Powering Congo: Using Recycled Materials to Create Cutting-Edge Battery Technology for Businesses and Households with Benedict Owanga

[00:00:00] You're listening to the Unlocking Africa Podcast.

[00:00:30] The community has a grid that's connected to a solar panel which gets its power from energy storage such as batteries.

[00:00:37] That's where I see the boom happening as well.

[00:00:40] Stay tuned as we bring you inspiring people who are unlocking Africa's economic potential.

[00:00:47] You're listening to the Unlocking Africa Podcast with your host, Terser Adamu.

[00:00:54] Welcome to the Unlocking Africa Podcast where we find inspirational people who are doing inspirational things to unlock Africa's economic potential.

[00:01:05] Today, we have Benny Owanga who is powering Congo with cutting-edge battery technology.

[00:01:12] He is the founder of Owanga, a company pioneering clean energy solutions and advanced innovations.

[00:01:22] Welcome, welcome, welcome to the podcast, Benny. How are you?

[00:01:26] Benny Owanga, I'm doing pretty well. Thank you for having me here.

[00:01:28] It's a pleasure to have you on the podcast. I believe you're in Kinshasa at the moment.

[00:01:33] Benny Owanga, Yeah, everything is going well. I've just, I guess, relocated to Kinshasa.

[00:01:39] It's very different from where I was in the States, but everything is going well.

[00:01:43] Amazing, amazing. And looking forward to hearing how this transition is taking shape and also the story behind the transition or the relocation.

[00:01:54] As always, before we get started, I was hoping you could introduce yourself and give us a brief introduction into who Benny Owanga is.

[00:02:06] Well, dude, Benny Owanga, well, I'll give a very brief introduction, I guess.

[00:02:12] But as you know, my name is Benedict Owanga. I'm Congolese. I grew up in Congo.

[00:02:17] I left at a really young age and then we moved to South Africa.

[00:02:21] And then after South Africa, we moved to Canada. I did my undergrad there.

[00:02:25] And then I got accepted to do law school in the States at Emory University.

[00:02:30] During my time at law school, I really enjoyed it. But at the same time, I started a company, which is why I'm here to talk about.

[00:02:38] But yeah, so I've been all over the place pretty much. Yeah.

[00:02:42] Fantastic. Thank you for that. Nice and concise. And you've given us a great introduction into your professional and personal life, which has obviously led you to what you're doing now with Owanga.

[00:02:55] So can you tell us what was the actual inspiration behind starting the company?

[00:03:02] Yeah. So the inspiration actually happened during my second year at law school.

[00:03:09] I was externing at a place and before I started my official job, we had training.

[00:03:15] It was a three hour training session. But one hour in, I lost power and I did not complete the entire training session.

[00:03:24] And then next, next week, boom, I had to start working throughout the entire semester.

[00:03:29] I was just so confused on how to really help my clients maximize the opportunities they had and just understanding what was required of me to do.

[00:03:39] And then I spoke to my friend at the time, Chinelo Addy, who's also one of the co-founders.

[00:03:45] And I just told her about my experience at this externship.

[00:03:48] And then she said, wow, it seems like you had a hard time, but she also pinpoint something very important.

[00:03:55] She's like, all this happened because you lost electricity.

[00:03:58] And then it really reshaped my thinking. It got me thinking like, listen, I lost power for two hours and it took me an entire month just to figure out what I was doing at my job.

[00:04:11] How are people in Congo who have never experienced power, who have inconsistent access to electricity?

[00:04:18] How are they really living?

[00:04:20] You know, and then we went down the rabbit hole of trying to solve this problem of lack of electricity.

[00:04:25] Yeah.

[00:04:26] Fantastic. Fantastic. I like that story.

[00:04:29] It's clear that losing power during this period was a catalyst or inspiration to you having the idea of starting the company Owanga.

[00:04:40] But how did your actual journey within the clean energy, renewable energy sector begin?

[00:04:48] Yeah, it really it really began when I was applying to law school.

[00:04:55] I majored in criminology and after majoring in criminology, I was like, OK, I want to go to law and just I guess like I guess work in the legal field.

[00:05:04] But I was also a little bit confused in the sense that what do I want to do in the legal field?

