About

SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR | CONSCIOUSNESS ACTIVIST | AUTHOR | INTERNATIONAL SPEAKER

Swaady MARTIN is a recognized leader, influencer and tastemaker in Africa. She is a serial entrepreneur, published author, certified Yoga & Mindfulness teacher and Pranic Healer, and former corporate executive.

Prior to pursuing her entrepreneurial interest, Swaady had a successful 10-years career at General Electric Co. where she held leadership positions in several divisions across the world. Her expertise spans from Audit & Controllership, Finance, to Sales, Marketing and Business Strategy. She was part of the pioneering Africa Dream Team and drove the expansion of GE’s portfolio of businesses across Africa by developing the 1st Africa Growth Playbooks (3-years strategic plans) for all GE businesses. In her last role at GE, she was the acting-CEO for GE South Africa Technologies and Managing Director for GE Transportation for Sub- Saharan Africa. . She is the author of the A.F.R.I.C.A business model for accelerating the growth of multinationals in Africa which was recognized as a Best Practice and shared at various ivy league business schools (INSEAD, Wharton, Harvard) and high-profile business think thanks (Medef).

In 2012, she followed her entrepreneurial aspirations and created one of Africa’s most admired brands, YSWARA, a socially-conscious gourmet tea company contributing to the reversal of the African commodity trap and promoting Africa’s rich culture. YSWARA has received numerous awards and recognitions for its excellence and was the first African food brand to be retailed at the prestigious Selfridges and Harrods. Swaady is also the author/creator of the “Luxe Ubuntu” concept, an inclusive business model providing economic value and meaningful income to all the members of the supply chain, who participate in the production of products. Before launching YSWARA, Swaady spent 2 years helping bank the unbanked in Nigeria supporting the work of Paga, a mobile banking company.

A Consciousness activist, Swaady launched the non-profit organization, Tounché Global Consciousness Summit & Events (2018): events aimed at raising our collective consciousness to co-create a more compassionate world. To date, more than 4000 people have had transformative life experiences through Tounché events. In 2024, she launched Divine Indwelling, a religious literacy center for the study of Sacred Scriptures and Mysticism.

Passionate about nurturing future caring global citizens, she authored several educational children’s books and created LOVINGKINDNESS BOMA, an independent publishing house creating conscious books for children with diverse main characters.

Swaady has been passionate about African Leadership since she was a teenager and participated in the set-up of several organizations including the African Leadership Network (ALN) and Africa 2.0, premier networks of young African leaders. Since 2017, she is a Board member of the African Leadership Institute. She was asked by Facebook to join Facebook’s Boost Leaders Network as a founding member, an initiative supporting entrepreneurs in emerging markets.

Swaady is a strong advocate for women empowerment and leadership. Among other roles, she led the GE Women’s Network for Africa.

She is a Board Member of the African Leadership Institute (AFLI) and The Institute of Natural Law.

She has received numerous distinctions and awards. She is an Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellow, was one of the main character in the Al Jazeera reality show “Tutu’s Children” and is an Aspen Europe-Africa Emerging Leader Fellow. She was named The Queen of African Luxury by FORBES in 2013. The same year, she was named by the same publication (FORBES), one of The top 20 young Africans building the future of Africa. In 2014, she was listed on Oprah Winfrey’s “O’ Power List and named one of the Youngest Power Women in Africa by FORBES. In 2011, Swaady was named New Leader of the Future by the Forum of Crans Montana.

Profiled extensively in the media, from Forbes to CNN, BBC, Financial Times, Al Jazeera and Monocle, Swaady has made several magazine covers, received numerous awards including named to the Forbes and O Power Lists for Africa. She is a sought-after inspirational speaker, African fashion icon (Named GLAMOUR magazine Most GLAMOURous 2016).