Fresh from their great performance at the recent JA Africa COY competition, EG Company has launched a #PlantingChallenge for Earth Day 2021. The challenge involved asking their followers to share the favorite plant which they own and to
EG Company is committed to promoting tree planting and to protecting the environment. Earth day was an opportunity to their mission and to show that they mean business.
The ‘Online Financial Talk’, offered by JA Mascareignes, is a workshop on money management carried out online. It is the digital version of the ‘Managing Your Money Smartly’ program and was first run during the Global Money Week 2021.
The basics of financial management are taught through this online workshop. From the comfort of your home, you can learn about the ways of using money smartly and distinguish between needs, wants and financial goals. This workshop also guides the participants towards savings and helps them learn about budgeting so that they can reach their financial freedom with a proper plan. Ending with the main lessons for wealth-building, the participants will gain knowledge on how they can steer their life in terms of their finances.
The very first online workshop of financial talk was held in March 2021 through Zoom. It was a 45-minute session, engaging participants aged between 16 to 25 years. The latter felt free to clear their questions related to money management and the feedback at the end of the session showed that the participants found the workshop useful because learning on budgeting was new to them. Budgeting is one of the critical financial skills which increases the participants’ understanding of their spending, prioritizing their expenses, staying debt-free and focusing on long-term goals.
This digital version of the financial management program is open, free of charge to participants aged 16 to 25 years. It has been bulked up to two sessions of two hours each, and a certificate of participation will be provided upon completion of the program. Please feel free to contact JA Mascareignes for more information on registration for the online financial talk.
JA Eswatini has won the 10th JA Africa Company of the Year (COY) Competition which was held online from March 25 – 27, 2021. This year, 44 student entrepreneurs from 11 countries including Côte d’Ivoire, Eswatini, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe competed for the coveted title of Company of the Year. In the end, Nagro Tech PTY Ltd. from Eswatini emerged overall winners, taking home a $1,000 cash prize and eligibility to compete against COY winners from five other regions (JA Americas, JA Asia Pacific, JA Europe, INJAZ Al Arab and JA USA) for the inaugural de la Vega Global Entrepreneurship Award, which comes with a $15,000 cash prize and a paid entrepreneurship course.
Gracing the ceremony virtually, Acting Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Eswatini, His Excellency Themba Masuku, in his welcome address said, “JA in Eswatini and in the African continent at large, plays a huge role in financial literacy, entrepreneurship and work readiness empowerment amongst the youth. This kind of education is the one that will enforce sustained economic recovery for the country and the continent.”
Special Guest Speaker at the COY Awards ceremony, Senegalese CEO of Zoox and the first Black woman to head a billion-dollar self-driving car company, Aicha Evans, addressing the young entrepreneurs said, “The world needs many more of you. With everything going on, there are many opportunities so please make sure you have fun and believe in yourself.” She added, “I want to thank JA Worldwide. It is amazing what you are making possible for the world.”
Mr. Charles Olumuyiwa Moyela, JA Africa’s Board Chair, in his remarks said, “Africa’s youth continue to prove that talent, innovation and technology are at the heart of the modern enterprise. This is a sign that Africa’s youth are plugged into the key trends shaping the 4th and 5th industrial ages.”
JA Africa’s CEO, Simi Nwogugu, congratulated all the student entrepreneurs for making it to the regional competition and expressed her gratitude to the supporters of the competition – FedEx, Citi Foundation, Mastercard, Tomorrow Foundation, PMI Educational Foundation and LAWtrust – as well as speakers at the event, competition judges, JA Executive Directors, program staff and chaperones, who all contributed in diverse ways to the success of the competition.
The grand prize winner, Nagro Tech PTY Ltd. from Eswatini, produces a smart mobile tower garden with a hydroponic system and liquid fertilizers made from recycled left-over food. Coming in second place was GJI Technologie from Côte d’Ivoire, for their Eco-wind stand-alone fan with music and swivel functions, which can be controlled remotely with a smartphone. EG Company from Mauritius came in third place. They designed and produced fashionable, comfortable nasal masks that mitigate the risk of coronavirus exposure.
As part of the competition, FedEx Corp., the largest funder of the event, presented the Global Possibilities Award, recognizing the student-run businesses that best exhibits the principles of global connectivity—driven by Innovation, Connecting to New Markets, Fueling Community Development, and Sustainable and Social Responsibility. Taking home this award was Nagro Tech PTY Ltd from Eswatini.
