Ghanaian Tech Pioneer Herman Chinery-Hesse Passes Away at 61

The African tech community is waking up to shocking news this morning: Herman Chinery-Hesse has died in Accra. 

Chinery-Hesse, a Ghanaian software entrepreneur and founder of SOFTtribe, the largest software company in Ghana, made significant contributions to the industry. Just last week, he found out that there was a meeting room at Google HQ named in his honor.

As a software engineer and business mogul, he had investments across the continent. The BBC once referred to him as the “Bill Gates of Africa.” Known for his vibrant personality, Herman will surely be missed by all who had the privilege to know him.

He was 61.

About Herman Chinery-Hesse’s Early Life

Herman was born in Ireland. The son of diplomats, he grew up in Tanzania, Uganda, Sierra Leone, and Switzerland. He attended Mfantsipim School in Cape Coast. He got his first degree in Industrial Technology from Texas State University. From the US, he moved to the United Kingdom, where he worked as a manufacturing engineer. He returned to Ghana in 1990, founding his software company Softribe a year later.

Herman’s last post on Facebook just days ago is a video with the caption: “This man has no idea how happy Africans in Africa are. He doesn’t know we leave to find money and not entertainment. His ignorance is legendary!” He was a staunch Africanist.