Unilever NL : Sabrina Natasha Habib awarded The Prince of Wales Prize for 2017

Unilever and the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership announce Sabrina Natasha Habib, Kidogo as the winner of the fourth HRH The Prince of Wales Young Sustainability Entrepreneur Prize.

Kidogo provides high quality childcare for less than a dollar a day in the urban slums of Kenya. Using its network of 'mamapreneurs' Kidago provides training, mentorship and finance tools to improve the lives of women and ensure high quality care for children.

Sabrina Premji, CEO Kidogo said:'I'm thrilled to have won the Young Entrepreneurs Award! The work we're doing at Kidogo helps young children get the best start to life, it helps women have peace of mind knowing that their children are in good hands and it helps businesses who see less absenteeism, better productivity and are able to attract and retain female talent. We're really excited about expanding our impact across East Africa through a partnership with Unilever.'

The Awards support and celebrate inspirational young people from all over the world who have initiatives, products or services that are tackling some of the planet's biggest sustainability challenges.

Unilever CEO, Paul Polman said: 'The finalists in this year's awards have all demonstrated their passion and determination to create new ideas and new business models for the changing world. I am more convinced than ever that helping young people, and in particular, social entrepreneurs is the right thing to do. With strong mentoring and a helping hand, there is no limit to what young people with purpose can achieve'.

Dame Polly Courtice, Director of the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership said: 'I am always inspired and encouraged by the young entrepreneurs that these awards attract. Tomorrow's challenges will need leaders with different mindsets and approaches to that which created today's economies and societies. These young social entrepreneurs have precisely the mindsets, values and energy that we need from our future leaders and deserve our full support and encouragement to take their ideas to scale.'

This year, 1,339 entrepreneurs from 128 countries entered the competition, with the finalists sharing €100,000, along with tailored one-to-one mentoring sessions for 12 months provided by experts from Unilever and the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.

ENDS