A 24-year-old Zambian Inventor and Innovator Has Made The First Dry Cleanable Pillows In Africa

Arnold Nyendwa, a 24-year-old Zambian Inventor, Innovator, and founder of the first stainless steel stove in Africa, has made the first dry cleanable pillows in Africa.

As one of his Innovative projects, the dry cleanable pillow, as the name implies, can be dry clean once it has caught up with dirt or dust. You don’t have to wash it like the normal pillow. To give it more durability, the pillows are elastic which makes it comfortable to sleep on.

Arnold Nyendwa is a 24-year-old Zambian entrepreneur, inventor, and founder of Arnold Nyendwa Africa (AFNON) and the first to pioneer a stainless steel tech company in Zambia, and the first stainless steel stove in Africa. He was born and raised in Petauke, Eastern Province of Zambia. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Development Studies at Mulungushi University in Kabwe.

Arnold Nyendwa has also been making amazing Innovations like the washable mattress he invented a few years ago. The washable mattress can be easily folded and washed at the convenience of the user. It has special features that no bed has, like non-movable pillows, side pockets, you can fold it like a bag and walk around with it, etc.

This is not Arnold’s only Innovation. He made headlines when he invented a revolutionary stainless steel stove that was inspired by people living in marginalized communities in Zambia. Arnold told The African Dream that he created the stainless steel stove because he was concerned about respiratory diseases such as asthma developed by using charcoal, wood, and other wooden cooking devices. The stove allows a user to cook, bake, fry, roast, dry, braai, smoke, and warm food items. It interestingly allows the user with three (3) energy sources to pick from electricity, gas, and fuel.


As the founder of Arnold Africa Nyendwa (AFNON) Innovation and Invention company, he aims to become Zambia’s leading technology company in the stainless steel industry and provide solutions for energy and other productive projects and services to low-income households.

Arnold Nyendwa has won 28 awards throughout his work. His most recent awards include the Global Youth Award 2021, Global Student Entrepreneur Award, Mwape Peer Awards as the Most Outstanding Entrepreneur – The Award Ceremony was held in New York, USA, and Arnold Nyendwa came at the top in a total of 50 finalists worldwide, Citibank Micro-entrepreneurship Awards (CMA) in which he emerged as the ‘2020 CMA Resilient Youth’, he was also named in the 2021 Future of Zambia Top 30 Under 30. He was a top finalist at the Africa Genius Awards.

Arnold Nyendwa is looking forward to expanding his dry cleanable pillow business in other Africa countries and the world. His goal is to start exporting across borders within and outside Africa.

It is important to look into things that can challenge you to do better and think outside the box. We should be able to endure everything that comes our way. It is making tough decisions and having the persistence to succeed in life.

Arnold Nyendwa