North-West University (NWU) alumnus Sydwell Sihlangu and founder of Eco-Agro Enterprise Pty Ltd has been selected as one of the winners of Africa-France Summit and Digital Africa’s 1 000 Entrepreneurs Challenge competition.

Through the 1 000 Entrepreneurs Challenge, up to 1 000 African entrepreneurs are identified and invited to present their solutions to foster sustainable cities.

These entrepreneurs were invited to attend the Africa-France 2020 Summit which was due to start on 4 June 2020 in Bordeaux, France. Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it could no longer take place.

Fortunately, all is not lost. “As a laureate of the competition I will benefit from a dedicated support programme which will allow each laureate access to funding, training, networking and visibility for their projects. This programme will be supported by a network of French and African partners,” says Sydwell.

“I will also automatically have access to the Digital Africa Campus, which is launching a "Resilient Summer School" starting in July 2020,” he adds.

Sydwell’s concept of creating a mushroom hub – to empower South African smallholder farmers and contribute to the elimination of world hunger – scored him a coveted place among the 1 000 entrepreneurs.

It is beyond doubt that his academic background has contributed immensely to his successful entrepreneurial journey thus far.

“As I continue to climb the ladder, my goal is to teach and promote the importance of entrepreneurial skills and how it can enable agricultural graduates to create their own agribusinesses,” says Sydwell.

Sydwell Sihlangu.