The GIST Startup Boot Camp brought together 28 innovative African startups from April 19 to 21 at Dakar City Hall. This event was co-organized by CTIC Dakar, ICT startup incubator, Venturewell, the Embassy of the United States and the United States Department of State, including local partners involved in the ICT ecosystem (City of Dakar, ADIE) .
Training, coaching, pitches punctuated the 3 days of intensive work reserved for 56 entrepreneurs from Africa (Senegal, Togo, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Rwanda, etc.). This initiative has encouraged young start-ups in the scientific and technological sectors through the coaching of local and international experts (high-level Senegalese and American mentors).
On the Boot Camp program for successful entrepreneurs, masterclasses and “get out the building” sessions to encourage them to meet and question their target clients. A program that ended with a Demo Day of restitution in front of nearly 150 guests. During this event, the 6 most advanced pairs had the opportunity to pitch their startup to an audience of professionals. Three teams emerged victorious:
– the Beninese team “Tuniar” is the big winner of the GIST Startup Boot Camp thanks to its mobile money transfer platform
– the second prize went to the Ivorian team “Souclou Online” whose project concerns an online training and course solution for students and academic follow-up for parents
– the Rwandan team “Starlight” took third place with its solar mobile charger project initially dedicated to rural areas but which revised its model to open it to urban areas
The top two teams received seed funds to boost their projects. All participants received a set of 10 successful entrepreneurship books from the Embassy of the United States.
West Africa has shown us the potential of its entrepreneurs. Young shoots that will soon be talked about.
Our congratulations to all the participating teams!
Source: http://us7.campaign-archive1.com/?u=41682d288cc415e665c90fd35&id=0db414a8a8
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