The Paul Katema Foundation has tonight awarded 16 outstanding young entrepreneurs with K200,000 each in seed funding as part of the ongoing Young Builders Challenge, an initiative aimed at empowering youth through entrepreneurship.
The award ceremony ceremony and music performance was streamed online on Paul Katema Foundation Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1FZv93qBsS/?mibextid=wwXIfr and Nya Uyu.
The winners, drawn from both public and private universities across Malawi, were selected after presenting innovative business ideas to the Foundation.
These finalists, together with their runners up and 10 others from the open (non school affiliates) will now advance to the next phase of the competition, where even greater rewards await: the ultimate winner will receive K5 million, the runner-up K2.5 million, and the third-place finalist K1 million. All top prize winners will also benefit from tailored business mentorship.
Speaking during a live online announcement, Paul Katema, founder of the Foundation, stressed that the selection process prioritized merit.
“We combined public voting with a thorough evaluation from a diverse panel of six judges,” he said. “The judges’ input contributed 40 percent to the overall decision, ensuring a transparent and fair process.”
Katema further revealed that the competition attracted over 700 entries, demonstrating the high level of interest and entrepreneurial spirit among Malawi’s youth.
“This initiative is about more than just funding, It’s about igniting the potential in our young people and equipping them with the tools to build businesses that drive change in their communities using home grown solutions.”
The final awarding ceremony is scheduled for the end of this year.
The fourty finalists were picked by public voting and a panel of six Judges drawn from diverse backgrounds.
The Judges were; Bensam from the multimedia sector, Vincent Kumwenda from the ICT industry, Fellistus Ngwira and Dennis Imaan from the Multi-Media, and Sparkle Topola, a professional nurse.