The event was also supported by Citi Foundation, which works to promote economic progress and improve the lives of people in low-income communities around the world through its “More than Philanthropy” approach, which leverages the enormous expertise of Citi and its people to fulfill its mission and drive thought-leadership and innovation. Citi Foundation presented the Client Focus Award, which recognizes exceptional leadership in client satisfaction and a high level of commitment to quality customer service to Imperial from Gabon.
The award for Digital Innovation, funded by MasterCard, a global pioneer in payment innovation and technology connecting billions of consumers, issuers, merchants, governments and businesses, was presented to P-TUIM Holdings from Zimbabwe. This award recognizes the student company that best demonstrates innovation in using digital tools to enhance their business.
Also sponsoring the event was The Tomorrow Foundation, which supports African development by harnessing technology and brings the most useful techniques and technologies affordable to all Africans to improve their living standards. The Foundation supported the Future Tech Award, for the third year running, which is given to the company that best illustrates new, original, or groundbreaking ideas, from products to customer service to collaborations. The award went to Self-Made from Ghana and Music Plaques for You (MP4U) from South Africa.
PMI Educational Foundation, a new sponsor of the competition, presented the Project Management Award to Nagro Tech PTY Ltd. from Eswatini. The team won the award for showing strong understanding of project management principles and their ability to demonstrate the application of the five Project Management processes in running their company.
Bhembe Sivesetfu, CEO of Nagro Tech PTY Ltd. from Eswatini was adjudged the best CEO among his peers and received the CEO Rising Award, which recognizes exemplary business leadership. LAWtrust, Africa’s leading trust center, security integrator and security solutions supported this award.
“I’m delighted that so many of the teams got awards,” concluded Simi Nwogugu. “It shows that all the young entrepreneurs who participated in this year’s competition demonstrated commendable resilience in building their businesses amidst the losses, anxiety, global economic recession and school shutdowns. This also shows the impact JA Africa is having on Africa’s future by raising business leaders who possess the right amount of motivation and capacity to withstand global, industrial and economic disruptions.”
EG Company flew the Mauritian flag high in the Eswatini virtual sky, during the JA Africa Virtual Company of the Year Competition 2020. They won the Public Choice Award and finished on the podium, in third place, of the overall competition.
EG Company is a JA Company set up by 14 Grade 12 girls of Eden Girls College. Their goal is to sensitise people about the importance of protecting the environment. Their ambitious goal as a social enterprise is to plant 1.5million plants by 2025. Their products are a Fashionable Facemask (see attached) and a sanitizer holder (see attached). EG Company won the JA Mini Company Final in 2020 and won the right to represent Mauritius at the JA Africa COY Competition. At the COY, they competed with 12 other JA Companies from the other Member Nations of JA Africa. They were assessed through their final report, a 5 mins PowerPoint Presentation and a 5mins Question and Answers session with the judges. They also had the opportunity to take part in a series of webinar.
EG Company was represented by the following students and teachers at the JA Africa COY 2020:
Ms. Laroomee Chinapyel
Ms. Ramessur Sanjana
Ms. Romain Safirah
Ms. Teerbhun Pooja
Mrs. Teeha. Haswini (Mentor/Teacher)
The COY competition recognizes the achievements of JA Company Program students who have, in the past year, started and run their own businesses from capitalization to liquidation. This year’ competitors have had to overcome the many challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic to win their various National COY competitions and qualify to represent their countries at the JA Africa COY competition. The competing teams will pitch business ideas to judges while demonstrating their understanding of business and ability to articulate why their businesses performed as they did. In addition to the three finalist awards, students will also compete for several branded awards presented by the funders of the competition. Given the current pandemic, the competition was held virtually.
JA Africa will convene Africa’s brightest high school entrepreneurs for its 10th Africa Regional Company of the Year (COY) Competition . This year, the competition is going virtual and will be broadcast live from March 25 – 27, 2021. The competition theme, “Lead to Succeed”, is inspired by the need for young people to understand that in order to lead others, they must first lead themselves; that is, demonstrate personal leadership. Forty-four students representing 11 countries will compete for the grand prize of Company of the Year as well as branded awards. The teams will represent Côte d’Ivoire, Eswatini, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The COY competition recognizes the achievements of JA Company Program students who have, in the past year, started and run their own businesses from capitalization to liquidation. This year’s competitors have had to overcome the many challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic to win their various National COY competitions and qualify to represent their countries at the JA Africa COY competition. The competing teams will pitch business ideas to judges while demonstrating their understanding of business and ability to articulate why their businesses performed as they did. In addition to the three finalist awards, students will also compete for several branded awards presented by the funders of the competition.
