Recently, Solape Akinpelu, founder of HerVest, won the $30,000 top prize at the 2025 Aurora Tech Award, an international competition celebrating women founders whose tech solutions create real social impact. The Aurora Tech Award is organised by inDrive, a global mobility and urban services platform. The award ceremony was held in Cairo, Egypt, from April 11 to 13, 2025.
The winning brand
HerVest, launched in 2019, now has a community of over 40,000 members. Through its work with smallholder women farmers, it contributes to food security and sustainable agriculture in Africa.
The brand was recognised for its innovation in strengthening food security and agricultural supply chains across Africa. It also focuses on supporting local farming communities and helping financially underserved African women, especially smallholder female farmers, gain access to savings, impact investing, and credit.
HerVest’s work aims to close the $42 billion gender finance gap in Africa by giving women access to essential financial tools. The platform empowers them to invest, grow, and contribute to sustainable economic development. It has helped over 25,000 women to save, invest, and grow their businesses. Through the platform, Akinpelu seeks to build a society where every African woman, regardless of location or economic background, can create wealth and achieve her financial goals.
Akinpelu’s win is particularly significant. She is the second Nigerian in a row to win the Aurora Tech Award, following Folake Owodunni’s victory in 2024. On its own, this serves as a strong signal of Nigerian women’s growing influence and leadership in global tech innovation.
This year’s competition was highly competitive, attracting over 2,000 applications from 116 countries. HerVest’s selection from such a diverse and global pool speaks volumes about its impact on the continent.
Solape’s win is for inclusive finance, African women, and the future of socially driven tech solutions across the continent.
