Three hectares of irrigated crops—gone. In a single season, relentless power outages in Zimbabwe wiped out the lifeblood of Kundai Chifamba’s small agricultural venture. What should have been a harvest became heartbreak. The loss wasn’t just financial; it was deeply personal. Those fields were more than soil and seed—they embodied a young man’s dream to save for his future, to provide for the life he was building.
But from this devastation, something powerful took root.
It was in this moment of darkness—literal and figurative—that Kundai’s genius began to flicker into life. Once captivated by numbers and trading floors, a mind began to see finance not just as a tool for profit, but as a means to solve one of the most pressing humanitarian challenges of our time: access to energy.
The seeds of this awakening were planted much earlier. In 2008, as a teenage student, Kundai sat hunched over schoolbooks, preparing for his O-level exams by candlelight. His neighbourhood transformer had been stolen—an all-too-common tragedy in Zimbabwe—and the house was plunged into weeks of darkness. It wasn’t just uncomfortable; it was symbolic. In a world driven by energy, his future hung in the dim glow of wax and wick.
“These moments made me realise just how vulnerable our dreams are without power,” Kundai says softly. “Electricity is more than infrastructure. It’s the light that lets a child study, the energy that irrigates a farmer’s field, the spark behind every aspiration.”
After a brief stint in London at UBS, where he worked on a trading desk, Kundai made a bold choice: he returned home. There, he launched an agribusiness—his first attempt to fuse passion with purpose. But the power outages that destroyed his crops taught him something deeper.
“If I couldn’t get electricity to sustain a small farm, how could an entire nation industrialise?” he wondered.
That question became his calling. He started DairoEnergy, a venture to address energy insecurity in Zimbabwe through solar and storage solutions. At the same time, he pursued roles at Deloitte and CBZ Capital, learning to navigate the complex world of finance and dealmaking.
Eventually, his childhood dream of working on Wall Street was reignited, but this time with a sharper mission. Kundai earned his MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management, where he became a Legatum Fellow and a vocal advocate for energy equity in Africa.
Today, as an Associate at Lazard in Houston, Kundai advises on multi-billion-dollar deals in the global energy sector. Yet, he brings more than spreadsheets to the table—he brings empathy, rooted in experience.
“I approach deals with two lenses: return on investment and return on humanity,” he explains. “Capital must serve communities—not just shareholders.”
Kundai is unapologetic about the need for a pragmatic approach to Africa’s energy journey.
“We shouldn’t be forced into a narrative that doesn’t serve us,” he says. “Africa contributes just 4% of global emissions. Our focus should be energy sufficiency—affordable, reliable power that fuels factories, not just climate goals.”
He believes distributed solutions like solar and storage are key—particularly in rural and under-resourced areas. “These aren’t just stopgap measures. They are bridges to a better future,” he says.
Despite the intensity of his work, Kundai is most grounded when he’s at home with his wife and two young children. He laughs about the chaos, the sleepless nights, the hide-and-seek games that double as cardio. But beneath the humour is a deep sense of purpose.
“Being a father changes you,” he says. “It makes legacy real. I’m not just trying to succeed—I’m trying to build a world where my kids, and kids like them, can thrive.”
In every boardroom he enters, Kundai carries more than his credentials. He carries the memory of wilted crops, of candlelit studies, of missed opportunities—and the unwavering hope that no child or dream should be held hostage by darkness.
Because sometimes, genius doesn’t arrive in a flash of brilliance.
Sometimes, it is born slowly, through struggle.
In fields gone dry.
In nights without light.
And in the heart of a young man determined to turn powerlessness into possibility.
Kundai Chifamba is an energy and finance executive with extensive experience in structured finance, renewable energy development, and emerging markets. Currently an Associate with Lazard in the Power, Energy & Infrastructure group in Houston, he advises on M&A and financing transactions in the international energy sector. Kundai started his career at Deloitte, where he served articles, before taking up positions with UBS and CBZ Capital. Kundai is an acknowledged thought leader. Having received his MBA at the MIT Sloan School of Management, he has received the MIT Legatum Fellowship award. Kundai has spoken at the MIT Africa Energy Conference and appeared in international forums on Africa’s energy transition and economic growth.
