The fourth iteration of Startupbootcamp AfriTech’s ASIP Accelerator Programme has chosen ten entrepreneurs from Africa to participate, providing them with US$18,000 in funding as well as three months of mentorship, tools, and networking opportunities.
Startupbootcamp The first pan-African startup accelerator with multiple corporate backings, AfriTech, was introduced in 2017. The Africa Startup Initiative Programme (ASIP), which intends to promote the next generation of early-stage African internet businesses disrupting a wide range of sectors, was announced by Disrupt Africa in March 2021 in partnership with telecoms company Telecel Group.
Following a three-day selection process, ten companies have been chosen to participate in the fourth edition. Nearly 40 mentors, investors, partners, and business specialists were present.
They will now take part in the three-month program, which will provide them with tools, guidance, and access to a network of investors and industry professionals. The chosen businesses additionally receive an equity investment of $18,000 USD.
Five of the chosen startups are based in Nigeria: 10mg Pharma, which uses an AI algorithm to connect healthcare providers with financiers; Betapawa Solutions, which provides a cutting-edge solar-powered banking solution; Edusko, a web-based one-stop platform that connects children with the best K–12 private schools; Messenger, an end-to-end logistics platform; and Primed EHealth, a SaaS-based hospital automation platform.
The following companies have also been chosen: Babimo from the Ivory Coast, which offers its B2B clients a professional digital wallet; Kori Tech from Senegal, which created KORIPASS, an e-wallet linked to physical payment accessories like bracelets, stickers, or keychains; LyfPlus from Tanzania, a telemedicine platform; Munakyalo Agrofresh from Uganda, which offers smallholder farmers and market vendors solar-powered cold storage preservation units known as COLD HIVES;
“The Startupbootcamp Afritech ASIP Accelerator cohort four selection period definitely had a lot of surprises and many firsts,” said programme director Henry Ojuor. “For example, AI emerged as one of the top sectors in our application pool. Also, 26 per cent of all the startups that applied are in the growth stage. Major positive signals for the African tech ecosystem. That didn’t make our job of selecting the final top 10, easier however, but we delivered nonetheless. And I’m optimistic that we’ve assembled and are ready to accelerate Africa’s future success stories.”
The Senegalese government, through DER/FJ, and the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank (FMO), through MASSIF, the financial inclusion fund that FMO oversees on behalf of the Dutch government, are the two main funders of this round of the ASIP Accelerator Program. Telecel, AWS, Google for Startups, and Firstbase are a few additional partners.
Startups will be housed at the D-hub, an innovation campus commissioned by DER/FJ, during the program’s time in Dakar, Senegal. On February 8, 2024, a demo day will be the event’s culmination.