[00:05:09] You know, you can go the business route, you can go the litigation route.

[00:05:12] But something that I was always interested in was natural resources.

[00:05:17] You know, I'm Congolese and pretty much most of the world's natural resources comes from here.

[00:05:22] I was like, OK, I like natural resources. I'm interested in legal work.

[00:05:27] So let me go. Let me become a lawyer and just focus on the environmental side of things.

[00:05:32] And then it was my time when I was learning about, I guess, different policies and different environmental things as well.

[00:05:38] I got introduced to a group called the Foundation for Natural Resources.

[00:05:43] The Foundation for Natural Resources is an association based in Denver and they host yearly conferences for students, for working professionals about anything that is in the environmental world.

[00:05:57] And I would attend those events every summer and I would just get to learn more about the policies that are getting placed, just the new companies that are coming up with these innovative solutions.

[00:06:07] That really helped me fall in love with the environment.

[00:06:11] But at the same time, we also see that the world is making that transition to clean energy, you know?

[00:06:19] So that also led me to going down a deeper rabbit hole to really understand like more about the environment.

[00:06:26] Yeah.

[00:06:27] OK, you've mentioned something quite interesting there in terms of your transition from being involved or interested within the natural resource space.

[00:06:37] And then moving from that into the more renewable, clean energy space.

[00:06:42] So with that in mind, how would you say Owanga's vision has transitioned or evolved since its inception?

[00:06:52] Yeah, our vision has, it definitely has evolved.

[00:06:56] So to start off, like when we are just a quick background about company, we are battery as a service.

[00:07:03] We rent out portable battery packs to business owners who lose electricity and we also sell it.

[00:07:09] When we first started the company, our goal was to never really manufacture or assemble on the continent.

[00:07:15] Our goal was like, OK, there's already battery packs on the market.

[00:07:19] Let's just buy that and resell it.

[00:07:21] And then when we started doing that, it got us thinking it's like most of the battery packs we are purchasing aren't made for the Congolese environment.

[00:07:30] But at the same time, we started asking ourselves a real question.

[00:07:34] It's like if we really want to have that clean energy transition on the continent, we shouldn't rely on products coming in, but we should really build the products on the ground.

[00:07:46] That's how we really have that clean energy transition.

[00:07:50] Like most countries can talk about, OK, we want electric vehicles.

[00:07:54] We want this and this.

[00:07:55] But it's like if we are bringing those electric vehicles from abroad, are we really pushing that clean energy transition?

[00:08:03] You know, it's a it's a debatable question.

[00:08:06] So, yeah.

[00:08:07] Thank you for sharing that.

[00:08:09] I guess building the products on the ground is a huge undertaking and can present many challenges.

[00:08:16] But looking outside of that specifically, could you describe some of the initial challenges you faced while developing the first set of products?

[00:08:27] Yeah, a ton.

[00:08:31] Maybe we'll stick with the top three.

[00:08:34] I guess.

[00:08:35] Yeah.

[00:08:36] The top three is definitely it's always going to be funding for startups.

[00:08:40] It's always going to be funding.

[00:08:41] But for us, it's a little bit different as well because we are a hardware company and not a lot of investors are willing to give money to hardware companies, especially on the continent.

[00:08:52] That was one challenge we faced.

[00:08:54] But to really go around that, we the first products we developed, we just use recyclable materials.

[00:09:01] We use old plastic bottles and old laptop batteries to really just get it in customers hands, get them to use it and then receive the feedback.

[00:09:10] Another challenge that we face is receiving the products from China because we build everything to build the casing.

[00:09:20] But when it comes to the actual batteries, the single cells that go inside the device, you can only get it in China and it comes via boat.

[00:09:30] And on average, we're looking at 40 days for one of those batteries to really come into Congo.

[00:09:38] So that in itself is a huge challenge that we also face.

[00:09:42] But another challenge we face is that we are a really, really young team.

[00:09:46] Yeah.

[00:09:47] And there is just a ton of things that we don't really know and we are still learning.

[00:09:52] But till this day, I'm forever grateful to the support and the mentors I have around me.

[00:09:58] That's something that I've learned throughout working with this company is that you don't have to do everything.

[00:10:04] Just do one thing that you're really good at.

