Meet the MBA Grad Who Founded an NGO in Africa

Global business interest in Africa has boomed in recent years, with businesses and organizations wanting to tap into the resources the continent can offer.

We shouldn’t just be focusing on the international companies coming to Africa though, as Africa’s young entrepreneurs are also making big moves that deserve our attention. They are taking more risks than ever before and creating innovative, engaging businesses that tackle economic, social, and environmental problems while also creating numerous jobs within the continent too.

However, as development and infrastructure in Africa hasn’t received the same attention and funding as the western world, some young entrepreneurs in Africa have needed external funding and support to make their dreams a reality – and this is where Fabian-Carlos Guhl and his company Ampion comes in.

Fabian, founder and MD of Ampion wanted to break into the African market with a specialized focus – to nurture the talent of African youth to help them pursue their dreams.

Ampion is dedicated to supporting young Africans who are creating innovative start-ups that will drive social and economic impact in their local communities. The organization fosters innovation through public and private sector engagement, building strategic collaborations to enable the tech ecosystem and all its players.

Today, the company seems to be going from strength to strength. In the past six years, Ampion has aided the foundation of more than 80 start-ups in 17 African countries across a multitude of industries like healthcare, agriculture, water, mobile apps and renewable energy.

Fabian (pictured second from left) founded Ampion in 2014 – six years after graduating from ESCP Business School with a master’s in international business (and five years before completing his MBA in International Management), which seemingly put his entrepreneurial drive in motion, as well as intrigue for Africa as a continent. Fabian said: “My initial degree helped me discover my entrepreneurial spirit. We had an entrepreneurship module and I worked with an international team on an organic tilapia farm in Ghana which was fun and rewarding.”

Although Fabian’s education could be seen as an instrument that steered him towards an interest on entrepreneurship in Africa, it’s important to ask what inspired him to create an organization supporting young Africans creating innovative start-ups.

He said: “During and after ESCP I did internships with the African Development Bank Group and the UN.”

Following this, his love for entrepreneurship and developing organizations was apparent and he went on to be part of the start-up industry for five years, which he used to his advantage when founding Ampion.

Fabian added: “I wanted to combine the best of both worlds when I founded Ampion, by leveraging my start-up experience in an international development context.”