Hardy Pemhiwa, Cassava Technologies. Photo: Karolina Komendera

The cassava is a root vegetable that’s readily available, affordable and widely consumed across Africa. That, says company CEO Hardy Pemhiwa, is the inspiration behind the name Cassava Technologies. “That’s what we want technology to be like, and why we have a vision of a digitally connected future that leaves no African behind. Even the poorest families in Africa can afford a cassava meal and we want to say that if you can afford that, you’re eligible to participate in the digital transformation of the continent.”

The ambition to build a digital infrastructure services company that reaches the population across the continent, and to even take it beyond Africa’s borders, is a bold one. But then Cassava was established by one of Africa’s original telecoms pioneers, Zimbabwean billionaire Strive Masiyiwa, the man behind Econet.