[00:10:06] And there are mentors around that are willing to help.

[00:10:10] You know, like I use that a lot.

[00:10:11] I use my age to really just get people that are willing to listen to me and just give me the opportunity to help us with what we don't know.

[00:10:19] I love that. I love that. Thank you for that, Benny.

[00:10:22] Because sometimes you have to understand where your strengths lie and then where there's areas that people can come in and fill those gaps.

[00:10:31] I guess that's where your team come in and your mentors come in as well.

[00:10:34] But you also have that benefit of that youthful energy and lack of fear as well, which will take you very far at the same time.

[00:10:44] Yeah.

[00:10:45] But I guess sticking with the theme of product development and the innovation that you're creating, can you walk us through the product journey from the original design to some of your latest innovations?

[00:11:02] Yeah, most definitely. So the company was started, I guess, almost a year ago.

[00:11:09] And when we first started, we were like, OK, there's a problem of electricity and people using inefficient ways.

[00:11:16] How can we go about, I guess, helping them out?

[00:11:18] And we came up with the idea of battery packs. But we were like, let's not try and re-innovate battery packs because it's already on the market.

[00:11:27] So what we did is that we bought at least over 15 different battery packs, 15 or close to 25 battery packs.

[00:11:35] We deployed it in different regions. We deployed some in Nigeria. We deployed some in Congo.

[00:11:42] And we let people play around with it and we would receive feedback.

[00:11:47] For example, there's some battery packs out there that's available, but they aren't really made for the African market.

[00:11:53] What I mean by this is that the sockets are very U.S. and European focus, where some some African countries, it's so different, especially here in Congo.

[00:12:05] And some some battery packs use, correct me if I'm wrong, I think it's called NFC charging, where when you put your iPhone on top of something and it charges immediately.

[00:12:15] So it was small things like that, that we're like, huh, these things aren't made for the African continent.

[00:12:22] But at the same time, we're receiving feedback from customers. And from that feedback, we're developing our own.

[00:12:28] We've had three different products developed. The first one we developed was just a pure outlet and it just had one USB button.

[00:12:37] That's it. We gave it to customers and then we got feedback to like, this is great, but I need more USB outlets.

[00:12:45] I need more outlets for also to charge my laptop. And then from that feedback, it led to prototype two, which is one that we have just finished trial.

[00:12:55] And that one was great, but it was very, very chunky. It was very, very big.

[00:13:00] Like it was like it was just it was just really, really big and you couldn't really carry it anywhere.

[00:13:07] But the point of the device is to be portable. But that's OK, you know, because you learn from these things and from giving it to customers, they really appreciated it.

[00:13:17] But one thing they kept reemphasizing is that we need more power to be able to power up our fridge.

[00:13:24] And we were like, OK, if customers want more power to power up the fridge, the downfall of that is that it becomes really expensive.

[00:13:33] So that's when we re-innovated the current model that we will be releasing hopefully by the end of December.

[00:13:41] It's a stackable solution. So it's 600 watts capacity.

[00:13:46] But if you're like, oh, I need more capacity, you can come back and buy another one and keep stacking it up.

[00:13:52] It's a modular device. So, yeah.

[00:13:55] I believe one of the products you have is the Chison solar generator.

[00:14:00] Yes. I guess that's one of your flagship products.

[00:14:02] So what makes it unique in terms of its design and functionality?

[00:14:08] Yes.

[00:14:08] Yeah, I guess what makes it unique is that it's the first.

[00:14:11] It's one of the first. I don't want to say it's the first.

[00:14:14] And then somebody comes back and say you're wrong.

[00:14:16] But it's one of the first battery packs that is one side battery and one side inverter.

[00:14:21] So the inverter side allows our customers to be able to power up the fridges and the microwaves and the stoves.

[00:14:29] And the battery aspect allows people to power up things like the phones, the laptops and things like that.

[00:14:37] And what makes this great is that it's breakable and it's stackable.

[00:14:41] So let's say you you're like, OK, I really just need the inverter.

[00:14:45] I just want this to power up my fridge.

[00:14:47] You can remove the inverter from the battery and just specifically use it for the fridge.

[00:14:53] Or if you need a battery and inverter, you can attach it.

