4 Kenyan Students Win Kshs. 120 Million in USA Award
St. Paul’s University students won the 2022 Hult Prize on the 20th of September 2022 in an event held in New York in the USA.
Eco-banana Limited founded by Keylie Muthoni, Dulla Shilton, Lennox Omondi and Brian Ndung’u won a prize of Kshs. 120 Million.
The students had come up with a method of producing biodegradable sanitary pads from banana fibre.
The students were hoping to curb period poverty by distributing biodegradable towels and preventing the production of plastics.
In the Hultz Award finals, five competitors made their presentations before an exclusive panel of judges who determined the overall winner.
In attendance at the event was former President of the United States of America Bill Clinton as well as Breer (Hong Kong), Savvy Engineers (Pakistan), Openversum (Switzerland), Cooseii (Taiwan) and Flexie from Australia.
The Kenyan scholars were confident before the announcements at the event that they could come out on top as they expressed their confidence in winning the prize with their creative concept.
“With Kshs. $ 1 million (Kshs. 120 million), we are confident that we will be the best and become number one producers of biodegradable sanitary towels in Kenya and East Africa,” Omondi told Nation Africa.
“We are a team with a mind for business and a heart for the world. We will continue creating sustainable enterprises that will shape the future of the sanitary towels industry that will drive entrepreneurship growth,” added Omondi.
Ndung’u predicted that their firm would create more than 2,000 jobs for Kenyans by 2024 and that they will generate Kshs. 6 billion in revenue.
“On Tuesday, at 1:58 pm New York time, Eco-Banana is here to ask for one million dollars to make our dreams come true. We predict to sell more than three million pads, generating more than Kshs. 6 billion
Clinton attended the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York before the event where he praised Kenyan activist Kennedy Odede for enhancing the lives of marginalized sections of society.
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