By Kadiatu Sankoh
Orange Sierra Leone on Monday, 3 August 2026, hosted the 8th Edition of the Orange Social Venture Prize (OSVP) 2026 at the Orange Digital Center, Hill Station, Freetown, celebrating the country’s most promising innovators and entrepreneurs with awards worth hundreds of thousands of New Leones.
The Orange Social Venture Prize is an annual competition that recognizes and supports innovative business ideas with the potential to create meaningful and lasting social impact. This year’s edition attracted more than 1,000 applications from across Sierra Leone, reflecting the growing entrepreneurial spirit among young innovators.
Speaking at the event, Orange Sierra Leone Chief Executive Officer, Madam Aïcha Touré, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to empowering young entrepreneurs and promoting innovation across the country.
She noted that Sierra Leone has one of Africa’s youngest populations, and emphasized Orange’s determination to create opportunities that enable young people to transform innovative ideas into sustainable businesses.
According to Madam Touré, since partnering with Innovation SL in 2019, Orange has invested significantly in nurturing startups through mentorship, funding, and business development support. She stressed that innovation is not just about generating ideas, but about transforming those ideas into practical solutions capable of creating jobs and addressing societal challenges.
“Ideas alone cannot transform society without innovators who are willing to bring them to life,” she said, encouraging young Sierra Leoneans to develop solutions capable of competing across the African continent.
She further highlighted that this year’s competition introduced the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) during the selection process. Applications from Sierra Leone were compared with winning startups from across Africa over the past five years to identify innovations with the greatest potential for growth and impact.
Following a rigorous evaluation process, Innovation SL and Orange shortlisted eight finalists five competing for the Orange Social Venture Prize and three for the Tech Queen Award after assessing their business models, social impact, scalability, and market potential.
Innovation SL, the implementing partner of the competition since 2019, expressed confidence that this year’s finalists possess solutions capable of addressing challenges not only in Sierra Leone, but across Africa.
Representing the Government of Sierra Leone, the Deputy Minister of Technical and Higher Education, Sarjoh Aziz Kamara, commended Orange Sierra Leone for its continued investment in youth innovation and entrepreneurship.
Speaking on behalf of the Minister of Technical and Higher Education, Dr. Haja Ramatulai Wurie, the Deputy Minister described the Orange Social Venture Prize as a remarkable initiative that complements government efforts to build a knowledge-based and digitally enabled economy.
He encouraged young innovators to continue developing bold and practical solutions capable of creating employment opportunities, improving livelihoods, and contributing to Sierra Leone’s sustainable economic transformation.
The competition featured pitch presentations from the eight finalists, each given five minutes to present their business idea before answering questions from a distinguished panel of judges. Participants showcased innovative solutions spanning education, healthcare, digital technology, business services, and other sectors.
At the end of the competition, Fatmata M. Koroma, founder of MiFam, emerged as the winner of the Tech Queen Award, receiving NLe120,000 in recognition of her outstanding innovation and contribution to women-led entrepreneurship.
The coveted Orange Social Venture Prize 2026 was won by Abdullah O. Koroma, founder of MobiCare, who walked away with the grand prize of NLe200,000 after impressing the judges with an innovative, impactful, and scalable solution.
The Orange Social Venture Prize continues to offer much more than financial support. Winners benefit from mentorship by experienced entrepreneurs, business development assistance, networking opportunities, and increased visibility among investors and partners, providing Sierra Leonean startups with a platform to compete successfully across Africa.
As the ceremony concluded, Orange Sierra Leone encouraged aspiring entrepreneurs to continue pursuing innovative ideas that solve real problems, emphasizing that every successful business begins with the courage to turn an idea into reality.
The event once again underscored Orange Sierra Leone’s commitment to strengthening the country’s innovation ecosystem and empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs to drive digital transformation and sustainable development.