to growth for the whole of West Africa. The chronically underserved regions here have so far been dependent on the operation of diesel generators, which is expensive, unreliable and environmentally harmful.
“We have set ourselves the task of equipping West Africa with sustainable solar energy, thereby creating the necessary basis for further investment. I see Endeavor’s award as both a confirmation of our efforts and an incentive.”
The other recipient and co-founder, Mr Jasper Graf von Hardenberg, noted that, “We have been committed to managing the company according to leading international standards since Daystar Power was founded in 2017. These include adherence to European social standards in Africa, the advancement of women and continuous training and education of employees.”
“Since the founding of the company, we have created more than 100 jobs at various locations in Nigeria and Ghana and the majority of our managers are women. In this way, we are already exercising a leadership role that has now been rewarded by Endeavor,” he added.
On the part of Endeavor Nigeria, Ms Eloho Gihan-Mbelu, the Managing Director, welcomed both Messrs Wessels and Graf von Hardenberg into its community of high-impact entrepreneurs in Nigeria meaning they join over 2,000 Endeavor Entrepreneurs scaling transformational companies in more than 35 growth and underserved markets globally.
She said, “We look forward to supporting Daystar Power with access to capital, talent, new markets and experienced mentorship on their journey to scale.
“Christian and Jasper successfully passed through Endeavor’s rigorous selection process, designed to identify entrepreneurs that combine the potential to effectively leverage our unparalleled global network of support, with mindsets to multiply their impact on the next generation of entrepreneurs in their local ecosystems.
“Historically, less than three percent of Endeavor Entrepreneur candidates have successfully crossed this milestone. Endeavor focuses on companies that have successfully passed through the initial start-up phase, and demonstrate the potential for rapid expansion.”
Endeavor founded in 1997 is active in more than 35 markets and coordinates its activities from 20 offices worldwide. The aim of the NGO is to influence societies in a culturally, financially and socially sustainable way with the help of the commitment of high-impact entrepreneurs.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria regained its position as Africa’s leading destination for equity startup investment in the first half of 2026, raising $214 million in equity financing and a total of $254 million across equity and debt, according to the latest Africa: The Big Deal report.
The report, titled H1 2026: Mapping the Money, showed that Nigeria ranked second on the continent in total funding, behind Egypt, which attracted $327 million, while Kenya and South Africa followed with $126 million and $83 million, respectively.
However, the report noted that Egypt’s top position was largely driven by a single fundraising by electric mobility company Spiro, which secured $327 million, including $270 million in equity and $57 million in debt. Excluding debt financing, Nigeria emerged as Africa’s largest equity funding market in the first six months of the year.
According to the breakdown by Africa: The Big Deal, Nigeria’s equity funding of $214 million was higher than Egypt’s $183 million, while South Africa and Kenya attracted $66 million and $46 million, respectively.
Beyond funding value, Nigeria also led the continent in the number of startups that raised at least $100,000 during the review period, reclaiming the top spot after what the report described as an “underwhelming” second half of 2025.
The publication observed that Nigeria’s fundraising performance has remained relatively stable over the past few years and exceeded the $250 million mark for the first time since 2022, pointing to renewed investor confidence in the country’s startup ecosystem.
It also found that while the Big Four startup markets—Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya and South Africa—continued to dominate Africa’s investment landscape, their combined share of total funding stood at 58 per cent in the first half of 2026.
“Zooming back on the Big Four (110 out of 190 $100k+ deals, i.e. 58%), Nigeria is head and shoulders above its peers, with Egypt and Kenya almost tying, and South Africa in fourth position again,” the report noted.
The report highlighted contrasting performances among the continent’s largest startup ecosystems. While Nigeria and Egypt maintained strong funding momentum, Kenya recorded its weakest funding performance since early 2021 after a strong second half of 2025, and South Africa failed to attract $100 million in funding during the period despite leading the continent a year earlier.
