- EmpowerAfrica
- ,
Did you know that over 525 million people used the internet in Africa in 2019? If current growth trends continue, almost 75% of Africans are expected to come online by 2030.
African Changemaker
Jeremiah Thoronka is a Sierra Leonean innovator, entrepreneur, and scholar with intimate knowledge of energy, climate change, environment, sustainability, and development.
Born in Freetown, Jeremiah is best known for inventing a device that develops and deploys kinetic energy harvesting systems to generate clean, renewable energy from pedestrian and street traffic vibrations.
In 2017, he founded Optim Energy which was behind the development of the device. Optim Energy has deployed its systems in several countries, including Sierra Leone, Rwanda, and Kenya. It received funding from the United Nations Development Programme and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Jeremiah is a recipient of the prestigious Global Student Prize Laureate.
You may also like...
- ,
Pan-African venture capital firm Launch Africa Ventures has made its first cash distribution to investors in its Launch Africa Seed Fund I, returning approximately $2.5 million, equivalent to about 7% of paid-in capital.
- ,
The Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO) is preparing to provide up to $80 million in financing to Solarcentury Africa Limited to expand solar energy projects across Zambia, Namibia, and Botswana, in a move expected to strengthen electricity supply and accelerate the region’s clean energy transition.
- ,
Africa’s startup ecosystem recorded a modest recovery in May 2026, with 37 companies raising a combined $135 million through equity, debt, and grant financing.