Even though a key element of the COY competition, which is the opportunity for the students to travel to a foreign country, is missing this year, the host country, eSwatini remains committed to provide a virtual experience doused with Eswatini’s rich culture.
Adding to the excitement of this year’s competition, the Acting Prime Minister of the Kingdom of eSwatini, His Excellency Themba Masuku, and, CEO of Zoox and first black woman to head a billion dollar self-driving car company, Aicha Evans , will deliver special messages to our students and the many young people that will tune in to watch the competition. Also speaking at this year’s event are Asheesh Advani, CEO of JA Worldwide; Mr. Charles Olumuyiwa Moyela, JA Africa Board Chair; and Mrs. Nokukhanya Gamedze, Board Chair of JA Eswatini.
This year’s competition is supported by FedEx, Citi Foundation, Mastercard, Tomorrow Foundation, PMI Educational Foundation and LAWtrust , who through their support, demonstrate a commitment to empowering young Africans to own their economic future through entrepreneurship education.
JA Africa’s programs expose young Africans to the world of global business and ultimately inspires them to explore entrepreneurship, not just for self-employment but job creation for others as well.
Visit www.ja-africa.org/coy2020 for more information and the competition agenda.
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FedEx Corp:
FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) provides customers and businesses worldwide with a broad portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and business services. With annual revenue of $79 billion, the company offers integrated business solutions through operating companies competing collectively, operating collaboratively and innovating digitally under the respected FedEx brand. Consistently ranked among the world’s most admired and trusted employers, FedEx inspires its more than 570,000 team members to remain focused on safety, the highest ethical and professional standards and the needs of their customers and communities. FedEx is committed to connecting people and possibilities around the world responsibly and resourcefully, with a goal to achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2040. To learn more, please visit about.fedex.com .
Citi . Foundation:
Citi Foundation works to promote economic progress and improve the lives of people in low-income communities around the world. Citi invests in efforts that increase financial inclusion, catalyze job opportunities for youth, and reimagine approaches to building economically vibrant cities. The Citi Foundation’s “More than Philanthropy” approach leverages the enormous expertise of Citi and its people to fulfill its mission and drive thought leadership and innovation. www.citifoundation.com/citi/foundation
Mastercard . Incorporated .. (NYSE:MA) :
Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive, digital economy that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions safe, simple, smart, and accessible. Using secure data and networks, partnerships and passion, our innovations and solutions help individuals, financial institutions, governments, and businesses realize their greatest potential. Our decency quotient, or DQ, drives our culture and everything we do inside and outside of our company. With connections across more than 210 countries and territories, we are building a sustainable world that unlocks priceless possibilities for all.
Tomorrow Foundation:
Tomorrow Foundation supports African development. They harness technology and bring the most useful techniques and technologies affordably to all Africans to improve their living standards and boost the economies of African countries.
PMI Education Foundation:
PMI Educational Foundation (PMIEF) is a 501(c)(3) supporting organization of the Project Management Institute (PMI), the world’s leading not-for-profit professional membership association for those who consider project, program, or portfolio management their profession. Founded in 1990, PMIEF cultivates long-term relationships with nonprofits across the globe to help them integrate project management in their youth programs and to build their own project management capacity. The foundation achieves its mission to “enable youth to realize their potential and transform lives through project management” and its vision for “inspiring youth to achieve their goals, making dreams a reality” by investing in high-quality organizations that exemplify a commitment to preparing young people for 21st century success and an appreciation for both the societal application and value of project management. Visit the PMIEF Partner page on PMIEF.org for more information.
LAWtrust:
LAWtrust is Africa’s leading trust centre, security integrator and security solutions developer and also the company responsible for South Africa’s new national smart ID cards. With more than 20 years’ experience, LAWtrust’s CEO Christi Maherry lives and breathes everything related to tech, entrepreneurship, leadership as well as youth- and female-empowerment. Christi is a Board member of Junior Achievement Africa.