Thank you for being here. Text Geohabari
What does it take to build an African innovation ecosystem from the ground up?
On this edition of the Space Ecosystem Playbook with Charles Mwangi, we sit with two trail blazers Sheena Raikundalia, Chief Growth Officer at Kuza One and Dr. Shikoh Gitau, CEO and Founder of Qala.
In this episode, Sheena Raikundalia and Dr. Shikoh Gitau share how they’re laying the foundations , from training talent and building AI for African languages to creating agri-business opportunities that turn youth into entrepreneurs. We talk about failure as a milestone, bridging government and startups, breaking silos, and why the “boring” infrastructure work is where the real transformation happens.
Sheena and Dr. Shikoh also reflect on the family values, teachers, parents, and role models who shaped their paths and how they’re now creating those same opportunities for others.
This is a holistic conversation with both depth and breadth, exploring how our childhood and early influences shape who we become, and how those lessons translate into creating the very foundations on which ecosystems thrive.
