Nubian Seed founder wins UNDP market access support
Pauline Dikuelo | Wednesday September 10, 2025 13:57
The recognition came during a special innovation competition held on the sidelines of the ongoing Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) in Algiers, Algeria.
Nubian Seed is a local brand known for producing natural cosmetics and personal care products, including soaps, lip balms, massage oils, foot scrubs, and facial masks. Tebape’s work has positioned her as one of Botswana’s most promising entrepreneurs in the beauty and wellness sector.
She was nominated by the African Union/African Women in Processing (AWIP) team to participate in a UNDP-hosted hackathon-style session designed to showcase the potential of African entrepreneurs. The initiative brought together participants from across the continent to collaboratively develop business concepts that highlight the opportunities within Africa’s value chains.
As part of the competition, Tebape was paired with three other cosmetics business owners, two from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and one from a non-ECOWAS country. Together, they were tasked with creating an imaginary cosmetics product and demonstrating how they would source ingredients, package, distribute, and market it across Africa.
'I was in the group with women from Nigeria, Ghana, and Namibia. “We were told to develop an imaginary cosmetic product that represents how we are going to tap into the pan-African value chain, and we went in the competition to win it,” Tebape explained.
Her group’s innovative approach impressed the judging panel, which included the UNDP Regional Director alongside Nigeria’s Minister of Trade and Namibia’s Minister of Finance. Their team emerged as winners, securing 12 months of UNDP support to enhance their market access initiatives.
Other groups in the competition focused on diverse sectors such as food, agro-processing, coffee, and leather, all presenting creative solutions to strengthen intra-African trade and industrial value chains.
For Tebape and Nubian Seed, the award marks a major step in expanding the brand’s footprint beyond Botswana and into the broader African market.