Microsoft in partnership with Pangea Trust with the support of Seed Builders are pleased to announce a new startup accelerator program designed to foster a culture of innovation among African startups.
The Acceleration program will work to enable and empower Agri-food tech Entrepreneurs with the skills and resources needed to build successful and thriving agri-food tech businesses across Nigeria.
The program that is to be launched in the coming weeks aims to scout and support 20 promising startups with disruptive innovation and technologies driven businesses at growth stage to solve problems in the food and agriculture sector in Nigeria.
During this program, there will be use of various innovative modules to diagnose the gaps faced by the Startups, and then deploy appropriate support mechanisms such as training, business planning, mentorships, peer learning, and technical support to help the participating Agritech Startups stay afloat. All of this will be aimed at developing Nigeria’s sustainable economy ecosystem as a vehicle for economic development and growth through job creation and poverty reduction.
The acceleration program is targeted at Nigerian agribusiness entrepreneurs looking to scale their businesses, expand their market reach and attract potential investors and strategic partners by providing access to industry experts/mentors, business fundamentals/technical workshops, introductions to investors/potential customers and attractive incentives.
The Acceleration program will run for a period of 7 weeks. During the session players will have interactive workshops, consulting sessions, business support services, one-on-one and group mentoring sessions with a team of seasoned sector industry members and advisors.
The Accelerator Program shall be designed and delivered to cover topics like Go To Market, Product Design & Development, Sales & Marketing, and Investment Readiness with the aim to provide the Cohort of startups the knowledge and tools to engage with customers and investors. The businesses will also have access to Microsoft platforms like the Founders’ Hub and the 10 best startups stand a chance to join the Global Social Entrepreneurship Program.
Some of the eligible criteria for the application include:
- Nigerian Women and youth-owned post-revenue companies in agriculture and related industries.
- The business needs to have an existing working product and generating revenue, ● The founder must be between the ages of 18-35 years.
- All applicants should also have their businesses based in Nigeria addressing food value-chain opportunities.
- They should also be operating a registered agribusiness venture at the growth stage, currently in operation and generating income.Additionally, at least one co-founder must be on the project on a full-time basis.
You can get the application form here with the deadline set for 15th April 2022 at 11.59PM WAT.
The program will then start on 25th April 2022 and end on 10th June 2022.
About Microsoft:
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. For more information, news and insights from Microsoft, please visit Microsoft’s News Center Middle East & Africa.
The opportunity in Africa is immense, but there is a pressing need to adopt digital platforms to accelerate Africa’s economic growth and better enable Africans to participate in the global digital economy. Through the Africa Transformation Office, Microsoft focuses on four essential development areas – digital infrastructure, skilling, SMEs and startups, supported by strategic partnerships with industry alliances and coalitions, to fuel investment in Africa and further establish the continent’s export of digital services.
About Pangea:
Pangea’s mission is to solve the biggest challenge in Africa through catalyzing different ecosystem players to accelerate innovations, we do this by unlocking diaspora remittances as an investment toward impact-driven African-founded startups.
Pangea is currently operating in East Africa where it provides African start-ups with access to investors, foundations, and development agencies to reach a global scale. Pangea Trust seeks to continue growing its reach and footprint on the continent as the go-to business accelerator and investment platform by providing;
- Alternative innovative financial and investment products to Africa founded Businesses 2. Innovative solutions to support businesses
- Business development services and investor readiness programs
- Education and knowledge transfer program between diaspora and Africa founded the business 5. Innovation and co-created partnership solution towards creating financing and growth opportunities
To-date Pangea Trust has secured almost $1Million from partners such as Swedish International Development Agency, to mobilize and activate diaspora remittance as an investment to be channeled to Africa-founded businesses which play a critical role in rebuilding a more inclusive and sustainable economy.
