- Winners of last year’s African Startup Award will be en route to Copenhagen, Denmark in March.
- GSA Africa is taking a key interest in startups championing Web3 technologies, green innovation, and diversity in the workplace.
Image: HANDOUT
The Global Startup Awards (GSA) Africa is calling on applications by innovators looking to be part of the 2022/23 African Startups Award competition season.
GSA Africa is an independent startup ecosystem competition on the continent whose mission is to find, fund, and scale the most innovative companies in Africa.
This year’s competition is looking for innovations in agriculture, climate, commerce, education, healthcare as well as mobility and logistics.
GSA Africa is taking a key interest in startups championing Web3 technologies, green innovation, and diversity in the workplace.
This is coupled with additional award categories for co-working spaces, ecosystem support organisations, investors, and individuals.
The competition will see entrants contend at a national level before vying for their spot as a regional finalist.
According to a statement made by GSA Africa, this will provide applicants and winners with unmatched opportunities to gain global exposure.
They will also gain access to new markets and network with global industry leaders.
Thereafter, a panel of innovation experts will determine the African winners.
They will be announced alongside representatives from across the public, private and civil sectors at the GSA Africa Summit in September 2023.
The summit will be a two-day conference and gala dinner aimed at convening, connecting, and celebrating Africa’s most innovative minds.
GSA Africa co-founder Jo Griffiths said that the African Startup Awards is not only a competition but also a community.
Griffiths said that in addition to funding, they also strive to support all applicants with non-monetary forms of support.
These include mentorship, training, and networking.
“We’re building the largest network of innovation organisations, from the entrepreneurs working on the ground to the investors and government organisations that support them, all committed to realising sustainable, inclusive, and impactful development across the African continent,” he said.
Winners of last year’s African Startup Award will be en route to Copenhagen, Denmark in March.
They will showcase their solutions to some of the world’s top startups, venture capitalists, and ecosystem enablers at the Global Startup Awards (GSA) grand finale.
Winners of this year’s competition will also have an exclusive opportunity to receive funding from the Global Innovation Initiative Group (GIIG).
As the investment partner to the African Startup Awards, GIIG’s sole purpose is to fund the development of SDG-aligned solutions on the continent.
GIIG recently announced a slew of investments into last year’s regional and African winners.
These included Kenya’s Kubik and MyHealthAfrica.
In addition to funding, the African winners are exposed to new opportunities for collaboration on an international scale,
Startups, Scarabtech and Tekeya, were recently invited to attend COP27, where they were announced as winners of Africa Grows Green Awards.
Kubik co-founder and CEO Kidus Asfaw has encouraged innovators to apply for the category of their choice.
Kubik was named the African winner in ESG Tech and Startup of the Year at last year’s competition.
“For us, it wasn’t just about the funding potential. It was important that we be a part of a Pan-African ecosystem of innovators,” Asfaw said.
“We’re excited to be representing the continent in Demark later this year for the Global Startup Awards Grand Finale. We’re grateful for this opportunity to really put Kubik on the global map.”
Reflecting on the Awards and Summit, ScarabTech CEO and founder Jeffery Barbee said that the competition was a great opportunity to connect with impact-minded partners from all over Africa.
The startup was named a regional winner for Southern Africa last year.
“This environment of collaboration afforded the startups involved the opportunity to meet each other, learn about other amazing projects, and develop our networks across the continent,” Barbee said.
“Making contact with businesses on a similar journey to us was a valuable exercise and is helping shape how our business can best succeed in the future.”
Applications for the 2022/23 season are open and free.
They will close on February 26, 2023.