A new chapter is unfolding in Kenya’s climate innovation landscape as 11 bold small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are welcomed into the Green Growth Alliance: U.S./Japan Climate-Gender Innovation Collective for Africa program. Backed by the AlphaMundi Foundation and supported by the United States–Japan Foundation, this flagship initiative is not just another mentorship scheme. It is a timely, focused intervention that places entrepreneurs at the heart of sustainable development, combining climate action with gender equity and inclusive growth.
The six-month mentorship program pairs each of these enterprises with experienced mentors from the United States and Japan. Through monthly virtual sessions, peer learning and expert guidance, the entrepreneurs will receive support to refine their business models, scale operations and deepen their environmental and social impact. At its core, the program recognizes that locally-led solutions are essential to solving global challenges like climate change and it prioritizes businesses that are transforming their sectors while lifting communities.
Each of the selected Kenyan SMEs brings something unique to the table, whether it’s pioneering carbon capture technologies, making clean cooking fuel more accessible, reducing food waste or turning plastic into robots. These businesses are led by entrepreneurs who are not only solving local challenges but also reimagining what the future of green enterprise can look like across Africa.
Diana Maranga, Octavia Carbon
At the frontier of carbon removal, Octavia Carbon builds and deploys Direct Air Carbon Capture (DACC) machines, positioning Kenya as a world leader in this emerging sector. Diana Maranga’s vision is to make Kenya the most cost-effective country to permanently remove CO₂ from the atmosphere by 2025.
Loreen Wanjiru, Camino Ruiz Agencies – Global Tilapia Limited
Combining innovation and impact, Loreen Wanjiru’s venture runs a fully integrated tilapia value chain on Lake Victoria. From fish feed and fingerlings to refrigerated transport and urban processing, the company has worked with over 2,000 fish farmers and created 140 jobs. It’s a model for sustainable aquaculture that boosts food security and rural livelihoods.
Kelvin Kamau, Nyakazi Organic Foods
Kelvin’s youth-led social enterprise dehydrates indigenous African vegetables and mushrooms, offering healthy food options to busy consumers while creating stable markets for agroecology farmers. By processing produce like managu and amaranth, Nyakazi Organic Foods is preserving culture, promoting health and employing youth in green jobs.
Yvonne Mose, MOMA Renewable Energy
MOMA produces ethanol from bio-waste, offering a cleaner and safer cooking fuel alternative to low-income households. By tapping into waste from markets and sugar production, Yvonne Mose is proving that clean energy solutions can be affordable, sustainable and rooted in the local economy.
Florence Mogere, Nyota Limited (Frozen Isle)
Frozen Isle is transforming how fresh produce reaches consumers. Working with small-scale farmers across Kenya, Florence Mogere’s company processes and sells frozen vegetables while supporting rural agriculture and reducing food spoilage.
Veronica Terenoi, Women in Sustainable Energy and Entrepreneurship Ltd. (WISEe)
As a network of women engineers and technicians, WISEe is equipping women with technical solar PV training, mentorship and business support. Veronica’s leadership is helping to close the gender gap in renewable energy while expanding access to reliable electricity in the region.
Barry Omondi, Savanna Circuit
Savanna Circuit is behind a solar-powered, AI-enabled chilling system for dairy transport. Barry’s team has already improved livelihoods for over 6,000 smallholder farmers by cutting post-harvest losses. The company’s adaptable solutions also serve the horticulture and fish value chains.
Benson Abila, M-taka
With a focus on education and community, M-taka is a waste management enterprise that uses mobile tech to connect recyclers and increase plastic recovery. Through a network of agents and community buy-back centers, Benson’s team adds value to post-consumer waste and creates new income streams.
Teresiah Waithera, Organic Kenya Limited
Teresiah is tackling soil degradation by providing organic fertilizer solutions to smallholder farmers. Her product line includes soil conditioners and neem-based animal care products. Through training and distribution, Organic Kenya is helping farmers move away from harmful chemicals toward sustainable farming.
Joanie Kinyanjui, Yatta Beekeepers Limited
Joanie’s company uses beekeeping to drive economic empowerment for women and youth in rural Kenya. Yatta Beekeepers provides training and access to markets, encouraging biodiversity, pollination and household income all at once.
Norah Kimathi, Zerobionic Africa
Zerobionic, a disability-led startup, is transforming plastic waste into AI-powered robots. With a circular design philosophy and 60% of its hardware made from recycled plastics, Norah’s innovation is a powerful example of inclusion, sustainability and future-facing technology.
These 11 businesses are a cross-section of what is possible when innovation meets purpose. Their participation in the Green Growth Alliance program will not only amplify their impact but also open doors for cross-cultural collaboration, investment readiness and long-term sustainability.
For AlphaMundi Foundation, the initiative is part of a broader mission to strengthen the commercial viability of SMEs in Africa and Latin America through gender lens investing and blended finance tools like concessional loans and first-loss guarantees. By targeting climate-smart, gender-smart enterprises, the foundation aims to unlock more private sector capital for solving the world’s most urgent development challenges.
In a time when Africa’s climate resilience and job creation depend heavily on entrepreneurs, this program is a timely boost. It highlights the value of patient mentorship, international partnerships and tailored support in helping local innovators do what they do best: build solutions that work.
The success of these entrepreneurs will ripple beyond business metrics. It will create jobs, regenerate soil, reduce waste, improve nutrition, increase clean energy access and model a new kind of leadership, one that’s boldly African.
