About Proudly Made in Africa

Proudly Made in Africa (PMIA) is an Irish-based Global Citizenship Education and Trade Justice organisation dedicated to promoting responsible business with and in Africa.

Founded in 2008, PMIA works to change the narrative on Africa from aid and charity toward innovation, entrepreneurship, responsible trade and shared value creation. Through lectures, conferences, workshops, research collaborations and long-term institutional partnerships, PMIA brings African scholars, entrepreneurs, experts and perspectives into Irish universities and business leadership circles.

For almost a decade, PMIA has maintained a strategic partnership with University College Dublin’s Quinn School of Business and Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, supporting Global Citizenship Education and responsible business engagement relating to Africa.

PMIA has delivered hundreds of lectures across Irish third-level institutions, reaching thousands of students and supporting a new generation of business leaders to engage with Africa in a fair, sustainable and informed way.

Our Vision

A world where African communities thrive, trading on equal terms with the rest of the world.

Our Mission

To promote responsible business with and in Africa by bringing African voices, scholars and perspectives into Irish universities and leadership circles and advocating for trade, innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship as drivers of sustainable development.

What We Do

PMIA’s work focuses on:

• Global Citizenship Education

• Responsible Business and ESG

• Trade Justice

• African Entrepreneurship and Innovation

• Research Collaboration

• Africa-Ireland Business Engagement

• Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Development

Global Citizenship Education

For too long, Africa’s story has often been framed through the lens of poverty, conflict and dependency. PMIA believes this presents an incomplete and deeply unbalanced picture of a diverse, innovative and rapidly evolving continent.

We are committed to ensuring African voices, scholars, entrepreneurs and experts play a central role in shaping how Africa is understood within Irish higher education and business communities.

Through our work, we help students, educators and professionals engage critically with issues of global citizenship, sustainability, responsible business and equitable economic development.

PMIA collaborates with universities, educators and students across Ireland through:

Lecture and Course Collaboration

Working alongside lecturers and academic departments, PMIA develops and delivers lectures, workshops and modules focused on Africa, sustainable development, responsible business and global citizenship across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes.

PMIA has developed long-standing collaborations with Irish universities and business schools, particularly through its strategic partnership with University College Dublin’s Quinn School of Business and Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School.

Student Engagement and Applied Learning

PMIA supports student projects, case studies and collaborative learning opportunities that connect students directly with entrepreneurs, scholars and organisations across Africa. These initiatives enable students to engage with real-world business and sustainability challenges while building meaningful international connections.

Research and Knowledge Exchange

Through our networks across Africa and Ireland, PMIA facilitates research collaboration between universities, educators and institutions. This includes supporting partnerships, visiting scholars, joint research initiatives and opportunities for academic exchange and cooperation.

Conferences and Events

PMIA co-organises conferences, symposiums, lectures and panel discussions that bring together African and Irish voices from academia, business, civil society and entrepreneurship to explore issues relating to trade, sustainability, innovation and development.

Digital Learning Resources

PMIA is developing a digital library of Global Citizenship Education content and recorded learning materials to support educators, students and institutions seeking flexible and accessible learning opportunities.

Strategic Africa–Ireland Partnerships

PMIA plays an active role in building long-term educational and institutional partnerships between African and Irish universities, government agencies and stakeholders.

Alongside its established university collaborations in Ireland, including its long-standing partnership with UCD Quinn School of Business and UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, PMIA increasingly supports strategic engagement between Irish and African educational institutions.

In 2025, PMIA facilitated strategic engagement between the Tanzania Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and five Irish universities — University College Dublin (UCD), Dublin City University (DCU), Trinity College Dublin (TCD), University of Limerick (UL), University College Cork (UCC) and Technological University Dublin (TUD).

PMIA coordinated introductions and meetings between the Tanzanian Ambassador to the UK and Ireland, senior officials from the Tanzanian Ministry of Education and Irish university leadership teams.

These engagements contributed to new long-term educational partnerships supporting Tanzanian students to study STEM-related disciplines including Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Irish universities over the coming decade.

This work reflects PMIA’s broader commitment to fostering meaningful Africa–Ireland collaboration through education, research, innovation and responsible global engagement.

Trade Justice and Responsible Business

Trade justice is central to PMIA’s mission. We believe trade should support equitable development by enabling African producers, entrepreneurs and businesses to capture greater value from their talent, creativity and resources.

PMIA advocates for responsible and sustainable business practices that promote fair incomes, decent work, ethical sourcing and inclusive economic growth.

We work to raise awareness of the structural barriers that often limit African businesses from competing on equal terms globally, including unequal trading systems, market access challenges and unfair perceptions of African products and enterprises.

Through education, dialogue and partnership-building, PMIA encourages a more balanced and responsible approach to business engagement with Africa — one grounded in mutual respect, shared value creation and long-term sustainability.

Building Future Partnerships

PMIA believes meaningful partnerships between Ireland and Africa can create positive social, educational and economic impact for both regions.

By connecting students, educators, researchers, entrepreneurs and institutions, we aim to contribute to a future where collaboration is based on mutual learning, shared opportunity and responsible global citizenship.