Session Moderators
Shawn Theunissen
Chair, Social Enterprise Academy Africa
Danson Gichini
Lead, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, World Economic Forum
Hosted in partnership with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, World Economic Forum, and Social Enterprise Connect. Join us to move from continental evidence to lived experience.
This session provides a major evidence base on the scale, contribution, and challenges of social enterprises across the continent. We are bringing these findings into conversation with the lived realities of social entrepreneurs, creating a dynamic space for peer exchange, practical reflection, and ecosystem learning. This is not a traditional report presentation—it is a social entrepreneur-centred conversation.
Share key findings from the State of Social Enterprise in Africa report in a concise and accessible way.
Bring the findings to life through the personal journey and enterprise model of a dynamic social entrepreneur.
Enable participants to introduce their own work and connect with peers in small groups.
Surface participant-led questions for the speaker on mission, markets, finance, regulation, impact, and sustainability.
Identify practical insights, ecosystem asks, and follow-up opportunities for social entrepreneurs and partners.
Chair, Social Enterprise Academy Africa
Lead, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, World Economic Forum
Allow participants to filter in and settle into the platform. A simple chat prompt: "Where are you joining from?"
Setting the purpose of the session: moving from evidence to experience. Explaining the flow of findings, chats, and peer engagement.
Presenting the scale of social enterprise, jobs created, women/youth leadership, revenue contributions, and key barriers.
A well-established entrepreneur shares their journey, balancing being market-minded with being mission-driven.
Participants enter small groups for peer connection, briefly sharing their work and defining one strong question for the speaker.
Participants feed questions to the speaker. The moderator clusters themes like finance, revenue, legal structures, and scaling.
Participants discuss practical applications, ecosystem asks, and collective strategic opportunities based on the conversation.
Groups post concise outputs in the chat: one practical takeaway, one ask, and one opportunity to collaborate.
Insights from the session will be captured in a short participant-informed synthesis note.
Align your brand with one of Africa's largest social innovation movements. Partner with us to scale impact and drive sustainable development.
