From vision to venture: How a collaborative internship is empowering Africa’s next generation of entrepreneurs

By Inga Ackermann

Across the African continent, young leaders are shaping the future, transforming their communities through innovation, resilience, and collaboration. Behind every empowered entrepreneur is a support system that helps turn potential into lasting impact.

Mastercard Foundation Scholars, Marybeth, Chipo and Desire
Marybeth Ubanwa, Chipo Paradzai, and Desire Amevi Isidore Houngnigbe.

The Mastercard Foundation Associates Program and the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Edinburgh, through a strategic collaboration with the Shasha Network, have supported a hands-on remote internship experience that equips young changemakers with the tools, mentorship, and confidence to scale their ideas and lead with purpose. For three emerging entrepreneurs - Chipo Paradzai, Marybeth Ubanwa, and Desire Houngnigbe - this experience marked a turning point in their leadership journeys

An opportunity for growth, led by Mastercard Foundation Scholars

The three-month Entrepreneurship-In-Residence internship was not just about developing employability skills but about transformation. Each Mastercard Foundation Scholar brought a passion project into the space and completed the journey with sharper strategies, stronger networks, and a deeper belief in their own potential. 

Refined Hearts, Zimbabwe

Chipo Paradzai, MSc International Development

As founder of Refined Hearts, Chipo has long been committed to mentoring young women across Africa. During the internship, she expanded her weekly coaching sessions to reach over 205 participants, developed a pitch deck that attracted new funding interest, and launched a powerful research project featuring insights from 12 highly accomplished African women leaders on mentorship strategies.

The biggest surprise? Turns out, geography doesn't limit connection or productivity; this internship demonstrated how young entrepreneurs can collaborate effectively across continents to drive greater impact.

With support from the internship programme, Chipo sharpened her entrepreneurial voice and grew her organisation’s digital presence by 68% - building community across Zimbabwe, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, and Australia. 

Stedify, Nigeria

Marybeth Ubanwa, MSc Global Food Security and Nutrition

Marybeth is on a mission to make nutrition education accessible through Stedify, her fast-growing health-tech start-up. As part of her internship journey, she:

  • Hosted a public Zoom webinar on eating healthy on a budget
  • Increased her venture’s Facebook audience from 600 to over 5,000
  • Built a WhatsApp community of 165+ active followers

Through storytelling, public engagement, and strategic thinking, Marybeth redefined what it means to lead with empathy and purpose. Reflecting on the internship experience, she shares that this opportunity gave her the structure, mentorship, and community needed to grow as a founder and a visionary leader. Marybeth adds:

It significantly boosted my confidence. Being part of a high-impact team, driving digital campaigns, and hosting webinars validated my abilities and showed me the value and competitive advantage my venture brings to the table.

She also connected with fellow Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program Alumni working in nutrition and food systems, creating avenues for collaboration and knowledge exchange across the continent.

Language Elite, Benin

Desire Amevi Isidore Houngnigbe, MSc Global Challenges

Desire, founder of Language Elite, used his internship to turn a struggling idea into a high-growth start-up. He translated an entire educational programme—over 23,000 words, 6 videos, and 3 podcasts—to launch a French-language version of a major youth empowerment initiative.

During the internship, he also:

  • Secured a £1,400 translation contract from a NSIA ASSET MANAGEMENT (Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal & Benin)
  • Developed a cohesive brand presence for his company
  • Conducted SWOT and PESTLE analyses to guide future strategy

I was going through a moment where I lost hope in my entrepreneurial project, and I needed something new to fuel me on the inside: the internship came at the right time. The program helped me embrace a growth-oriented mindset. It taught me to prioritize one entrepreneurial idea at a time, refine my strategies through mentorship and peer feedback, and focus on building a sustainable business model for Language Elite. My approach in my day-to-day life has changed. I now seek intentional feedback whenever I want to implement something. This is because I have learned the power of intentional collaboration.

Nurturing leadership through opportunity

What links these journeys together is not just a shared internship - it’s the foundation of support provided by the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program.

The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program’s commitment to leadership development, entrepreneurship, and community transformation makes opportunities like this possible. By partnering with Shasha Network, an organisation focused on supporting young African leaders, the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program ensured that each intern was mentored, challenged, and inspired to dream bigger.

Farai Munjoma, founder of the Shasha Network and a Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program Alumni from the University of Edinburgh, designed the program to provide not just technical knowledge, but also transformational experiences:

We aim to not only empower individual Mastercard Foundation Scholars but also contribute significantly to the socioeconomic landscape of Africa, driving innovation, job creation, and sustainable growth.

Looking ahead: A future built on collaboration

The success of this internship speaks to the power of partnerships. When networks like the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program and the Shasha Network come together, they create pathways for young Africans to grow, lead, and thrive.

Through mentorship, hands-on experience, and peer collaboration, this internship helped shape the next generation of responsible and resilient leaders. These Mastercard Foundation Scholars are poised to build bridges across sectors, address local and global challenges, and inspire others to do the same.

As the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Edinburgh continues to expand its leadership ecosystem for online distance learners, partnerships like this will remain central - demonstrating that with the right tools, mentorship, and opportunity, there’s no limit to what young leaders can achieve.

 

Discover more

Register on the Baobab platform to learn more about the Mastercard Foundation Associates Program, or find more about the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at Edinburgh:

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