Kenya has once again shown its prowess in the technology industry after trouncing all its continental peers, proving it has the most competitive environment for start ups.
On Tuesday, May 10, the World Economic Forum (WEF) released its annual 2022 Technology Pioneers list which includes firms employing technology and innovation to positively impact on business and society.
On the African Continent, six companies are on the list, three of which are from Kenya.
They are Access Afya - which provides high-quality healthcare for the global mass market, Pula Advisors, - an insurance and technology company providing comprehensive insurance solutions as well as Sendy, which is known for building fulfillment infrastructure for e-commerce and consumer brands.
Other companies that are featured on the list are Ampersand from Rwanda - which is a leading battery-swap network for light vehicles as well as Okra from Nigeria which digitalises financial services for Africa.
HawKar, an innovative start-up headquartered in Tunisia, North Africa also made it to the list.
African Continent beat the Middle East, which had only two innovative companies on the list, all from Israel as well as Latin America which only recorded five entries.
WEF also recorded a spike in companies led by women which exceeded a third of the total listed companies.
"For the first time ever, more than one-third of the selected firms are led by women, which is well above the industry average. The 2022 Tech Pioneers are based in 30 countries – with Vietnam, Rwanda and the Czech Republic represented for the first time – and this year’s cohort is shaping industries around the world.
"Following their selection as Technology Pioneers, this year’s companies will join an impressive group of alumni that include many household names, such as Airbnb, Google, Kickstarter, Mozilla, Spotify, TransferWise (now Wise), Twitter and Wikimedia," read the WEF statement in part.
Kenya continues to cement its position as the most preferred destination for tech companies following the entry of several multinationals.
Microsoft, Alphabet, which owns Google, and Visa have all set up continental headquarters in Nairobi.