[00:14:56] And if you need more power, it's a modular device and you can stack up up to two batteries as well.

[00:15:03] So more power for the same price. Yeah.

[00:15:05] Fantastic. Fantastic.

[00:15:08] I know you are targeting a specific demographic within society.

[00:15:14] People who are from a more rural, low income setting.

[00:15:19] So how do you ensure that the products that you're designing remain both affordable without also compromising on quality?

[00:15:29] Yeah.

[00:15:31] Yeah.

[00:15:31] We do that really by just assembling it in Kinshasa.

[00:15:36] That's one of the ways we can really win, because when we talk about going abroad, then you have to factor in a lot of things, right?

[00:15:44] Like taxes.

[00:15:46] You have to factor in custom fees and things like that.

[00:15:49] Like we make it our effort to really assemble it on the continent.

[00:15:54] But not only that, we also very, we talk to our customers, right?

[00:15:59] Because our company really has three core values.

[00:16:03] We value innovation.

[00:16:05] We value that customer centric approach, but we value that affordability.

[00:16:10] And there are some customers that are like, okay, I want this product, but I can't afford it right now.

[00:16:16] We've partnered up with several companies in Kinshasa that pretty much do that pay as you go system, where they will buy the product from us and then the customers will go to them.

[00:16:27] And then they help the customers afford that product.

[00:16:30] So as you mentioned, one of the key drives or what you're trying to achieve is the actual assembly within Kinshasa or within the Congo.

[00:16:41] So I guess with that comes some logistical hurdles from the receiving of the products to the assembling and then the distribution.

[00:16:51] So how do you manage to address some of the logistical challenges that you encounter through that process?

[00:16:58] Yeah, it goes back to what I said earlier, way in the sense that sometimes like you don't know everything, but you have mentors and partners that really help you figure things out along the way.

[00:17:11] So what I mean by this is that our goal at the moment, before we even move into large scale manufacturing, the continent, you know, it's going to take time.

[00:17:21] Our goal in Kinshasa is just to assemble the products.

[00:17:24] We have different partners in Tanzania.

[00:17:28] We have different partners in Nigeria and Rwanda who give us some of the components that we need and then they ship it to us in Kinshasa and we just assemble the product.

[00:17:38] And when it comes to the logistics sides of sending the product to different regions within Congo, we have partners for that.

[00:17:47] We have logistical companies.

[00:17:49] We have shipping companies that handle all that different aspects to really help us going because the only way we can really succeed is through partnerships.

[00:17:59] You know, like one thing I truly believe in is just focus on one thing and get that right.

[00:18:05] And for us, it's focusing on battery solutions and just assembling and the things around that, like logistics and shipping the products.

[00:18:14] There are people that specifically do that, who are great at that.

[00:18:17] And that's who we rely on.

[00:18:20] Yeah.

[00:18:20] Wise words.

[00:18:21] Thank you for that, Benny.

[00:18:23] Currently, you're working with partners to support on many of the functional areas, including the assembly.

[00:18:32] But your plan is in the future to open an assembly plant of your own.

[00:18:37] When do you think that will be?

[00:18:41] Yes.

[00:18:41] Our plan is to open up our own assembly plant.

[00:18:45] Personally, I would love to say 2025, 2025 by November.

[00:18:51] We start, I guess we start the phase one of finding land and putting things together.

[00:18:56] But one thing I've learned from my short time in business is that things don't always go as planned.

[00:19:02] And that's why when we always have a calendar, we always double it.

[00:19:05] So instead of 2025, I'm going to say 2026, December.

[00:19:10] That's when we want to start the first phase of finding land to really start our assembly plant.

[00:19:16] And the great thing is that Kinshasa and Congo overall, they really, the country is really open to investors.

[00:19:24] We have a specific region called Zone Economic, where a lot of companies are going there and they're building their own assembly plants.

[00:19:32] And the government is really helping them find land and just receive the investments that they need.

[00:19:39] A big company that's actually in that region is Pepsi, you know?

[00:19:44] So, and Pepsi and there's several other companies within that region just building the assembly plants in Congo.

[00:19:50] So, yeah.

[00:19:52] Opening up a facility like that requires some sum of capital.

