In 10 years, the Westerwelle Foundation has grown from Guido Westerwelle’s idea to three thriving Startup Hubs across Africa and a network of over 1000 members. In 5 years, the Westerwelle Startup Haus Kigali in Rwanda has supported more than 150 startups, resulting in the creation of more than 270 new jobs and $5 million in revenues for founders.

Chairman of the Board Michael Mronz opened the evening by announcing the opening of the 4th startup hub in Mombasa this year.

Another highlight of the evening was the Founder of the Year Award, which was presented to the top 3 founders, selected from over 10,000 applications received by the Foundation in the previous year. The 2024 award went to Luiz Filipe, the Founder of Polus Brasil, an IoT-based refrigeration and energy management solution that helps companies save energy in Brazil. German Minister of Education Bettina Stark-Watzinger attended the event to give out the award.

The evening's panel discussion focused on how to support entrepreneurship in Africa from different perspectives with experienced panellists: Anna Sophie Herken, Managing Director of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH; Ralf Beste, Director General for Culture and Society at the German Federal Foreign Office; Naom Monari, Founder of BENA CARE LTD; and Sarah Rukundo, Country Director of the Westerwelle Startup Haus Kigali powered by Evonik Stiftung.

• https://www.rwandaingermany.gov.rw/infodetails/10th-anniversary-of-westerwelle-foundation https://www.rwandaingermany.gov.rw/infodetails/10th-anniversary-of-westerwelle-foundation
• https://www.linkedin.com/posts/westerwellefoundation_celebrating-10-years-of-empowering-entrepreneurs-activity-7205478746873606146-arY3/ https://www.linkedin.com/posts/westerwellefoundation_celebrating-10-years-of-empowering-entrepreneurs-activity-7205478746873606146-arY3/