We are looking for the next generation of African startups disrupting industry sectors including AgriTech & Supply Chain, FinTech, IoT & Connectivity, Machine Learning (Data Analytics), Cybersecurity, Clean Tech and RegTech. Backed by anchor partner Telecel Group, the program is ideal for tech-oriented startups looking to scale through corporate and public sector partnerships. We scout, skill, and scale early-stage startups through intensive coaching and opportunities for pilots and Proof of Concept projects that subsequently open the doors for longer-term commercial agreements.

Village Capital, under the Adaptation SME Accelerator Project (ASAP), an initiative supported by the Lightsmith Group, in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank, the Global Environment Facility, and Conservation International, will accelerate 16 SMEs and startups in Africa and Asia that are scaling market-based and contextualized solutions to critical climate adaptation and resilience challenges. The African region includes North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. The Asian region includes the Middle East, South & South East Asia, and Asia Pacific.

IAAS Executive Board (EB) is pleased to launch a new competition to all youth, IAAS members, and non-IAAS members: the Youth for Climate-Resilient Agriculture Competition (YCRAC) in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). With this competition, we call for projects led by youth, which follow the concept of climate-resilient agriculture. This concept highlights the vulnerability of the agricultural sector to climate change and its impacts on the climate and environment. A transition to more sustainable food systems should go hand in hand with improving food security and reducing poverty. These transformative changes will work to build resilience, green agri-food systems, and fight the climate crisis.

Aceli Africa has partnered with TechnoServe to deliver a fully virtual training programme tailored to the needs of agri-SMEs domiciled in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. The programme will offer a small, highly selective cohort of 30 agri-SMEs in an intensive five-month program including training and personalized advisory in business strategy, operations, financial management, sales and marketing. Upon successful completion of the program, selected agri-SMEs will be invited for a pitching session with potential investors.

The Women in Food Agriculture (WFA) Mentorship Program is now accepting applications for 2022!

Along with our supporting partner, Alltech, we are building on the success of the 2021 program to continue our support of women in ag, promote a more equitable workplace environment and further cultivate the WFA community.

WFA and Alltech invite you to join other professionals from around the world as we connect women across the agri-food industry with mentors to champion their career success and help shape the next generation of leaders in the industry. The mentorship program facilitates meaningful conversations and mutual support while providing a valuable networking experience.

How will it work?

We are accepting applications for mentors and mentees until 31st January 2022. You are invited to submit your application to become a mentor or be mentored – or both!

Matchmaking will take place in February and you will receive information about your counterpart once all pairings have been arranged. Your first virtual meeting and introductory sessions will be conducted in March.

We provide suggestions and guidance for conducting your monthly mentorship sessions.

In fact, you’ll benefit from WFA support and coaching for a year to make the most of this experience! Quarterly discussion sessions and roundtables offer another opportunity to engage with the wider group of participants and receive support throughout the mentorship program.

Please bear in mind that we have limited capacity in our virtual meeting platform, so we might not be able to match everyone during this round.

We hope the pairing will also get to meet at our 2022 WFA event when we can go back to face to face large scale meetings.

Aceli Africa has partnered with TechnoServe to deliver a fully virtual training programme tailored to the needs of agri-SMEs domiciled in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. The programme will offer a small, highly selective cohort of 30 agri-SMEs in an intensive five-month program including training and personalized advisory in business strategy, operations, financial management, sales and marketing. Upon successful completion of the program, selected agri-SMEs will be invited for a pitching session with potential investors.

Global Alliance Innovation Exchange is an Innovate UK KTN programme specially designed to help UK and international organisations search for game-changing solutions to innovation challenges. Through the programme, we support innovation transfer by matching industry or societal challenges to innovative companies from across a diverse range of sectors. Our success is built on our deep sector expertise, trusted independence and global network.

We are looking for 80 ambitious and committed entrepreneurs in Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Zambia, and Ghana to be part of the 2022 cohort.

The program is designed to help you scale your venture, make it investment ready and develop your entrepreneurial leadership acumen with the aim of unlocking significant growth in your business among other Integral facets required in building a successful timeless business.

SMEs and startups will participate in a one-week intensive virtual training program that will support companies at the intersection of impact (that is measurable, contextualized, with clear solutions to identified problems), inclusion (entrepreneurs that have deep experience with the problems they seek to address), and investability (sustainable, scalable startups that can drive positive financial and social return).

The African region includes North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. The Asian region includes the Middle East, South & South East Asia, and Asia Pacific.

The program “Scaling Digital Agriculture Innovations through Startups” (SAIS) is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ) GmbH (German technical cooperation). The overall objective of the program is to support the scaling up of digital solutions developed by African startups.