Steve Tchoumba
Cameroon
Occupational Information
Job Title: Executive Manager at ActivSpaces Cameroon
Professional History
Steve Tchoumba is the Executive Manager at ActivSpaces Cameroon, the first tech hub in the country for digital entrepreneurs. Activ in ActivSpaces is short for African Center for Technology Innovation and Ventures. Steve is considered a key actor in the tech entrepreneurial system in Cameroon by his peers. He joined ActivSpaces seven years earlier as the Business Development Manager, when the venture comprised only three people. It has since grown to a 16-person team with three innovation hubs in the country. The team helps digital entrepreneurs transform their ideas into sustainable businesses. He says that the role allows him to collaborate with stakeholders in innovation, tech, entrepreneurship and connect with schools, universities, investors, governments and international organizations as part of creating an environment for hub entrepreneurs to learn and grow.
He is also the President and Chair of KmerTech, the National Hubs Network in Cameroon. In this role, he facilitates collaboration amongst all the actors of the tech, entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem to better support entrepreneurs. He recently was elected a Board member of AfriLabs, the Pan- African hubs network that supports more than 320 hubs on the continent. A challenge, he says, is that due to the scarcity of resources, creating a culture of collaboration has been difficult. Additionally, he has supported entrepreneurs in Senegal, “ L’Africa Exelle” and AYADALAB - Senegal, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, and Cameroon. He has also contributed to building tech ecosystems in Tanzania, Senegal and Burkina Faso.
Steve’s understanding and devotion of the entrepreneur’s ecosystem stems from his entrpreneurial spirit. He has co-founded Gifted, an education, e-commerce platform, Root Café, and most recently Free-Thinking innovation. Steve also co-founded Makrea, a branding and communication company. Previously, Steve was the Managing Director of The Bridge International School in Cameroon and prior to that, a teacher at George Dixon International School in the UK.
Since 2019, Steve has been working with a non-for profit organization in Cameroon comprising six orphanages that facilitate education for about 60 children. In 2007, he won the Afro-carribean youth achievement award (ACAP) and in 2005, the Princess Diana Award.
Qualifications
International Baccalaureate from George Dixon Academy in Birmingham, UK
BA Honours in International Relations and French at Coventry University, UK
A Post Graduate Certificate In Education from Birmingham City University, UK
Program - Startup Accelerators in an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem from Mashav International Training Center, Haifa Israel
Programs
2022 Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellow
