International Women’s Day: 9 African Female Web3 Builders And Leaders You Should Know 

by 

Esther And Derrick

At its core, web3 is about paying creators for their work from music, artwork to the fashion industry. This is turned into NFTs for certification, tracking and generally transaction on a public blockchain. Basically, the new internet is somehow decentralized so no one entity is in control but you still get paid for your work! We have a number of women standing out and making their mark in this space. In honour of International Women’s Day, here are nine African female changemakers shaping this industry:

Deborah Ojengbede

Deborah is the founder and CEO of Afen Blockchain Group. An NFT project dedicated to the development of user-friendly blockchain solutions in real estate, education, arts & entertainment, and decentralized finance. As an industry leader, Deborah has managed to thrive in roles ranging from Business Development, Strategy & Innovation, Project Management and Women Banking all under decentralized technology. Check out her company: Afen Group.

Mary Jane

Mary is an 18-year-old Nigerian visual artist and illustrator who describes herself as dynamic when illustrating and designing. She’s the creator of @HerCrownNFT (bought by Twitter) which focuses on the collection of black women celebrating unique and diverse hairstyles. She brings ideas to life with her creative skills and besides this, she is also a robotic engineer for R.A.I.N having had a background in tech and programming. She does all these to solve real-world problems. Check her art collection here: MJ Design

Moyosore Briggs

Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Moyosore currently lives in London where she recently obtained her degree in Photography from the University of the Arts, London. She began her photography and model career in London while writing and publishing in multiple publications including her own blog. Her creativity in photography revolves around fashion, individuality and sexuality. She is the community manager @rarible and part of the female-led art collective @herstorydao. Check her work here: Moyosore

Nneoma Kanu

Nneoma is an NFT creator whose art is intertwined in tech and history. She is among the team behind @coldscollective which is an institution for web 3 in Africa and other frontier and emerging markets. Twitter: nneomack

Erikan Obotetukudo

Erikan is an industry leader. Founder and investor at Audacity Fund which focuses on investing in black/African led crypto startups. She’s also the founder of KIN, a media and communications agency developing brands of diverse finance leaders and institutions looking to connect with multicultural and multigenerational audiences around the world. She’s a public speaker and has led various workshops with 1000+ C-Suite executives at Inbound, TED, Webbdagarna, Gothenburg and more. Check more about her: Erika

Alexxa Walker

Alexxa is a professional photographer born and bred in Montreal, Canada. Currently, she is in her home African nation, Ghana. She is a multimedia storyteller who is driven to create the representations she grew up lacking as an Afro-Asian woman. Her photography skills cover stories globally. Her work is unique in a sense of representing women and underrepresented communities through art, photography and NFTs. From political designs to NFTs — that trace her journey as an artist and creator, her work reflects her mission to create and celebrate bold and authentic representations of underrepresented communities and women.  Check her work here: Alexxa

Dr Peace Uche

From Nigeria, Uche defines herself as an NFT coach! She assists NFT enthusiasts claim their ‘gold’ through conscious connections and business development. She is a public speaker, spoken word artist. She hosts a podcast session ‘MetaSessions w/doc Peace Podcast.’ Check her work here: Uche

Akwaa Mariin

Akwaa, from Nigeria, says expression is key to freedom. She is an NFT artist and her artwork is all about African noir depictions. She celebrates sensational black women’s beauty, colour and vibrant spirit that is a prodigious influence over modern media culture. She says despite everything that African women have had to endure, their strength is shown through the power of love, passion and an unbreakable determination to persevere, which shines like an illuminating beacon for all to embrace. Check her work here: Akwaa

Olatorera Alonge

Olatorore is a digital and realistic pencil artist whose passion has landed her in NFT work. She doubles up as a 2D animator. Her collection is designed to explore the adventure of beauty in black women with the use
of different colours. Check her work here: Olatorera

Esther adopted the alter ego ‘The Gen Z Cheerleader‘. She is a British-Nigerian Gen Z & Tech thought leader. She has spent years working on social policies and navigated into the world of venture capital and technology as a vehicle for social change while building and investing in the Creator economy.

Derrick is a professional journalist, writing with Thred Media, an online-based UK media championing social change. He writes about issues affecting the African continent, especially SDGs. He is a 2D Animator and a Social Media Management consultant.