Neku Atawodi is the first hire of Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST) Lagos Incubator. As the General Manager, she will be responsible for incubator operations and strategy, startup support, stakeholder engagement, business development and fundraising efforts for MEST.
Announcing the appointment, MEST says Neku will serve as the local ambassador of MEST in Nigeria and will work cross-functionally with its management team in Ghana and Silicon Valley. She will also spearhead major events in Lagos, including the upcoming Africa Technology Summit 2016.
Neku is the founder of Malaik, an impact-focused approach to equity crowdfunding in Africa, which gives investors access to the continent’s opportunities, and mediates its risks through a very thorough due diligence process.
Neku previously worked as a Technical Advisor to the Ministry of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, where she developed the FCT’s revolutionary File Tracking System. She is passionate about empowering African entrepreneurs through tech, and was a member of founding team for Africa’s pioneer Impact Investment Tracking Platform.
Neku is a World Economic Forum Global Shaper, an Associate Fellow of the Royal Commonwealth Society, and a Clinton Global Initiative Lead Mentor. She holds a Masters Degree in International Business from the European Business School, London, and is an avid equestrian in her spare time. She was recently named as one of Forbes Africa’s 30 under 30.
