Day: June 5, 2024

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Africa’s “Y Combinator”, Accelerate Africa, Unveils First Cohort of 10 Startups

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Africa's "Y Combinator", Accelerate Africa, Unveils First Cohort of 10 Startups

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Accelerate Africa, a new accelerator program designed to propel early-stage African businesses has unveiled its inaugural cohort after four months of operation.

The program, led by Iyin Aboyeji, founder of Pan-African VC firm Future Africa, and Mia von Koschitzky-Kimani, general partner, aspires to become the “Y Combinator of Africa.”

“We previously focused on pre-accelerator programs to prepare founders for established accelerators like Y Combinator and Techstars,” Aboyeji said. 
 
“However, we recognized the need for a program specifically tailored to the African landscape, prompting us to enter the accelerator arena ourselves.”

The first cohort boasts geographical diversity, with the ten startups hailing from Nigeria (6), Kenya (2), Egypt (1), and Eswatini (1).
 
These companies represent various sectors critical to Africa’s development, including artificial intelligence (AI), clean technology (cleantech), property technology (proptech), health technology (healthtech), automotive technology, human resources technology (HRTech), logistics, and financial technology (fintech).

Following a demo day at the Lagos Marriott Hotel, decisions regarding pre-seed or seed funding will be made for select startups.
 
Angel investors and venture capitalists will provide investments ranging from $250,000 to $500,000.  

Here’s a glimpse at the innovative startups comprising Accelerate Africa’s first cohort:

  1. Afriskaut (Nigeria): An AI and data startup harnessing proprietary technology to identify Africa’s top sports talent.
  2. Agrails (Kenya): A cleantech company leveraging AI to build data systems that empower organizations to address and capitalize on climate risks and opportunities across Africa.
  3. Campus HQ (Nigeria): A proptech startup simplifying workspace discovery, setup, and management for mid-to-large-sized teams, essentially creating an “Airbnb for workspaces.”
  4. CDIAL (Nigeria): An AI company developing a conversational AI fluent in African languages.
  5. Checkups (Kenya): A healthtech startup offering affordable and accessible healthcare to underserved communities through micropayment options.
  6. Flickwheel (Nigeria): An autotech startup providing on-demand auto repair credits, vetted technicians, and automated repair tracking for efficient vehicle care.
  7. Juiceme (Eswatini): An HRTech startup offering blue-collar workers access to their earned wages via WhatsApp before payday, particularly for emergencies.
  8. Messenger (Nigeria): A logistics startup empowering delivery drivers to become entrepreneurs through income and ownership opportunities, including vehicle financing to own their delivery vehicles.
  9. PipeOps (Nigeria): A DevOps provider offering a suite of tools and services to help companies with limited cloud expertise set up, deploy, and manage cloud-based applications.
  10. Settle (Egypt): A fintech startup automating B2B payments, enabling clients to streamline payments to all suppliers with ease.
Accelerate Africa’s mission is to empower these ventures and shape a thriving future for African businesses.

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Microsoft and Cyber Shujaa Partner to Train 100 Kenyans in Cybersecurity

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Microsoft and Cyber Shujaa Partner to Train 100 Kenyans in Cybersecurity

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Microsoft, through its Africa Development Centre (ADC) in Kenya, has joined forces with Cyber Shujaa to upskill 100 Kenyan students in cybersecurity.

This initiative is part of Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to strengthening the cybersecurity talent pool in Kenya’s booming technology sector.

Cyber Shujaa is a youth-oriented program established by a consortium of three organizations: Serianu Limited, United States International University-Africa (USIU-Africa), and the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA).

The program offers a unique blend of theoretical and practical training, delivered through a hybrid learning model that combines classroom instruction with one-on-one sessions and weekly mentorship.

The three-month program will target a mix of 70 undergraduate students and 30 graduate students with less than two years of professional experience.

The curriculum will cover eight critical cybersecurity domains: network security, application security, cloud security, incident response, security architecture, Internet of Things (IoT) security, and forensics.

“Cybersecurity is a cornerstone for secure operations across various industries, yet there’s a significant gap in skilled professionals,” said Catherine Muraga, Managing Director of Microsoft ADC. “This partnership with Cyber Shujaa exemplifies our commitment to establishing Kenya as a hub for cybersecurity talent.”

Equipping graduates with industry-recognized skills is a key focus of the program. Participants will be eligible to earn two Microsoft cybersecurity certificates, enhancing their employability in the cybersecurity job market.

“This timely collaboration with Microsoft will provide a much-needed boost to the cybersecurity industry, particularly across Africa,” said Igor Sakhnov, Corporate Vice President of Engineering at Microsoft, during the program launch.

Cyber Shujaa boasts a proven track record, having already trained over 500 individuals in cybersecurity and data protection with competency-based skills development programs.

This new partnership with Microsoft signifies a significant step forward in addressing the growing demand for cybersecurity expertise in Kenya and beyond.

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