Regina Honu is a Ghanaian social entrepreneur and software developer who has spent more than a decade proving that Africa’s digital revolution must include women at every level, not as beneficiaries but as builders.
Through her organization, Soronko Academy, she has trained thousands of girls and young women in coding, digital literacy, and entrepreneurship, setting the foundation for what many now call Ghana’s “inclusive tech renaissance.”
Honu’s journey began long before the spotlight.
As a young girl growing up in Accra, she was fascinated by machines, not a common curiosity for girls in her environment.
Her aptitude for math and science often met skepticism, but she persisted, eventually earning a degree in Computer Science from Ashesi University.
After a stint in software development, she began to question the lack of female representation in the spaces she occupied.
That question became her mission: to bridge the gender gap in technology across Africa.
In 2012, Honu founded Soronko Solutions, Ghana’s first software development company led by a woman, which evolved into Soronko Academy, West Africa’s first coding and human-centered design school for girls.
The academy’s philosophy goes beyond teaching code; it’s about cultivating confidence, leadership, and problem-solving — the tools required to navigate and shape the digital economy.
From young girls in high schools to women transitioning careers, Soronko’s classrooms have become a launchpad for empowerment.
Under Honu’s leadership, Soronko Academy has trained over 20,000 women and girls in digital skills, partnering with organizations such as Mastercard Foundation, UNICEF, and the World Bank to expand its impact.
The academy’s model, combining technical education with mentorship and soft-skills training — has been replicated in several African countries, illustrating what sustainable, community-rooted innovation looks like.
But Honu’s influence extends far beyond her own programs. She is part of a new generation of African tech leaders reshaping global perceptions of what leadership looks like on the continent.
Her work has earned her international recognition, including being named among BBC’s 100 Most Inspiring Women in the World, CNN’s Top 10 Women Who Are Changing Africa’s Tech Scene, and receiving the Airtel Ghana Change-Maker Award.
Each recognition underscores a larger truth: that her story represents a collective movement of African women coding their way out of limitation.
Despite the accolades, Honu’s focus remains grounded. She often says that the true measure of success isn’t how many apps her students build, but how many lives they transform.
Her classrooms are filled with stories of young women who went from fearing technology to building businesses and securing global jobs.
As Ghana positions itself as a digital hub for West Africa, Regina Honu’s vision feels prophetic.
Her insistence on inclusion, skill-building, and social impact has turned Soronko into a national model for empowerment-driven education.
In many ways, she is writing a new algorithm for Africa’s future, one where innovation is a bridge toward equality.
