Halisi Africa Discoveries was proud to be recognised among the Top 15 finalists in Kenya during the 2024 edition of the TotalEnergies Startupper Challenge, a milestone that highlights the company’s growing role in shaping impact-driven tourism across the continent.
Organised by TotalEnergies, the challenge celebrates young entrepreneurs building innovative, sustainable solutions that address real societal and environmental needs.
A Competitive National Stage
In Kenya, the 2024 challenge attracted over a thousand applications, with only 15 startups advancing to the final stage to pitch their ideas to a panel of experts.
From this highly competitive pool, three winners were selected across different categories:
- Innov’Up Category (Best Entrepreneur): Midas City, a creative enterprise transforming metal into bespoke 3D art and custom design products.
- Cycle’Up Category (Circular Economy): Ecobana Limited, producing biodegradable sanitary towels from banana fibre to address period poverty.
- Power’Up Category (Sustainable Energy): Boder, a platform enabling access to electric bikes and eco-friendly mobility solutions.
Each of these ventures reflects the kind of innovation the challenge seeks to elevate, solutions that are practical, scalable, and rooted in local realities.
Halisi’s Place Among the Finalists
Being named among the Top 15 positioned Halisi Africa Discoveries alongside some of Kenya’s most promising and forward-thinking startups.
The recognition speaks to Halisi’s approach to regenerative tourism, where travel is designed not only as an experience, but as a tool for community empowerment, cultural preservation, and inclusive economic growth.
It also reinforces the relevance of tourism within broader conversations around innovation and sustainable development in Africa.
Why This Matters
The TotalEnergies Startupper Challenge is more than a competition. It is a platform that provides visibility, mentorship, and funding opportunities to entrepreneurs shaping Africa’s future.
For Halisi Africa Discoveries, this milestone reflects:
A commitment to building tourism models that centre communities
A focus on women’s empowerment and inclusive storytelling
A vision of travel that contributes meaningfully to people and place
A focus on women’s empowerment and inclusive storytelling
A vision of travel that contributes meaningfully to people and place
Looking Ahead
Being part of the Top 15 is both recognition and momentum. It signals that tourism, when rooted in purpose, has a place alongside sectors like energy, technology, and manufacturing in driving Africa forward.
Halisi Africa Discoveries remains committed to reimagining travel across the continent, creating experiences that are not only immersive for travellers, but also impactful for the communities that make those journeys possible.
