The MAN Impact Accelerator, calls for applications from mobility start-ups, to apply for its program.
Access to mobility is, the single, most important driver, to alleviating poverty.

The MAN Impact Accelerator is, built to scale social ventures, in transport and logistics, with a considerable impact on society.

The MAN Impact Accelerator, supports social business start-ups in the field of mobility, transport, and logistics, to accelerate their impactful innovations.

Selection Criteria

Social businesses and impactful start-ups, from Europe, Brazil, South Africa, as well as Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria, and Tanzania, are eligible to apply and all with a strong logistics, transport, or, mobility, focus with a prototype and preferably early revenues.

Start-ups must have a strong purpose and create, both tangible and measurable impact, beyond financial returns.

Benefits Of The Program

The program offers a range of benefits, from various partners and perspectives

Below is a list of these benefits:

Assets & Services From MAN

• MAN Staff Mentors with Industry Expertise
• MAN’s Global Network of Partners
• MAN’s Supply & Distribution Networks

Assets & Services From YSB

• Access to Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Prof. Muhammad Yunus
• Access to the global impact investor community

Assets & Services From Other Partners

• Access to more than 300 mentors
• Visits to sites of social entrepreneurs
• Access to the innovation community

Areas For Consideration

• IoT, Drones & Aerospace, Data Analytics, Sensors, Last-mile connection & distribution
• Agriculture, Digital Health & MedTech, Education, Big Data & Smart Data, Wearables
• Blockchain, Cybersecurity, Chatbots, Internet Automation, Platforms

During the accelerator program, the mentors will help you obtain access, to industry know-how, tech expertise, and start-up methodologies, for rapidly validating your business and impact model.

The MAN Impact Accelerator kicks off in Munich on November 2019. The curriculum that follows, will take you to cities like, Sao Paolo, Lisbon and Johannesburg.

The official closing ceremony in Munich, in June 2020, will mark the end of the program.

Application Deadline

Does your start-up have transport, logistics or mobility componence? Then, the MAN Impact Accelerator is for you. Go ahead to apply here. The deadline for application is Tuesday, October 1, 2019.

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The DOEN Foundation, in partnership, with Seedstars, has launched the DOEN Land Restoration Prize.

The prize seeks to award start-ups, having the best solution, enabled by technology, for land restoration.

This is coming, on the backdrop, of land degradation and deforestation, facing lands today, in Africa, even, arable lands, are not spared, from this turn of rising population and industrialisation.

In Africa, nearly, two-thirds of the land is, degraded and this hampers economic development.

With Africa’s vast expanse of land, spanning a region of, more than 1.7 billion acres, of forest that, has been degraded, the continent has, a huge opportunity, to implement the largest land restoration.

The potential benefits that, the continent is, set to get, from the restoration, include improved food and water security, biodiversity protection, climate change resilience and economic growth.

African Union has, therefore, set an ambitious target, to restore 100 million hectares of degraded land, by 2030.

The prize challenge aims to seek out environmental, social and financial start-ups, with a focus on land restoration activities.

Criteria For Selection Include;

Start-ups, applying for this challenge, must have:

* Solutions, already tackling a problem, in the land restoration space that, is not older, than 4 years
* Or an existing start-up, less than, 4 years, with zero activity, but sees the opportunity, to adapt their current solution, to the land restoration space
* Solution with the potential, to reach scalability, in low resource areas
* Solution, showing the clear environmental impact
* The solution can show, a clear social impact
* Preferably, ventures that operate and are based in Africa
* Technology start-ups that, can demonstrate a business model, or, technology innovation

Start-ups That Can Apply?

