Jamila Abbas facts for kids

Jamila Abbas is a talented computer scientist and businesswoman from Kenya. She is known for co-founding MFarm Kenya Limited. This amazing online company helps farmers get important information like where to find good seeds, what the weather will be like, and the best prices for their crops. She started MFarm in 2010.

Early Life and Education

Jamila Abbas was born in Kenya. She went to local schools before attending Strathmore University. There, she earned a degree in Software engineering. This means she learned how to design and build computer programs.

Jamila's Career Journey

After finishing university, Jamila started working at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI). She also joined a group called iHub, which is a community for people interested in technology. At iHub, she reconnected with Susan Oguya, a friend from university.

Helping Farmers with Technology

In September 2010, Jamila and Susan decided they wanted to use technology to help small-scale farmers in Kenya. They joined another group called AkiraChix, which supports women in information technology. There, they met three more students from Strathmore University: Linda Omwenga, Lillian Nduati, and Catherine Kiguru.

The five women decided to enter a competition called IPO48. This was a software development contest where 100 people, in seventeen teams, had to create a computer application that could become a real business in just 48 hours!

Winning the Competition

The competition was organized by HumanIPO from Estonia. In November 2011, Jamila and her team won the competition with their M-Farm application. This app helps farmers connect with suppliers for farm tools and seeds, and also with groups that buy their crops. Most importantly, it helps farmers find out the latest market prices for their produce very quickly.

The five ladies won the top prize of KSh1 million, which was about US$10,000 at the time.

Starting MFarm Kenya Limited

The group used their prize money to officially start MFarm Kenya Limited. Jamila Abbas became the CEO, which means she was in charge of the company. Susan Oguya became the COO, managing the daily activities. Linda Omwenga and Catherine Kiguru handled marketing, and Lillian Nduati was in charge of public relations.

Other Work

Besides her work with MFarm, Jamila Abbas also serves as the country director for the New Vision Foundation. This is a non-profit organization based in Minneapolis, USA.

See also

• Susan Oguya
• Agriculture in Kenya
• Economy of Kenya