FEATURE: Taking TZ to the next level

A few minutes before this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) kicked off in Davos, Doreen Noni composed herself as the world waited to hear what she had to say.

Seated next to her was Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and Mr Aliko Dangote, the West African business magnate who by March this year, was worth $25 billion. “Meeting such prominent figures was the biggest experience of all; I was a bit shaken though,” she confesses.

For Doreen, this was a dream come true, one she could not turn down even though the opportunity came at such short notice.

“A lady came to me and said there was an opportunity of representing Tanzania in Davos…I was to do an introductory three minute video of myself and state what I intended to do to influence others,” says Doreen as she sips a cup of tea at Flirtese lounge.

Hers is yet another story of a young lady harbouring confidence in whatever she is doing.

It is the same confidence that made her stand on the podium in Davos and share with the rest of the world the pertinent issues facing the continent. “When someone believes in you, never let them down, you become even more confident in yourself and do what you do best,” she adds.

Her experiences

Such confidence has seen the charismatic lady spending the better part of her life travelling the world.

“I attended WEF 2012, WEF AFRICA 2013 and the WEF Regional Workshop on Competitiveness in EAC countries in Arusha...everywhere I went I managed to keep and maintain contacts, which has helped me a great deal in my businesses,” she says.

She recalls having spoken in a panel with Honorable Richard Sezibera, Secretary General of the East African Community.

Though she comes from a well to do family, Doreen decided to live away from her parents when she was still young.

Her time in Switzerland saw the twenty five-year-old global shaper also visit a school.

At the Swiss Alpine High School, the former student of Multimedia at Nottingham Trent University, easily interacted with young boys and girls.

“It was a nice experience talking to the boys and girls as they keenly listened to what I was telling them,”she says.

Uplifting the community

Doreen has been on the forefront collaborating with other creative minds in East Africa on initiatives to support What’s Your Freedom (WYF), a campaign which is run by Amini Foundation which aims to nurture artistic talent and develop leaders who will draw on their creativity to enrich our society.

“I’m a good believer of giving youth a chance to prosper off their passions,” says Doreen.

One thing she learnt during her time in Davos, is that confidence is the panacea to everything and once you have it, everything that you touch turns into gold.

“When you meet such people [Goodluck Jonathan and Aliko Dangote] you don’t have to get over excited and start shoving out business cards, you need to treat them like your peers and be strategic when approaching them … I spoke to Aliko, it was a casual talk and we have since been keeping in touch,” adds Doreen who has also carved a niche in fashion where she is the owner and designer of Eskado Bird fashion label.

Unlike most of the youth in the country, Doreen is grateful for her parents for instilling the spirit of positivity and self-belief in her that has seen her travel the world inspiring others.

“A lot of young people in Tanzania don’t believe in themselves, you cannot blame them for that, the system is at fault here for failing to identify and realise their potentials,” she suggests.

Her future empire

Such confidence has allowed Doreen to open up Miracle Films and Studios (Mifistudios), a multimedia company as well as taking in the role of wardrobe coordinator for the high flying TV series Siri Ya Mtungi.

 A host of activities that Doreen does would be enough to fill a twenty-page book and thanks to her confidence she has only one wish left.

“To be honest I always do best for myself, my wish is to see my empire steadfastly grow and become a unique inspiration to the youth in Tanzania,” she adds.

One thing that you cannot separate Doreen from is her family even though she moved out at a young age. She has been keeping in touch with the family business, and on some occasions pilots when necessary.

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