Legatum Awards USD 350,000 Prize to African Entrepreneurs

Superflux International of Nigeria Wins USD 100,000 Grand Prize, Five Other Winners Share USD 250,000

KIGALI, Rwanda, Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Legatum, a privately owned international investment group, in collaboration with the OTF Group and the S.E.VEN Fund ("Social Equity Venture Fund"), today announced the winners of the 2008 Legatum Pioneers of Prosperity Africa Awards. The Awards program, developed by Michael Fairbanks, recognizes and rewards business leaders in Africa who serve as role models to the continent's aspiring entrepreneurs.

H.E. President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, presented the Grand Prize of USD 100,000 to Superflux International, a leading secure prints solutions provider based in Nigeria, at a ceremony dedicated to the late Sir John Templeton. The ceremony was also attended by H.E. President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya.

Five other winners were awarded a total of USD 250,000:

-- AAR Health (Kenya)

-- Safi Cleaning (Uganda)

-- Africa Polysack Industries (Uganda)

-- Gahaya Links (Rwanda)

-- Integr8 Group (South Africa)

In awarding the prizes, Legatum Managing Director and panel judge Alan McCormick commented, "We congratulate the 2008 Award winners and each of the finalists who all represent a dynamic new wave of African entrepreneurs shaping the continent's future. Each of them demonstrated the level of excellence, leadership and vision required to grow their businesses regionally and internationally.

They are an inspiration to anyone in Africa who may be wondering if they can succeed in business. The answer is: yes, you can."

Mr. Eric Kacou, Managing Director, OTF emphasized, "The 2008 Legatum Pioneers of Prosperity Africa Awards has been a great success with 1,400 submissions received this year, growing from 450 in 2007. This year's winners and finalists truly represent the business excellence and entrepreneurial spirit that are keys to the continent's future prosperity."

The winning entrepreneurs demonstrated world-class standards of innovation, ingenuity and profitability, as judged by an international panel of leading business experts including:

-- Alan McCormick, Managing Director, Legatum

-- Ariff Shamji, CEO, AAA Growers (Kenya), 2007 Legatum Pioneers of Prosperity Africa Awards Grand Prize Winner

-- Andreas Widmer, Co-Director, S.E.VEN Fund

-- Malik Fal, Business Marketing & Operations Group Lead for West-East-Central Africa, Microsoft

This year's Awards program was open to entrepreneurs from ten African countries including Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.

For further information, please visit www.pioneersofprosperity.org.

    Contact Details
    Hamish Banks
    Legatum
    Dubai
    Tel: +971 4 317 5800
    hamish.banks@legatum.com

    Hashim Mulangwa
    OTF
    Kigali, Rwanda
    Tel: +250 0830 4980
    hmulangwa@otfgroup.com

2008 Legatum Pioneers of Prosperity Africa Awards Winners

Superflux International Limited, Nigeria (Grand Prize Winner)

A leading secure prints solutions provider to major financial institutions, corporations and government agencies in Nigeria, Superflux International Limited also offers outsourced mailing services that require variable data printing (e.g. bank statements) with an increasing presence in the West African region. Empowering clients to operate securely and efficiently through the provision of high integrity documents, Superflux International's operations are guided by the principles of quality, integrity, dependability, confidentiality, teamwork and human capital development.

AAR HEALTH, Kenya (Winner)

AAR is a successful private health care company in the Eastern Africa region with close to 25 years of experience in providing health care solutions. With over 140,000 members, AAR maintains a leadership position in the provision of health care solutions in Africa. Utilising medical and rescue expertise, AAR has coordinated medical centres in camps for refugees and consistently advocates for the conservation and improvement of the environment, natural resources and wildlife.

Safi Cleaning, Uganda (Winner)

Founded in 2000 in Uganda, Safi Cleaning Services provides professional cleaning services for sanitation and environmental protection, specialising in janitorial services, lawn maintenance, fumigation/pest control services, garbage collection and disposal, dry cleaning and laundry services. Safi Cleaning is committed to establishing quality management systems that ensure customer satisfaction and continual improvement of operations. While providing employment to the disadvantaged in society, this organisation is also involved in social and community activities.

Africa Polysack Industries, Uganda (Winner)

Africa Polysack Industries Limited, headquartered in Uganda, was incorporated in February 1999 and began the rehabilitation of a dilapidated woven polypropylene manufacturing plant in October 2000. Production commenced in August of 2001 and Africa Polysack Industries today is the leading manufacturer of woven polypropylene bags and polypropylene rope in Uganda. This organisation is an ISO 9001 - 2000 certified company since July 2004, adhering to the organisation's rules and regulations that have been agreed upon while displaying the highest degree of professionalism.

Gahaya Links, Rwanda (Winner)

Gahaya Links, founded in 2004 in Rwanda, is a leading handcrafts export company in Rwanda that works with over 3,400 rural weavers and exports the products to the United States through the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). AGOA is a US initiative which grants sub-Saharan countries trade preferences for quota and duty-free entry for certain goods into the US. Gahaya Links is committed to empowering rural communities and supporting individuals on their path to become entrepreneurs.

Integr8 Group, South Africa (Winner)

Based in South Africa, Integr8 Group Pty Limited designs, implements and maintains the information, communication and telecommunication environment of many leading corporations across Africa with an emphasis on bridging the digital divide. The company was founded in 1928 and aims to be recognised as the preferred IT Service Partner, focused on innovative, integrated and managed services which add value to all spheres of business operation. In addition, the Integr8 brand strives to deliver customer-defined quality service by attracting, developing and retaining exceptional people and by building strong technology partnerships.

About Legatum

Legatum is a privately owned international investment group whose primary focus is commercial investment, and which also applies its investor's expertise to a long-standing involvement in the sustainable development of communities around the globe. Based in Dubai, with an office in London, Legatum is comprised of four divisions, Legatum Capital, Legatum Global Development ("LGD"), the Legatum Institute, and the Legatum Center at MIT. Legatum Global Development promotes global prosperity by applying market based solutions to long-term development problems. For more information, please visit Legatum's main website at www.legatum.com, and for Legatum Global Development, please visit www.legatum.org. The documentary of the 2007 Awards program, "Unlocking Africa" may be seen at www.legatum.com/unlockingafrica.

About OTF Group

The OTF Group is the competitiveness consulting firm that brings the deepest experience to help build prosperity in developing economies. For decades, OTF Group members have been leaders of change in more than 35 countries and over 20 industrial sectors, from tourism to consumer packaged goods, from agribusiness to financial services. Today, the OTF Group continues to be the thought leader on competitiveness in developing economies and emerging markets. The OTF Group advises developing companies, regions, and nations to be more innovative, increase productivity and create competitive advantage. The OTF Group accomplishes this through its unique coaching and consulting services, and its proprietary methodologies and software technology.

About S.E.VEN Fund

The S.E.VEN Fund (Social Equity Venture Fund) is a virtual non-profit entity run by entrepreneurs whose strategy is to markedly increase the rate of innovation and diffusion of enterprise-based solutions to poverty. It does this by targeted investment that fosters thought leadership through books, films and websites; supporting role models -- whether they are entrepreneurs or innovative firms -- in developing nations; and shaping a new discourse in government, the press and the academy around private-sector innovation, prosperity and progressive human values. For more information, please visit www.sevenfund.org.