As we gear up for our Digital Speaks edition this month, we continue to celebrate leading women that define Africa’s tech landscape- Digital Amazons. Women such as the unstoppable Nkemdilim Begho. A tech entrepreneur and STEM advocate.
A seasoned professional in the IT Service Industry, Mrs Nkemdilim Begho has served as the Managing Director of Future Software Resources Nigeria Ltd (Futuresoft) since 2008. Under her leadership, the company has been strategically re-branded and re-focused on three core areas; Digital Marketing and Technology Solution, E-Learning & IT Consultancy, thus establishing it as one of the top Digital & IT solution providers in Nigeria.
As a change catalyst, Mrs Begho recognized that the African technology space is in it’s infancy and requires significant innovations in order to leap-frog and compete in global spheres, this spurred her desire to design initiatives and solutions that ensure Futuresoft provides tailored-made Digital & IT solutions for scaling African businesses that are delivered in accordance with global standards.
Her passion for delivering quality education to African children the award winning i-Connect Project an ICT4D initiative focused on education and ICT was born. The project was the Winner of the 2012 Etisalat Prize for innovation and the 2013 AR-CSR Sustainable Solutions Showcase. Futuresoft’s STEM focused simulation platform Simulation City is an offspring of the i-Connect project.
She has been involved in various public sector initiatives and projects like the Wazobia Linux initiative, the E-Government Interoperability Framework Project and The NITDA Open Standards Framework Project.
Mrs Begho has featured in a myriad of newspaper and magazine publications and is frequently invited to speak about the future of ICT in Africa, the challenges of African entrepreneurs as well as the role of Information Technology for development and change.
- Featured in Forbes Africa as one of the Top 10 Female Tech Founders to watch in Africa.
- Listed on the African Women Power Network Top 40 African Leading Women’s list.
- Named one of the top 100 most innovative in the Nigerian Tech Space by YTech 3 years in a row.
- Named one of 100 Lionesses of Africa.
- Featured on the Ventures Africa 42 most innovative Africans
Mrs. Begho is also the co-founder of 3 thriving tech driven startups –
- Anne Li Unique Ideas (Manufacturing & Fashion)
- Compare Insurance Nigeria (Insurance)
- Fucaire Lifestyle Ltd, publishers of ASPIRE Luxury Magazine (Luxury Brand Consultancy).
Mrs. Begho is an active board member of the World Summit Youth Award, a global online e- content contest focused on the implementation of the SDGs through Innovative Digital Solutions. She was an advisory board member for Social Media Week Lagos in 2017 and 2018.
Regularly volunteers for mentoring and empowerment programmes like the PIN Ajegunle.org Initiative, the W.TEC Initiative, IMPACT, The Visiola Foundation, Techquest and the Educate The State Initiative, where she shares her ICT knowledge, as well as her business and life experience with young Nigerians and less privileged children.
She is co-founder of The Bake for Change Development Foundation, an NGO focused on empowering street children through skill acquisition, vocational training and educational scholarships.
Mrs. Begho is a member of the pan-African Mara Mentor Network and SME Boutique Women’s Exclusive Club (SWEC) Mentors. She is currently taking part in the MIT Enterprise Forum (MITEF) Coach the Coaches Entrepreneurship program, which commits her to mentoring the next generation of top performing startups.
Mrs. Begho embarked on her professional career in Germany at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Psychiatric Research in the department for Statistical Genetics and Proteomics and later worked at Affectis Pharmaceuticals AG, Germany before returning to Nigeria. She is a graduate of Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) & Technical University Munich (TUM), Germany, where she received a BSc. Hons in Bioinformatics.