Africa
Investor considers next move after making splash in Lake Kariba
Making a splash
YALELO means ‘this morning’ in Nyanja, the language spoken in eastern and central Zambia, and is the name given to a burgeoning aquaculture business on the banks of Lake Kariba. Adam Taylor, an entrepreneur from Northern Ireland, thought it was an appropriate word for a venture that signals a new dawn in the landlocked country. next few years. Yalelo has partnered with Aller Aqua, with the Danish aquafeed group set up Horizon Aquaculture, a one-stop shop providing cages, feed and the aquaculture map and he is already considering moving into other countries in Africa. ‘We are where we are now because we’ve made almost every smaller and the frequency is lower,’ Taylor told Fish Farmer in Cape Town. ‘But once you’ve had a certain amount of experience it does make sense to replicate that in other geographies.’ or or background in aquaculture, before lion in the project. But what he lacked in industry knowledge he more than made up for in business acumen, boldness and belief.
fund sector. But he was looking for something that had a more meaningful impact on society and had always wanted to work in Africa.
‘I was very fortunate,’ he said modestly. But the his company, he says, was built on ‘blood, sweat and tears’. Now it has a ‘great trajectory’ but for many years it was much harder than he expected it to be.
‘It’s great coming to conferences such as these and everyone says you’ve done well, but it’s down,’ he said.
really building several companies at once, and
‘The challenge was compounded by a very turbulent period in the Zambian economy, in an undeveloped rural area within Zambia.
‘We’ve graded roads, built power lines and metres.
‘It couldn’t have been done without passionate partners such as Bryan (McCoy) and Tembwe (chief financial officer) and a great