AfroTalks Lagos is poised to gather Africa's most influential thinkers, builders, and policymakers on October 11, 2025, at Alliance Française Lagos. The central theme for this year's highly anticipated event is "Matrix," a critical examination and imaginative re-envisioning of the inherited systems that currently shape African societies. This influential convening aims to drive discussions that redefine the continent's future by addressing fundamental structural challenges.

A prominent figure among the anticipated speakers is Mariama “MJ” Jalloh-Heyward, a distinguished fintech strategist whose professional journey spans the United States, Ghana, and the Gulf regions. Jalloh-Heyward is widely recognized for her dedicated focus on Africa’s extensive informal economy and her advocacy for founders to create financial products that are intrinsically aligned with local realities, rather than simply adopting imported frameworks that may not suit the continent's unique dynamics.

Mariama “MJ” Jalloh-Heyward’s extensive career showcases a blend of global institutional experience and transformative roles across the financial and technological sectors. Her career commenced at KPMG, where she cultivated deep expertise in financial services consulting, compliance, and various regulatory frameworks. During her tenure, she provided advisory services to leading global institutions, including Goldman Sachs, gaining invaluable firsthand exposure to the intricacies of investment banking and global capital markets. Her subsequent work involved close collaboration with central banks and regulators in the U.S., Ghana, and the Gulf, where she offered strategic guidance on financial innovation and policy development.

Today, Jalloh-Heyward effectively leverages this profound depth of experience within Africa's burgeoning fintech and startup ecosystems. Her mission is to forge a crucial link between her global background and the imperative to design financial systems that are not only inclusive and resilient but also growth-driven. Her upcoming session, titled “Empowering African Startups and the Future of Fintech,” is expected to delve into critical issues such as interoperability, the development of robust infrastructure, and the vital aspect of investor readiness within the African context.

Jalloh-Heyward has consistently highlighted a significant challenge despite the transformative impact of mobile money in broadening access to financial services. She argues that persistent fragmentation continues to severely limit both scale and true inclusion across the continent. In a recent commentary, she cogently observed, “If a customer on one network can’t send money seamlessly to another, true financial inclusion remains out of reach.” This perspective underscores the urgent need for integrated solutions.

Her contribution is deemed exceptionally timely by industry observers. While African startups successfully raised an impressive $5.4 billion across more than 900 deals in 2022, according to industry trackers, many have subsequently grappled with sustainability issues. Analysts widely contend that the infusion of funding alone is insufficient; rather, robust systems, a supportive cultural environment, and inherent resilience are equally, if not more, critical for long-term success. Jalloh-Heyward's conceptualization of the “Maximum Viable Product mindset”—an approach centered on building ventures that are adaptable, culturally fluent, and inherently designed for scale—is anticipated to resonate profoundly with founders who are navigating the complexities of fragmented African markets.

Over the years, AfroTalks Lagos has evolved into one of the continent’s most influential platforms for innovation, known for its willingness to pose difficult questions and foster constructive dialogue. It consistently attracts a diverse audience, including youth, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and changemakers from across the continent. Building on its success, AfroTalks plans to expand its reach by hosting bi-annual events in Rwanda and Kenya in 2026, alongside its established presence in Accra and Lagos. This year’s acute focus on redesigning systems places fintech at the very core of the conversation, and Jalloh-Heyward’s unique perspective—linking grassroots realities with essential structural reform—will be keenly observed. For an African startup ecosystem that is simultaneously balancing rapid growth with persistent volatility, her insights are expected to provide both a significant challenge and a pragmatic roadmap: emphasizing that true innovation is not merely about speed, but fundamentally about constructing enduring and sustainable systems.