Fahad Awadh

Fahad Ali Awadh is from Zanzibar, Tanzania, born in Arusha in 1986, where his father worked as a pilot for Air Tanzania. He moved to Bahrain at age 2 and later to Toronto, Canada, at age 10, where he attended a prestigious International Business and Technology program. At 12, he started his first business, making and selling candles, which nurtured his entrepreneurial spirit. He studied Business Marketing at York University, where he co-founded Malyka Clothing, an established brand with manufacturing in Bangladesh and distribution across Canada, The Bahamas, and Gambia.

After returning to Tanzania in 2012, Fahad learned about the lack of value addition in the country's cashew industry and partnered with his father to establish YYTZ Agro-Processing. YYTZ’s flagship facility in Zanzibar processes 2,500MT annually and supports rural farmers with training and resources to add value to their crops. The company integrates farmers into the value chain, enabling them to earn more and export semi-processed cashews to global markets. Fahad is passionate about empowering young Africans to create finished products and retain value within the continent.

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