“A ‘normal’ person simply cannot understand what drives an entrepreneur, nor understand…” – Rebecca Enonchong
Rebecca Enonchong is the Editor in Chief, cofounder and CEO of I/O Spaces, an inclusive coworking space in the Washington D.C metropolitan area. She is also the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of AppsTech, a leading global provider of enterprise application solutions.
Mention tech and Africa in one sentence, and Rebecca Enonchong’s name is bound to come up. She was born and raised in Cameroon, West Africa, and is fluent in English and French. However, if technology and innovation were a language, she would have a PhD, as she started her first business in 1999.
Tech Founder. Trailblazer. Tenacious.
“In 1999, I set up AppsTech to provide enterprise software solutions. I was a woman tech founder. I was a Black woman tech founder. I was a Black African woman tech founder.”
“Although those might have been external factors, my race, gender, or national origin were never a part of my equation. It honestly never occurred to me that it might be any harder for me than any of my fellow startup entrepreneurs. With very little savings and no financial backing, I set out to build a global multi-million-dollar business.”
Words of wisdom?
“I was homeless and couch-surfed for two years before I finally got my own place. In the 21 years I have been in business, I have always paid myself last and have never had the highest salary in the company.” – Rebecca
Notable Accomplishments:
- Forbes magazine listed Ms. Enonchong as a top female tech founder in Africa.
- Forbes Africa listed her as one of Africa’s 50 most powerful women in 2020.
- Board Chair of Afrilabs, a Pan-African network of over 174 innovation centers supporting over 500,000 entrepreneurs in Africa.
