Africa Last Week: Startup Events Glimpses [17th-23rd September, 2018]

It’s that time of the week again when we do a recap on some of the most notable startup and entrepreneurship-focused events which took place around various parts of the continent in the past week. The last seven days particularly saw a number of events which can be considered to share the common goal of furthering the growth of the ecosystem. And as usual, our weekly installment of Startup Events Glimpses has got you covered with excerpts from some of these events just in case you missed out.

MEST Africa Information Session Held In South Africa

We kick things off from South Africa where Cape Town played host as one of the largest incubators on the continent successfully hosted its information session. The event which took place on Tuesday, 18th September 2018, at the office of the incubator, was largely an opportunity for startups who intend to join what is considered one of the largest pan-African tech incubators to learn more about how to get into the program. The MEST Africa team was on hand at the MEST Incubator, Cape Town, to share their experiences working with entrepreneurs from various parts of the continent.

Cotonou Blockchain Meetup Took Place In Benin

In what is a rare mention of the Western African nation in our weekly events series, a blockchain meetup was held in the Beninoise commercial city. Cotonou, on 22nd September 2018 at EltriLabs. The Cotonou Blockchain Meetup placed the major legislative, societal, and economic issues arising from the development of the blockchain on the front-burner. This was the focus of speakers and discussions at the events.

Cairo Startup Ideation Bootcamp Held In Egypt

This event took place at the IWAN Clubhouse in Cairo, Egypt, on the evening of 17th September 2018. The three-hour long event was essentially a chance for aspiring startup founders to brush up on their skills and offerings. The intensive workshop was aimed at helping startups improve on their ideas, discovering new ones and, and even connecting potential co-founders through a networking session that brought together a number of entrepreneurs.

Health Innovation Thought Leadership Talk Session Held In Nigeria

This event brought together a panel of health experts and thought leaders who were involved in discussions which revolved around health innovation in Nigeria. Such notable personalities as Ife Adebayo;  SA to the Vice-President of Nigeria on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Dr. Ifeanyi Nsofor; CEO of EpiAFRIC, and Dr. Henry Onyemachi; CEO of Redbridge Healthcare Group, were amongst dignitaries at the event who furnished participants with vital information regarding innovation and technology in healthcare. The event took place at the Civic Innovation Lab in Abuja on 20th September 2018.

CFA’s Startups Hangout Took Place In Nigeria

This event essentially provided a medium for startups to connect with successful entrepreneurs and business executives who have risen to the top of their game. The information session afforded aspiring entrepreneurs with the opportunity to pick the brains of those who can be said to have been there and done that, with a view to leveraging their wealth of expertise and insight. The four-hour-long event took place at the office complex of GoDo.ng in Ikeja, Lagos.

Startup Grind Lagos Edtech Meetup Held In Nigeria

Three edtech startups that are currently part of the edtech incubator’s current cohort — ScholarX, SlateCube, and BlueBic — were featured in this event which was basically a showcase of their products and offerings. Cranium One, which is located in Victoria Island, Lagos, played host, and September 22nd was the date.

Innovating Justice Conference Held In Kenya

This conference afforded a number of Kenyan entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch innovations targeted at improving and addressing some of the problems associated with the justice circle. The participants pitched their ideas before a jury for the chance of winning the Innovating Justice Awards which comes with up to USD 23.5 K in acceleration funding. The event which brought together some of the brightest minds in the justice tech landscape took place at iHub, Nairobi, on September 21st.

Traction Camp Workshop Held In Tanzania

At this event, startups were given a heads up on how to become enterprises that are ripe for investment, and thus, irresistible to investors. Discussions at the event revolved around such details as improving the chances of startups in securing funding, the best ways to answer investors’ funding questions, and a number of other topics. This event was the result of concerted efforts between iHub and Buni Hub, and it took place at Sayansi Building in Dar Es Salaam on 20th September.

Women-In-Tech Week Held In Kenya

This week-long event was focused on the empowerment of women as it brought together women from around the world who came together to brainstorm, network, exchange ideas, connect, and empower each other for the purpose of fostering the growth of Africa’s technology agenda, with women playing vital roles. During the course of the week, the intricacies associated with the different aspects of growth for leadership and technology were untangled by ‘womenpreneurs’ and visionaries in the African tech scene. The event kicked off on 17th September and it was hosted at The American Corner in the Kenyan capital city.

Up Accelerate Way Held Its Information Session In Uganda

In Uganda, UP Accelerate Way held an info-session at the Outbox Kampala offices on Friday, Sep 21st to drum up it social enterprise projects for marginalized areas of Nothern Uganda. This will see up to 80 youth representing both refugees and non-refugees being nurtured to develop and implement entrepreneurial solution touching on the affected communities. Support for this is coming through the Outbox, in partnership with Reach A Hand Uganda, The Government of Uganda and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

Dan Karuga’s Workshop Took Place In Kenya

Nairobi Garage hosted Dan Karuga who heads Branch International operations in Kenya and Tanzania. His critical workshop delved into how mobile data could be used for product development. His reference point hinged on disruptors that were hitherto unknown who came into the scene riding on data and mobile phones churning out considerable businesses in names that are now recognized as among others Uber and Airbnb. It appears that this pattern could still be replicated in new areas that have not yet been ventured into. This includes local examples such as TWIGA foods in the retail industry. It would appear that businesses utilize data as their valuable asset and continuously employ data science in product development are able to upset competition for many years. Away from profit-oriented companies, data also plays a crucial role in delivering effective social services such as research, education, security, agriculture, and even health.