Sarah Idahosa empowers African women with blockchain education while driving community growth and partnerships in decentralised finance.
Sarah Idahosa’s story in the blockchain world started during the 2020 pandemic when she encountered blockchain through a network marketing company promising quick returns. With no technical background and having come from a microbiology career, she initially viewed the technology as nothing more than a fast way to make money.
The turning point came when she sold all the Ethereum she had accumulated. That one decision, which she quickly realised was a misstep, pushed her to confront how little she understood. Instead of walking away, she decided to study the space seriously, and that moment of loss became the foundation for a new path.
Idahosa enrolled in blockchain-focused training at Nirvana Academy and immersed herself in courses, self-learning, and community discussions. Her curiosity sharpened into competence, and her competence matured into the confidence to pursue a full transition into the Web3 industry.
That shift led her to Mara, where she became the Lead of the Nigeria Token and Community Team.
*Mara is a pan-African financial technology, cryptocurrency, blockchain, and cryptoeconomy company.
There, she managed token adoption efforts, community education, and engagement at scale, helping thousands of first-time users understand decentralised systems and how to participate in them.
Her growth in the Web3 space continued when she joined Mansa, a DeFi protocol providing liquidity to multinational blue-chip companies in emerging markets. As Partnership and Community Growth Lead, she works at the intersection of decentralised finance, corporate liquidity, and emerging-market payment financing.
Her role involves coordinating partnerships, driving user adoption, expanding community networks, and ensuring that DeFi tools are accessible to businesses that previously operated without exposure to decentralised financial systems.
Despite these achievements, her most influential work is Women In DeFi, the nonprofit organisation she founded in 2022 to address the severe underrepresentation of women in blockchain and decentralised finance. The group was born from her personal experience navigating a male-dominated industry and from her desire to create a space where women could learn without intimidation.
Since its inception, Women In DeFi has trained over 5,000 women across Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana, including women from underserved and underrepresented communities. It provides structured blockchain education, mentorship, project support, skill development, and community guidance designed to help women transition from Web2 roles into Web3 careers.
The organisation measures its impact through the number of women-led blockchain projects, collaborations, and job placements emerging from its network. More than 30 per cent of its members have launched projects, integrated Web3 technologies into their existing careers, or secured new roles in the ecosystem.
Women In DeFi has also established partnerships with industry players, including Propel, StarkNet Africa, Base Africa, and Cassava Network, which have expanded opportunities for its members. Its visibility has grown through media features, interviews, and community events that amplify women’s voices and success stories.
Today, Sarah Idahosa is recognised as one of the Africa’s Top 30 Most Influential Young Netpreneurs. She is also a sought-after speaker at major African fintech, blockchain, and technology summits, where she advocates for inclusion, education, and the long-term economic value of bringing more African women into decentralised finance.
