In 2008, the Legatum Pioneers of Prosperity Awards (Africa) expanded to 10 countries across Africa and received almost 1,500 applications from small and medium-sized enterprise in Botswana, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.
The cash prizes for the Africa awards totaled US$350k and the winners were selected by a jury process from a pool of applicants evaluated according to the COW-F framework.