[00:19:57] So what level of investment will be required to enable you to do this?

[00:20:03] All investments.

[00:20:04] So, but no, to answer your question, to answer your question is that that's why our focus really for the next, for this year and the next year is to really just prove that this concept works.

[00:20:17] And we prove that by selling the product, right?

[00:20:21] Continuing to innovate.

[00:20:22] And then from the traction from the innovation, from people buying the products, that's when investors are really going to start to be a little bit more interested.

[00:20:32] And then when you have those conversations, you're like, listen, this is the traction we have.

[00:20:37] And this is how much we can even grow the company if we officially start our own assembly plant.

[00:20:43] And in terms of investments, we, when it comes to, I guess, building the assembly plant, we will be looking at things like debt financing and equity financing as well.

[00:20:54] But another thing, it just goes back to hardware on the continent, right?

[00:20:59] There isn't a lot of hardware startups.

[00:21:02] And if they are, nobody is ever really giving them that investment unless you show that major traction, you see.

[00:21:10] Thank you for that, Bernie.

[00:21:12] We've talked about adding value through the assembly process in Congo.

[00:21:19] So maybe looking at adding value to the communities that you're serving, how do you plan to ensure that local talents and communities are actively involved in the assembly process of these products?

[00:21:36] Yeah.

[00:21:36] We have a couple of programs that we actually have planned out.

[00:21:40] I guess I could give you three of them.

[00:21:43] So one thing we've realized is that, great, we've developed this battery pack and our goal is everyone should use it, you know.

[00:21:50] But everyone uses it, then there's also a downfall, right?

[00:21:54] Because there are some people that earn their money from fixing generators.

[00:21:58] So if everyone is moving to this cleaner solution, how are those repairmen really going to continue to make a living?

[00:22:06] So we have a plan where we want to upscale those people.

[00:22:09] We want to bring them in to our company, teach them how to fix these battery packs in case there's ever an issue.

[00:22:16] Then they can come work for us and just become, I guess, the new generation of technicians.

[00:22:21] Because like I said, the world is moving towards clean energy and we need to upscale a lot of people.

[00:22:28] So that's one way we're going to get the community involved.

[00:22:31] And secondly as well is that one thing we've realized is when we first started the company, we were hiring engineers.

[00:22:40] But something really caught our eye is that most of the engineers that were applying were men.

[00:22:47] And I asked my cousin, because at the time I was still in the States, I asked him, can you find some, I guess, some university students, some woman, and just ask them, like, why aren't they applying?

[00:22:59] And most of the answers we would get is they don't believe this is a woman's job and they don't believe a woman can do something like this, you know?

[00:23:09] And that caught my attention.

[00:23:11] Yeah, exactly.

[00:23:12] It's small things like that.

[00:23:13] And that really caught my attention.

[00:23:15] I was like, we really have to find a way to really change the narrative.

[00:23:19] Right.

[00:23:19] And we also plan on partnering up with schools and local universities to just get more women involved in, I guess, not really.

[00:23:29] STEM, because STEM is really broad, but in just the technological innovation in terms of building things and that mechanical and just hands-on approach of things, you know?

[00:23:41] And lastly is that Congo is a really, really young country and there's a ton of young people that graduate university and don't have jobs.

[00:23:52] So partnering up with university and just giving people that externship, that internship to just come in in-house and just helping us build our product, you know?

[00:24:04] So, yeah.

[00:24:06] Thank you for that.

[00:24:07] It's clear that you've made huge efforts to kind of embed yourself with the local communities to get them involved with the process.

[00:24:16] So I was wondering if you can tell us, is this a strategy or method that you also use to ensure that the products are relevant for the communities that you hope to serve?

[00:24:29] Yes.

[00:24:30] Yes.

[00:24:30] Yes.

[00:24:30] This is definitely a strategy.

[00:24:32] And can I just clarify something as well?

[00:24:35] There was something I forgot to say about your previous questions in terms of how we really getting the community involved.

[00:24:41] There's one more thing as well that we also want to get people involved in is that we've realized specifically in Congo, there's a lot of people that suffer from disabilities and whether it's visual impairment or just any form of disabilities, society just shuns them away.