Africa: The Big Deal also noted a broader shift in investor behaviour, with funding increasingly concentrated in larger transactions while early-stage investments continued to decline. According to the publication, the drop in smaller funding rounds reflects growing concerns about limited capital available for early-stage startups across Africa.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Accessing the US Dollar in the East Africa region has now been made easier with the expansion of the stablecoin settlement infrastructure of SCRYPT.
This development enables banks, payment providers and corporate treasury teams to move value into and out of the continent in real time.
Businesses paying international suppliers frequently have to convert local currency into USD before purchasing stablecoins for settlement, incurring FX conversions and spreads before any payment is made.
But SCRYPT is eliminating this intermediate conversion by enabling direct settlement corridors for local African currencies into stablecoins.
This development allows businesses to move from local currency to stablecoin settlement in a single licensed transaction, without first sourcing rationed bank dollars, as stablecoins are increasingly becoming settlement infrastructure rather than an investment product.
The expansion adds settlement support across four African currencies: the Kenyan shilling (KES), Tanzanian shilling (TZS), Rwandan franc (RWF) and Ugandan shilling (UGX). Each corridor is delivered through the same full-stack infrastructure our clients already use for trading, custody and treasury operations.
Speaking on this, the chief executive of SCRYPT, Norman Wooding, said, “Across Africa, stablecoin adoption is driven by economic need, not speculation.
“Businesses here are not chasing yield; they are trying to pay suppliers and manage treasury without losing margin to a banking system that rations dollars. Licensed, fair-rate dollar access is the clearest proof of what this infrastructure is for.”
Also commenting, the Managing Director of Markets & Trading at SCRYPT, Mr Gabriel Titopoulos, said, “Until now, reaching stablecoins from local African currencies meant buying scarce dollars and incurring several layers of conversion costs.
“SCRYPT removes this friction. Firms and payment providers can now settle straight from local currencies through live corridors, with local partners.”
World
African Graduates Association Promoting Multifaceted Initiatives With Russian Educational Institutions
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
In preparations for the third Russia-Africa Summit, scheduled for late October 2026, Dr Francois Ngan, deputy chairman of the Union of Associations of African Graduates of Soviet and Russian Universities, during an official working visit, has held a consultative meeting with Professor Vladimir Filippov, the President of the Russian University of Peoples’ Friendship (RUDN), and former Minister of Higher Education of Russia, Chairman of the National Commission for Accreditation of Higher Education.
RUDN is an educational institution established in 1960, primarily to provide higher education to Third World students. It has now become a popular multidisciplinary spot for many students, especially from developing countries. The university offers various academic programmes and has research infrastructure that comprises laboratories and interdisciplinary centres. The university is named after the former Congolese leader, Patrice Lumumba.
Dr Francois Ngan and Professor Filippov discussed the importance of the Graduates Association as a continental platform dedicated to strengthening unity, cooperation, and promoting shared progress among African graduates who studied in the former Soviet Union and in the Russian Federation. They also reviewed multifaceted initiatives that could bring together alumni associations from across Africa, whose members obtained education and professional training, and cultural experiences in Soviet and Russian institutions of higher learning.
Professor Filippov expressed optimism in addressing emerging challenges as a result of shifting geopolitical changes, emphasised strategic cooperation in the educational sphere with Africa, in general, and with the Republic of Cameroon, in particular, and further about the integration of African students during their studies in the Russian Federation.
The meeting also touched on academic and scientific work, the possibility of rewriting a scientific thesis, and the official organisation of transferring versions translated into six languages for the library of RUDN. Significant questions relating to Russia’s educational opportunities, collaborations and partnerships involving African countries were thoroughly discussed.
The Union of Associations of African Graduates of Soviet and Russian Universities was created under one continental umbrella to promote friendship, for professional networking, to engage in cultural exchange, and with particular emphasis on forging strategic cooperation between Africa and Russia.
