Young franchisors aim to change the world

His company provides seed financing for its franchisees to create their own drinking water company designed for the under-served (read: not wealthy) people in any variety of African communities.

With sub-par water treatment, crumbling pipes, weak building codes and widespread industrial contamination, providing clean water in many African villages is a persistent, Herculean task.

Jibu places drinking water franchises approximately one mile apart, drawing water from any neighborhood source and filtering it on the spot using advanced water filtration equipment. The company acts as a fair-lending bank that offers affordable financing to its franchisees. No middleman. No dependency on donations that could dry up. Low prices. New jobs.

With seven franchises, some making more than USD$85,000 per year, Jibu’s network has distributed more than 1 million gallons of water and reached more than 10,000 people with safe, clean water.

The company is on track to launch two franchises per month throughout 2015, and has raised more than $2.4 million through private equity and grants to support its future growth—a promising record for a socially aware and ambitious entrepreneur, as well as his franchisees and their customers.