Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu, CEO/Founder, ColdHubs Limited
Journalist, farmer and social entrepreneur Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu has been named one of the winners at the 2020 Waislitz Global Citizen Award.
The award which are presented by the Waislitz Foundation and Global Citizen are received by individuals who are making positive social impact locally and globally through innovative projects.
Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu the CEO/Founder of ColdHubs Limited, a social enterprise using 100% solar power walk-in cold room to help farmers and traders reduce food spoilage, extend the shelf life of their fruits and vegetables and increase their income.
Winning in the ‘Disruption’ category, he was named one of the four winners in this years edition and having bagged a similar award from United Nations Industrial Development Organization UNIDO, Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu said he can only be grateful.
“It is a thing to be grateful for, especially for everyone who went through the voting process for us”
“It is also great to know that our work is being recognized we are grateful to Waislitz Foundation, Global Citizen and other sponsors of the event”
“We will keep working and improving our technology until food spoilage becomes a thing of the past in Nigeria and other developing nations” he said.
The awards are a geared towards recognizing and encouraging projects that improve the living standards of those in dire need and according to the Chairman and Founder of Waislitz Foundation, Alex Waislitz, “Ending extreme poverty is not a choice, it's an obligation. My hope is that it will inspire many thousands of people around the world to do what they can to improve the living standards of those in dire need"
Pakistani Haroon Yasin who developed a unique educational and entertaining mobile application that was used to educate more than half a million children during the Covid-19 lockdown, won the grand prize, while Nigerian Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu won the Waislitz Global Citizen Disruptor Award with ColdHubs.
Afghan Farhad Wajdi won the Waislitz Global Citizens’ Choice Award by empowering women to break into the male-dominated profession of food cart vending in Afghanistan, and during COVID-19 converted these food carts into mobile disinfectant units.
Muzalema Mwanza of Safe Motherhood Alliance, distributes birth kits and trains birth attendants in Zambia, and is manufacturing PPE during the pandemic for frontline healthcare workers including 3D printed masks and face shields.