Zang Luka’s journey as an entrepreneur began with a problem most people would dismiss as science fiction: he wanted to build a device to record his dreams. It was a wild, ambitious project for a young man who had been uprooted by conflict and was living as an internally displaced person (IDP) in Nigeria. Faced with the harsh realities of unemployment and instability, he knew waiting for help wasn’t an option. “I had to create my own path,” he says.
I see waste as treasure instead of seeing waste as trash
Zang Luka
While the dream recorder never materialized, the project led him to an unexpected goldmine: a pile of discarded electronics. In that heap of broken phones, old radios, and dead laptop batteries, he didn’t see trash; he saw potential. That moment of insight was the birth of Zang Global, a company that is now at the forefront of building a circular economy in Africa.
Without the proper tools for his dream recorder, Zang pivoted. He started experimenting with the discarded laptop batteries, rejuvenating their cells to create his first product: a simple power bank.
This small success was a “proof that even in the most challenging circumstances, innovation could strive“. He didn’t keep the knowledge to himself. He started a movement in his community, teaching other young people to see waste not as a problem, but as a resource that could solve one of their most pressing challenges: the lack of reliable and clean energy. From power banks, he expanded to solar lanterns and other electronics, all built from the remains of what others had thrown away. To fund his experiments, he started a small computer business from his room, gradually expanding it to finance his prototypes.
Zang’s ambition didn’t stop with e-waste. He recognized that plastic pollution was another of the continent’s great environmental challenges. At the same time, he saw an abundance of agricultural waste. Putting the two together, Zang Global began developing biodegradable packaging from crop residues and other organic materials, bound together with mushroom mycelium. The goal is to create a sustainable alternative to harmful styrofoam packaging. “The entire vision is to see that we have a sustainable and a friendly environment in Africa,” he explains. It’s a vision of a true circular economy, where the outputs of one industry become the inputs for another, driving both economic progress and environmental health.
Joining the Amahoro Fellowship was a critical turning point that “transformed Zang Global totally”. The fellowship provided leadership training, mentorship, and crucial networking opportunities. Most importantly, the funding allowed the company to leap from manual production to using semi-automatic machinery, boosting their monthly output of power banks from 300 to 500 units and expanding their retail presence to 47 shops across the key Nigerian markets like Lagos, Abuja, Jos, and Port Harcourt. That journey from a personal project to a trusted manufacturer was solidified when Zang Global received official product certification from the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON). The certification is more than a formality; it’s a crucial mark of quality and trust in a country battling counterfeit goods. At the ceremony in Plateau State, Zang reiterated his vision was to serve not only his community but all of Nigeria and Africa, restating his goal to create 15,000 jobs for young people by 2029.
The most profound lesson Zang has learned is a simple shift in perspective. “I see waste as treasure instead of seeing waste as trash,” he says. He discovered that 80% of the components in discarded electronics are still valuable and can be recycled to meet the demand for virgin materials.
Market, including mobile phone chargers and USB cables developed during his fellowship. His ultimate vision is for Zang Global to become the leading sustainable manufacturer in Africa, aiming to provide jobs for 15,000 young people across the continent by 2029. For the man who started with a dream recorder, the future he is building is more tangible, and far more impactful.
