Schwab Foundation announces 2026 award winners ahead of Davos conference

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship today announced the winners of its 2026 awards, with 21 leaders representing 17 organisations from across the world being named Social Entrepreneurs and Innovators of the Year. 

The winners feature social entrepreneurs, innovators in the public and corporate sectors and those leading collective action by bringing organisations together. They operate in 16 different countries, from Ethiopia to Brazil, with missions ranging from fighting human trafficking and building circular economies to wildlife conservation and increasing access to STEM education.

Hilde Schwab, co-founder and chair of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, said: “This year’s awardees highlight the extraordinary resilience and ingenuity at the heart of our social innovator and entrepreneur community. In the face of unprecedented disruption and uncertainty, these leaders have not only adapted their models but have deepened their commitment to lasting impact.” 

This year’s winners include Olivia Onyemaobi (pictured), founder of Pad-Up Creations, a Nigerian enterprise producing washable and reusable sanitary products to tackle period poverty; Omar Itani, founder of FabricAid, a social enterprise that has pioneered the second-hand clothing market in the Middle-East, improving access to affordable clothing for marginalised communities while reducing waste; Piyush Tewari, founder of SaveLIFE Foundation, a nonprofit that seeks to improve road safety by transforming infrastructure design, driver behaviour, regulation and emergency responses to crashes; and Kibret Abebe, founder of Tebita Ambulance, a social enterprise providing emergency medical services in Ethiopia. 

• Read more about FabricAid: Against the odds: the growing green businesses of the Middle East

François-Ghislain Morillion, founder of popular shoe brand Veja, is also recognised for the company’s work integrating social, economic and ecological justice into its supply chain. Another winner this year is Mamadou Ndiaye, chief of staff at the ministry of microfinance and social and solidarity economy of Senegal, for its role in promoting inclusive economic development and social entrepreneurship.

An awards ceremony will take place on 20 January at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos.

Global challenges

Alongside the winners announcement, the Schwab Foundation today published a report, Built to Last: Social Innovation in Transition, looking at the impact of the Schwab Foundation social innovator community – 510 active social entrepreneurs across 439 organisations, representing the 25 cohorts of winners since the awards were created in 2001. Operating in 190 countries, the innovators have collectively had an impact on more than 950m people since they founded their respective organisations, according to the report.

The research, which includes a survey of the social innovators, shows Schwab Foundation awardees are not immune to global funding cuts and shifts in political priorities: more than four out of five report being affected by shrinking resources, affecting programme rollout (70%) and disrupting innovation or scaling plans (72%).

Meanwhile, more than two thirds say they experienced weakened collaborations and partnerships “due to sector volatility”. As a result, “the community’s emphasis shifted from expansion to consolidation, strengthening what works and safeguarding core operations,” says the report. 

Despite those challenges, over the past year social innovators in the Schwab Foundation community collectively mobilised US$970m in financial resources and US$89m worth of in-kind support, according to the report.

The two UN sustainable development goals (SDGs) most targeted by Schwab Foundation awardees are Decent work and economic growth (SDG8) and Reduced inequalities (SDG10), both targeted by 10% of social innovators.

• Read more about Kibret Abebe and Tebita Ambulance: ‘Covid has made me wonder: am I really an entrepreneur?’

The winners:

Social Entrepreneurs

Described by the Schwab Foundation as “individuals employing innovative, market-based approaches to directly address social issues”.

• Kibret Abebe (Tebita Ambulance, Ethiopia)
• Ioana Bauer Sǎndescu (eLiberare, Romania)
• Minhaj Chowdhury (Drinkwell, Bangladesh)
• Mario Haberfeld (Onçafari, Brazil)
• Omar Itani (FabricAID, Lebanon)
• Olivia Onyemaobi (Pad-Up Creations, Nigeria)
• Ana María Raad Briz (Fundación Reimagina, Chile)
• Piyush Tewari (SaveLIFE Foundation, India).

Corporate Social Innovators

Described by the Schwab Foundation as “leaders within multinational or regional companies who drive the development of new products, services, initiatives, or business models that address societal and environmental challenges”.

• François-Ghislain Morillion (VEJA, France)
• Karen Basiye (Safaricom, Kenya)
• Hamzah Sarwar (Reckitt, UK).

Public Social Innovators

Described by the Schwab Foundation as “leaders in the public sector who harness the power of social innovation to create public good through policy, regulation, or public initiatives”.

• Mamadou Ndiaye (Ministry of Microfinance and Social and Solidarity Economy, Senegal)
• Orlando Rojas (The Government Lab, Chile)
• Viviantie Sarjuni (National Entrepreneurship Institute (INSKEN), Malaysia).

Collective Social Innovators

Described by the Schwab Foundation as “people who bring together organisations to solve complex problems that cannot be tackled by individual actors”.

• Emad Adly and Ghada Ahmadein (Arab Network for Environment and Development, Egypt)
• Talia Milgrom-Elcott and Maya Morales Garcia (Beyond100K, US)
• Juliana Uribe Villegas, Mariana Díaz and Lina Torres (Movilizatorio, Colombia)

Top image: Pad-Up Creations is a Nigerian enterprise producing washable and reusable sanitary products to tackle period poverty. Images courtesy of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship (unless otherwise specified).