Asonele Rachel Kotu has more than 10 years of experience as a public relations and marketing professional. She has worked with various clients, including community development organizations, charities, an international software-as-a-service/cloud-based solutions company, and a global solar technology company. She is also the founder of FemConnect, a start-up that creates digital solutions for period poverty and access to feminine hygiene and family planning services. Out of 50 tech start-ups, FemConnect won the 2019 Apps for Africa competition. Asonele served as the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) YouthLead Ambassador for South Africa in 2020 and as the YouthLead Ambassador adviser to the 2021 Global Changemakers in the USAID and Making Cents International initiative. An Alumna of the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs, Asonele is passionate about empowering women by improving access to sexual and reproductive health services. On completion of the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, Asonele plans to reach more than one million girls by integrating FemConnect's technology with government and private clinics in order to launch a family planning telemedicine service accessible to all citizens. She wants to use technology to ease access to women's health services and empower women, leaving no one behind.