At 28 years old, Derrydean Dadzie ’06, is one of Africa’s youngest CEOs. His company, DreamOval Ltd, is already rubbing shoulders with top Ghanaian businesses to develop high-quality software services for the region.

Derrydean Dadzie ’06, Co-founder and CEO of DreamOval Ltd, was awarded the 2011 Young Entrepreneur of the Year at the Youth Excellence Awards. At 28 years old, Derrydean is one of Africa’s youngest CEOs and part of Africa’s emerging class of young entrepreneurs producing innovative products which are spurring development on the continent. In his acceptance speech, Dadzie encouraged young Africans not to emigrate, but to stay and launch businesses in Africa. DreamOval provides internet and mobile software services including an online payment and money transfer system, mobile banking solutions, SMS distribution, and CocoaLink. An mAgric service, CocoaLink seeks to improve the productivity and livelihoods of cocoa farmers by using voice and text messages delivered in local languages and English to connect cocoa farmers with useful information on best farming practices, farm safety, child labor, health, and other farming issues. DreamOval clients include Fidelity Bank, Agricultural Development Bank, Ashesi University, and The Hershey Company.