[00:24:58] And when they shun the way, they can't get jobs, they can't really put food on the table and they pretty much don't do anything as a society.

[00:25:08] And that's something our company as well plans to at least change by hiring folks that have disabilities and just giving them that opportunity to work for us.

[00:25:18] So I also wanted to add that as well.

[00:25:22] Moving on to the question you asked about how we innovate our product, we've definitely used a customer centric approach.

[00:25:32] So when we first started, like I mentioned, we bought 30 different battery packs, we gave it to customers and we just let them use it.

[00:25:40] We wouldn't even tell them how to turn it on.

[00:25:43] We wouldn't even tell them how to do anything.

[00:25:45] We just said, here's a battery pack and use it.

[00:25:48] And that's the approach we always want to use for innovating our product, because at the end of the day is I'm not innovating this product for myself, but I'm innovating.

[00:25:59] We innovating this product for people that need it most.

[00:26:02] And if 10 clients say, oh, we want it to turn blue, who am I to say, oh, it should be purple.

[00:26:09] You know what I'm trying to say?

[00:26:11] Like that customer centric approach should always be the number one thing.

[00:26:15] And I also think that's something that a lot of Western companies fail to do when they come to the continent.

[00:26:23] They just try and copy and paste what worked in Europe or what worked in North America.

[00:26:28] They think it's going to work in Congo.

[00:26:30] It's not.

[00:26:31] It's like this country is different.

[00:26:33] It's definitely not going to work.

[00:26:35] Yeah.

[00:26:36] I agree.

[00:26:36] I agree.

[00:26:37] So with the work that you're doing within the community, are there any specific stories in terms of how your products have significantly impacted lives or businesses that have used the product?

[00:26:52] Yeah.

[00:26:53] So I guess our quick survey, we've had over 500 businesses use our product.

[00:27:00] And within the three months of using it from our survey, they were able to increase the profits by 40%, which is really huge.

[00:27:10] Yes.

[00:27:10] But at the same time, that linkage is because they were able to operate four hours longer with our solution.

[00:27:18] Because back in the day is if I lose power, I'm either going to turn on my generator.

[00:27:23] That's my profit gone into the oil and gas, or I'm just going to shut down my shop and go home early.

[00:27:31] So yeah.

[00:27:32] Fantastic.

[00:27:33] Fantastic.

[00:27:34] Thank you for sharing that with us.

[00:27:35] So I guess with the work that you're doing, it requires a huge amount of technology, innovation.

[00:27:44] So within that space, are there any trends that you're seeing specifically when it comes to battery technology or its use in Africa that you're quite excited about?

[00:27:55] Yeah.

[00:27:56] One thing I'm really excited about is the recycling aspect.

[00:27:59] There are more and more recycling companies coming up on the continent that I guess are starting to collect old laptop batteries.

[00:28:09] They're telling clients they're willing to pay for old laptop batteries, old phone batteries, and they're testing it out to really see if it's still usable.

[00:28:18] And they're just reselling it on the market.

[00:28:21] And that's something that is really exciting.

[00:28:23] Because you look at the continent, we have so much amount of e-waste we have.

[00:28:29] And a lot of these companies are picking up those e-waste, repurposing it.

[00:28:33] And that's how we're really pushing the transition to clean tech.

[00:28:36] You know, because at the end of the day, we can always continue to mine all these different natural resources.

[00:28:43] But we have a lot of hidden treasures on the continent.

[00:28:47] And these companies, by repurposing these batteries, make it so much easier for companies like myself that need those batteries.

[00:28:55] You know, because why go to China when I can just go to Kenya or Uganda or South Africa?

[00:29:00] And that really continues to grow that pan-Africanism entrepreneurship.

[00:29:04] So if we move from current trends and look at the future, looking at the future, how do you see the battery technology space in Africa evolving in five years' time?

[00:29:19] I definitely see it growing.

[00:29:22] And I see a huge growth happening in the mobility sector.

[00:29:27] You see a lot of countries like Ethiopia, like Kenya, that are really pushing towards that EV space.

[00:29:35] But at the same time as well, it's going to take a lot of people time to really transition from the regular cars that they have to these electric vehicles.

[00:29:46] But it's going to come.

[00:29:47] And I think that's going to be the sector that's going to boom the most.

