Hirut Seyoum

Ethiopian tech entrepreneur who founded Africa's first female-majority tech startup accelerator

Hirut Seyoum (born 1985) is a visionary entrepreneur from Ethiopia who challenged gender norms in Africa's tech sector. As co-founder of Mentorsa, she created the continent's first tech accelerator with over 60% female participation. Her work addresses the digital divide by training 200+ women annually in coding and entrepreneurship. In 2015, she launched AfricaDevHub, a platform connecting African startups with global investors. Seyoum's initiatives have produced companies like Edunomia (edtech) and Zuri Health, demonstrating women's potential in tech leadership. She advocates for policy changes through her role at the Ethiopian Women's Association for Science & Technology (EWAST). Despite challenges like limited funding and cultural resistance, her programs have increased female startup participation from 12% to 45% in Addis Ababa. Her TED Talk "How to Build a Tech Company in Africa" has over 1.2M views, inspiring global audiences. Critics question scalability, but her model has been replicated in Kenya and Nigeria.