Restoring Our Earth: How Ndidi Nwuneli is Channeling Her ‘Rage for Change’ to Drive Food Sustainability in Africa

Of the 10 countries most threatened by climate change, 9 are in Africa. This grim reality has injected the groundbreaking work of serial social entrepreneur Ndidi Nwuneli with a sense of urgency. An award-winning agripreneur, author and TED Global speaker, Ndidi has had over 25 years of experience scaling social innovation on the African continent. She is the co-founder of AACE Foods and Sahel Consulting Agriculture & Nutrition, which shapes agricultural policy and ecosystem solutions across West Africa, as well as being the founder of Leadership, Effectiveness, Accountability & Professionalism (LEAP) Africa and founder and Chair of Nourishing Africa.

In honour of Earth Day, we caught up with Ndidi to hear about her latest book, Food Entrepreneurs in Africa: Scaling Resilient Agriculture Businesses, her thoughts on becoming a change agent and what it will take to combat food insecurity in Africa.

What drove you to choose the path of social innovation?

My parents were my earliest role models in the social innovation space. Their commitment to solving problems within the University of Nigeria and through a range of social causes in Enugu and Anambra States inspired me and my siblings. My strong Christian faith also propelled me to actively strive to live a life of purpose and serve my community from a young age.

Leaving a stable and enviable position at McKinsey to start LEAP Africa must have taken quite a leap of faith! Why did you feel it was important to do so?

I established LEAP Africa in 2002 based on two convictions. Firstly, Africa desperately needed a new generation of visionary, ethical, creative and disciplined servant leaders. Secondly, I believed that a small group of people who shared the same vision could work together to change their communities, countries, and the continent.

Since its inception, LEAP has pioneered leadership, employability, civics, ethics, governance and succession training programmes for youth, teachers, business owners, and civil society. The organisation has trained over 34,000 students and 2,000 teachers and school administrators directly, impacting over 1 million people indirectly in 6 African countries. LEAP Africa has also published 11 books and introduced an eLearning curriculum on ethics, leadership and personal development, which are widely used.

African youth are energetic, creative, brave and willing to take risks. We must channel their anger about the state of affairs on our continent to drive positive change!

I am most proud of the institution that we have built, synonymous with good governance and ethical leadership. I am also proud of the alumni of LEAP’s programs who are now leaders in Africa’s private, public and nonprofit sectors. They credit LEAP with providing the foundation for their success. For example, Amal Hassan, founder/CEO of Outsource Global, was a beneficiary of our 2006 program in Kano. This program equipped her with the skills and tools to establish a thriving ICT company that employs over 1,000 young Nigerians. Mosun Layode, one of our pioneer staff who served as my successor at LEAP, is currently the African Philanthropy forum’s executive director. She remains an active supporter of LEAP and credits it with providing a conducive environment for her to grow into a leader in the nonprofit landscape. Beyond these two stories are countless other young Africans who challenge the status quo, run for public office, and break barriers in their communities.

I am excited about LEAP’s future as it focuses the next decade on utilising a systems-level approach to transforming secondary education in Africa and raising change agents by facilitating the scaling of social enterprises and nonprofits.

You are known to be vocal about your impatience for progress and your ‘rage for change’. The organisations you founded and books you have written were propelled by this ‘rage’. Why is this so important, and how can others adopt this mindset?

Most people are propelled by compelling emotions — love, fear or anger. In the African context, given the rising rates of unemployment, and critical infrastructural challenges, young people are angry. If not effectively channelled, this rage can become a destructive force, and we have seen evidence of this in many of our countries. However, it can also be channelled to become a positive force for transformation.

There are too many critics and talkers in our world, and sadly, not enough ‘doers’. Being a change agent and social innovator takes courage, boldness, passion, discipline, authenticity and sacrifice.

African youth are energetic, creative, brave and willing to take risks. We must channel their anger about the state of affairs on our continent to drive positive change! We must continuously ask them, “What makes you angry?” and “What can you do about it?” We must then partner with them to address the root causes of the problems that they confront.

Over the past 19 years, LEAP has enabled young people to identify problems in their communities that make them angry and channel their rage into generating solutions. Our young people have launched over 1,000 change projects across communities in Africa. These modest efforts have demonstrated what is possible, and we are excited about partnering with other organisations to scale these interventions.

Why do you think so few people take action to address the world’s challenges, even though the frustrations exist? How can we combat this inertia?

There are too many critics and talkers in our world, and sadly, not enough ‘doers’. Being a change agent and social innovator takes courage, boldness, passion, discipline, authenticity and sacrifice. It also requires that we take our eyes off our own needs and focus on serving others. This demands a level of selflessness.

You can combat this inertia by volunteering or serving on the boards of organisations that work on causes in which you believe. This will expose you to the needs and possible solutions in your ecosystem and enable you to engage in a tangible way to solve problems that affect society. The emotional rewards of impact-driven work are immense and will serve as the fuel to propel you to do more.

The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the link between our health and food systems and the critical role that nutritious diets play in ensuring human survival.

You recently launched a book on scaling agrifood businesses in Africa. What do you hope it will contribute to the industry and continent as a whole?

As part of my research fellowship at the Harvard Kennedy School, I interviewed over 80 entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers, funders, and development partners to understand the critical steps required to build resilient agriculture and food businesses on the African continent. I have captured their unique insights, coupled with my experiences as a social entrepreneur, in the 8 chapters, which lay out practical strategies for aspiring entrepreneurs to start and grow successful businesses. The case studies and tools will enable emerging entrepreneurs to navigate the complex agriculture and food ecosystems, develop scalable business models, attract and retain talent, leverage technology and innovation, raise financing, build strong brands, and grow high-impact, resilient and profitable businesses.

The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the link between our health and food systems and the critical role that nutritious diets play in boosting our immune systems and ensuring human survival. The crisis has also exposed the fragility of our food ecosystem, with disruptions in trade leading to food shortages and price hikes. Rising levels of hunger and malnutrition have further strengthened our resolve to reimagine, retool and rebuild a sustainable food and agriculture landscape that can withstand future shocks.

I hope that the book will inspire, equip, and support African entrepreneurs to build successful agribusinesses that transform the landscape. I also hope it will inspire policymakers, development partners, and researchers to create an enabling environment for agribusinesses to thrive.

As a passionate advocate and influential voice for sustainable development, how do you think developing nations can best position themselves to achieve this?

Achieving sustainable development, especially in emerging economies, will require cohesive and comprehensive policies and strategies that create an enabling environment for the private sector to thrive. Addressing critical cross-cutting issues such as closing the gender gap will have a transformational impact on the most vulnerable households and the entire ecosystem within countries and across regions. For example, according to UNWomen, addressing the productivity gap alone in Rwanda will increase crop production by 19 percent, GDP by over $419 million, and lift close to a quarter million people out of poverty over ten years.

We must all become climate champions.

This year’s theme for Earth Day is “Restore our Earth”. How can each of us actively play a role in restoring our earth and contributing to a healthier environment?

Of the 10 countries considered most threatened by climate change globally, 9 are in Africa. The recent floods, droughts, and locust infestations that have plagued most of the continent over the past few years reinforce the need for urgent action.

We must all become climate champions, driving behaviour change in our homes, companies, communities and the broader ecosystem, as well as embracing technologies that support climate adaptation. This will require that we develop and implement comprehensive policies that protect the environment with clear incentives and disincentives for companies that do not comply. As entrepreneurs and CEOs, we must invest in innovation, create recyclable products and packaging, revamp our production process to conserve energy, recycle water, and minimise pollution and waste.

Ndidi Nwuneli’s new book is available through Routledge.