“If you want to speak to people, learn their rhythm. If you want to serve them, respect their roots.” – Oscar Manduku-Habeenzu.
In a digital landscape saturated with global templates and one-size-fits-all strategies, Oscar Manduku-Habeenzu, author of The Borderless Entrepreneur, took a different approach. He chose to build platforms that reflect people’s realities – their language, context, and culture. At the heart of this mission is Yaada Magazine, Cabanga Media Group’s Ethiopian publication dedicated to celebrating diversity in thought, business, and brand expression.
Yaada, which means thought or opinion in Afaan Oromo, is more than a name. It is a call to business minds across Africa: lead with empathy, and your message will never go unheard.
Why Ethiopia? Why Yaada?
Oscar has long admired Ethiopia’s cultural richness, linguistic diversity, and unwavering sense of identity. He recognised that any meaningful platform in East Africa must be context-sensitive, culturally intelligent, and inclusively designed.
Yaada was launched as a response to the need for business storytelling that respects heritage. It does not flatten the African experience into generic narratives. It allows nuance, honours language, and reflects complexity.
Oscar created Yaada to be a home for thought leaders who bring culture into commerce.
Designing for Cultural Intelligence
Oscar’s approach to digital publishing is rooted in cultural empathy. Each magazine under Cabanga Media Group is crafted with region-specific tone and expression; visual styles that resonate locally, and editorial practices that reflect community priorities.
Yaada is where this practice is most visible. It uplifts diverse voices, not just dominant ones. It ensures that an Amharic-speaking professional, an Oromo-speaking entrepreneur, and a Tigrinya-speaking innovator can all feel represented, seen, and valued.
Empathy as Strategy
Oscar believes that empathy is not soft. It is strategic. It allows a business to understand what audiences feel before telling them what to do; build resonance, not just reach, and increase retention through cultural relevance.
His frameworks, such as Emotional Banking and Waterhole Theory, incorporate empathy as an engine of growth. Brands that speak in rhythm with their audience build deeper loyalty and longer trust cycles.
Inclusivity as Leadership
Oscar’s digital team reflects the values he builds into Yaada. It spans cultures, languages, and lived experiences. For him, diversity is not a quota – it is a strategy.
He ensures that content creation includes varied contributor backgrounds; localised storytelling frameworks, and feedback loops with regional communities.
Yaada is a blueprint for what happens when business, publishing, and empathy intersect.
A Message to African Creators
Oscar encourages creators across Africa to build from within. To let their brand voice carry their dialect, their rhythm, and their tradition.
“Do not bleach your message to sound global. Sound authentic. Because your people are listening.”
He urges entrepreneurs to resist flattening their identity for mass appeal. In Oscar’s world, your culture is your conversion tool.
Closing Reflection
“Culture is not a costume. It’s code. And if you design with it, your brand becomes a language people already speak.” – Oscar Manduku-Habeenzu
Yaada Magazine is not just a cultural publication. It is a strategy document. It is where language, identity, and innovation meet to form the next era of African digital storytelling.
Yaada. Think deeper. Design inclusively. Grow authentically.