[00:29:51] Because you even look at countries like Congo, we have so many people using regular scooters, you know, like diesel-powered scooters.

[00:30:00] But eventually, as the prices of oil and gas keep rising, a lot of people are going to make that switch to that, okay, let me just have an electric scooter, you know?

[00:30:11] And I think that's where the big boom is going to happen on the continent as well.

[00:30:16] And secondly, the way I see the energy transition, electricity for homes and businesses in Congo and just different countries as well, I really think it's going to be a decentralized way of doing things where it's going to be one community has a grid that's connected to a solar panel, which gets its power from energy storage, such as batteries.

[00:30:41] That's where I see the boom happening as well.

[00:30:45] So if we look closer to home, where do you see yourself or Wanga in five years time?

[00:30:53] How do you envision or see the company contributing to that kind of energy transition in Africa?

[00:31:01] That's a big question.

[00:31:02] But I guess in five years, hopefully we've helped a lot of people.

[00:31:07] We've hopefully helped a lot of people make that transition to clean energy.

[00:31:12] But not only that, we've also upskilled a lot of people.

[00:31:16] Because something that I really value is just upskilling a lot of youth and just upskilling a lot of Congolese people, you know?

[00:31:25] Because this country has suffered a lot.

[00:31:28] And a lot of really smart folks end up leaving the country, going abroad, and they end up building amazing careers and amazing companies out there.

[00:31:38] But I really want to just show people that it can be done in Congo.

[00:31:43] If you look at Nigeria, for example, you look at most of the unicorn companies, you'll probably see Nigerian, Nigerian, Nigerian, Nigerian, Nigerian.

[00:31:52] And it all started when those dudes from Flutterwave, those dudes from Paysack were like, hey, I'm leaving Europe.

[00:31:59] Hey, I'm leaving Canada.

[00:32:01] Go back to Nigeria and build a company.

[00:32:04] And that led to other Nigerians being able to see, hey, he's Nigerian.

[00:32:08] He looks like me.

[00:32:09] And he's building something successful.

[00:32:11] And if I can at least have someone from Congo be like, okay, he's Congolese.

[00:32:16] I don't know how you define success, but he's doing something good.

[00:32:20] And I can do it as well.

[00:32:21] That's where I would envision ourselves in five years.

[00:32:25] Yeah, just inspiring people.

[00:32:29] As people, we often have quotes, mantras, African proverbs or affirmations that keep us going when times are challenging or when times are good.

[00:32:37] Do you have one that you can share with us today?

[00:32:41] One that I can share with folks is just believe in yourself.

[00:32:46] Because at the end of the day, only you, you are your biggest limitation.

[00:32:52] And if you say you can't do certain things, then you set that limitation upon yourself.

[00:32:58] I just believe if you believe in yourself, you can do a lot more things.

[00:33:02] And I know you said one quote, but the last thing as well is just, just trust in God and trust in your support system.

[00:33:08] Because without that, it's tough.

[00:33:11] It's tough.

[00:33:12] It can be done, but it's tough.

[00:33:14] Yeah.

[00:33:14] Fantastic.

[00:33:16] Benny, it's been a pleasure having you on the podcast.

[00:33:21] Great way to finish and round everything off.

[00:33:25] Wise words.

[00:33:26] Obviously, within the podcast, we like to bring on people at different starts or phases of the journey, whether it's the beginning, middle, end, wherever that journey is.

[00:33:36] But obviously, you're at the early stages, but you've achieved a hell of a lot and you've made a brave and bold decision to relocate back to Congo, which I have to give you huge praise for.

[00:33:51] Looking forward to seeing what you achieve with Owanga.

[00:33:55] I'm sure there'll be huge success.

[00:33:57] So looking forward to seeing all of that.

[00:33:59] But I'd just like to say thank you for your time.

[00:34:02] And we look forward to seeing how things develop in the near future.

[00:34:07] Awesome.

[00:34:07] That was a good plan.

[00:34:08] Thank you for having me.

[00:34:11] Thank you to everyone who has listened and stayed tuned to the podcast.

[00:34:15] If you've enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, share or tell a friend about it.

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[00:34:25] Thank you and see you next week for the Unlocking Africa podcast.