Seven Years of Innovation Support in Namibia

The number seven has a way of showing up in all the right places, like a cosmic VIP. From the seven days of the week to the rainbow’s seven colors, it’s as if the universe insists on using seven as its lucky charm. Ancient cultures called it sacred, mathematicians call it prime, and psychologists say it’s the magic number of things we can remember. Even our bodies get in on the act, with cells quietly regenerating in cycles that often last around—you guessed it—seven years. Is it then a coincidence that after working tirelessly to support the Namibian innovation and entrepreneurship landscape for the same time, I get awarded for this work? Who knows.

Between 2017 and 2024, I’ve worked to reduce youth unemployment by supporting Namibian early-stage entrepreneurship and innovation, wearing many hats—Doctoral Researcher, Programme Officer, Designer, and Capacity Builder. What began as a development consultant’s effort to belong in the startup community became a deeper commitment to understanding colonial legacies and local perspectives as I navigated the country’s complex post-Apartheid landscape as a Caucasian European. I have accepted my role as the forever-outsider I will always be and these days I merely hope to be considered as a trusted ally.

Receiving the Immigrant Ecosystem Builder Champion of the Year 2024 by the Africa Startup Ecosystem Builders Awards (ASEB) feels like a sign that I’ve done something right.

So let’s take a look at these past years! Here’s an ode to the Land of the Brave and the wonderful people who have taught me along the way.

I'm priviledged to share this award with Professor Abejide Ade (NIG/SA) and Tafadwa Daphne (ZIM/SL).

But first - tangi unene, Okuhepa, Dankie, Danke and thank you to all the 200+ founders and startups, and the nearly 30 local organisations I have had the honour of working with: Basecamp Business Incubator, BOOST UP, BusinessBox Namibia, Dololo Namibia, CcHub Namibia, City of Windhoek, Development Bank of Namibia, FabLab Namibia, Financial Literacy Initiative (FLI), Future Females Namibia, Global Entrepreneurs Network Namibia (GEN); GIZ Start-Up Namibia, Impact Tank, Launch Namibia, the Namibia Business Angels Network (NABAN), the Namibia Business Innovation Institute (NBII) the National Commission on Research, Science and Technology (NCRST), the Namibia Investment Development and Promotion Board (NIPDB), Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), SAIS Programme (Phase 2), SAIS Connected Hubs/Southern African Innovation Collective (SAIC); Turipamwe, and Windhoek Entrepreneurship Base. A shout-out also to Niras Finland, with whom I first came to this beautiful country, and to Loughborough University London for hosting my research.

2017-2019: Enabling Connected Innovation Ecosystems with Networks and Skills

And plenty of pitch training

As an International Programme Officer at the Southern Africa Innovation Support Programme from 2017 to 2019, I drove capacity-building efforts and managed partnerships with over 90 organisations across 10 countries. I launched the Connected Hubs initiative (today Southern Africa Innovation Collective), scaling it to 19 organisations in six countries, coordinated 23 startup events for 700+ participants, and coached 10 startups on business development and pitching. I managed the event production of the SAIS Annual Southern African Innovation Forum (ASAIF) in 2018 and co-authored several publications during this time, including Breaking Barriers - Female Technology Entrepreneurship in Southern Africa.

2019-2021: Literature Review and Research Design to Understand Startup Culture in African Entrepreneurship Ecosystems

And lots of walks.

In 2019, I embarked on the steepest learning curve of my career, challenging my practitioner heart to become a thinker by starting the Doctoral Programme at Loughborough University London’s Institute for Design Innovation (now Creative Futures). My PhD research focuses on Startup Culture in African Entrepreneurship Ecosystems under the supervision of Dr. Ida Telalbasic and Professor Mikko Koria, funded by Finland's Foundation for Economic Education. Seven months (see, again the magical number seven!) into this journey, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. I chose to return to my home country Finland with a frustratingly unfinished literature review. Delays and uncertainty filled those months, eased only by long walks through Helsinki and the oh-so-critical online calls with Namibian startup ecosystem players to keep up with what was happening. This period allowed me to grow my resilience in overcoming challenges and granted me the time I needed to shift my mind into the mindset of a researcher, not the expert. I adapted, started my data collection online and returned to Namibia finally in April 2021 to start my fieldwork.

2021-2022: Fieldwork and the Omeho Project

And a holistic immersion into my research topic

The massively inspiring qualitative fieldwork took place between July 2021 and January 2022. My research partner was Future Females Namibia and their Business School cohort of 2021, funded by GIZ Start-Up Namibia. Due to the anonymity of the interviewees, I do not share further photos from this work.
However, to prepare for the fieldwork, I I conceptualised and managed the Omeho Project, a photography exhibition and social media campaign celebrating Namibian entrepreneurs. It was implemented with an ecosystem approach with partners Willem Vrey, Turipamwe, Bank Windhoek, GIZ Start-Up Namibia and Dololo Namibia. From selecting and interviewing entrepreneurs to fundraising and managing partnerships, I oversaw every detail of the Omeho Project from concept to launch. This experience not only immersed me back into the Windhoek Startup Ecosystem after a two-year absence but also gave me the comfort of doing what I knew well, while navigating my new role as a Doctoral Researcher.

2021-2024: Facilitating Innovation and Supporting Entrepreneurship

And loads of sticky-notes.

As a Growth Consultant at Turipamwe (2021-2024), I facilitated an internal innovation process using Lean Service Creation, which led to the successful launch of the first local design thinking service Co-Create in 2022 and a 30% revenue boost for the SME. My work also included process design, team development, and design thinking training. I’m proud to have authored Namibia’s first White Paper on innovation and design thinking with the team. In parallel, my entrepreneurship support work included partnering with local organisations as a consultant, trainer and coach to design and deliver training programs supporting youth leadership, female entrepreneurs, early-stage startups, early-stage entrepreneurs across the country and train trainers in pitching. Between 2023-2024 I had increasing opportunities to share my research findings related to Namibia, thanks to the invitations from City of Windhoek and the National Investment Development Board (NIPDB).