* Solutions that finance the restoration of degraded land, for production and/or, conservation purposes
* Start-ups, using big data and technology, to reverse land degradation
* The technology used, to optimise resource efficiency, reduce impacts, on ecosystems and lower carbon emissions
* Water-Saving, Soil Technologies
* Technologies, focused on improving livelihoods and communities
* Planning, management and education tools, for land restoration
* Agriculture, (with a focus, on precision conservation) and Agro-Forestry
* Clean Energy solutions that, aid in the combat of land degradation
* Responsible Eco-Tourism that, aids in the support, of land restoration

Benefits Of The Challenge

* The top 3 solutions, will be invited, for an all-inclusive trip, to the Seedstars Africa Summit, in Johannesburg, South Africa, on December 5, 2019, for a week-long training program and conference
* The winner, will receive 9 months access, to the Seedstars exclusive investment readiness program
* A $10,000 grant, will be awarded, to the winning solution

How to apply

Start-ups, with eligibility satisfied above, can start the application here. Applications for the DOEN Land Restoration prize challenge, closes on Tuesday, October 15, 2019. The winner of this challenge, will be awarded, 9 months’ access, to the Seedstars Investment Readiness Program and will, also, assess a $10,000 grant.

The Cartier Women’s Initiative Award opens its 2020 application for female entrepreneurs.

Since its inception in 2006, the Cartier Women’s Initiative has given its support to, over 200 female entrepreneurs, across the world.

Running in its 13 years of existence, the Initiative Award has seen 21 finalists annually, representing 7 regions, (Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa, East Asia and South Asia and Oceania, North America, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean), get selected, in the first round of the competition.

The successful finalists, from here, are then, called to attend the Initiative Awards Week, for the second stage of the competition.

At this round, the final jury evaluation takes place, which would see the announcement of 7 successful laureates, one per region.

Eligibility for participation

For applicants to be considered for this award, the business must have the following qualities:

• Led and owned by a female
• Early-stage
• Generating revenue

The award, is, also, open to all female, with no age category and nationality.

Benefits of the award

The 21 finalists, representing the top 3 businesses, from each of the 7 regions, will receive:

• One-to-one, personalized business coaching, prior to the Awards week
• A series of business coaching workshops and networking sessions, during the Awards week
• Media visibility for the finalists and their businesses, in the months, leading up to the Awards week and interview opportunities, with local & international press, during the Awards week

Award packages

• The 7 laureates, (1 from each region), will receive US$ 100 000 in prize money
• The 14 finalists, (the two runners-up from each region), will receive US$ 30 000 in prize money

All 21 finalists, would get, in addition:

• A scholarship to attend the six-day INSEAD Social Entrepreneurship Executive Education Program, (pending admission to the program, based on eligibility criteria and selection process)
• Ongoing support, for the further growth and development of their business

Deadline for the Application

If you satisfy all the criteria mentioned above, as a female entrepreneur, go ahead to visit the portal for your submission. Deadline for application is Wednesday, August 14, 2019, by 2:00 pm, (CEST)

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The annual AppsAfrica Innovation Awards, in its fifth year, calls on African start-ups, to apply for its Innovation Awards.

The award celebrates the best of the best, among tech start-ups across the African continent, as they showcase their innovative projects to other continents.

The AppsAfrica Innovation Awards, are open to African start-ups that have established platforms in these focus areas, or, categories; Best African App, Agri-tech, Ed-tech, Mobility, Blockchain, Fintech and Social Impact, Changing Africa, M-commerce, Internet of Things, Media & Entertainment, Enterprise Solution, Health-tech and Disruptive Solution.

Eligibility For the Awards

• Applicants can be start-ups, or. Incorporated companies
• Applicants must have launched a product, or, service that is in, at least, one African market
• The product, or, service, must address specific African needs, as detailed within the specific category
• Applicant’s innovation must be technology-driven
• Applications must be specific and relevant to the category entered for

Benefits Of The Awards

Winners of the Awards will get:

• Industry recognition
• Global publicity
• Opportunity to network with over 300 industry peers

Previous winners of AppsAfrica Innovation Awards include:

• Kobo360 and Farmcrowdy – Nigeria
• WethinkCode & Custos Media Technologies – South Africa
• Safeboda – Uganda
• Baobab – Kenya
• Nala – Tanzania

If you meet all the criteria specified for the application, go ahead to the website to apply. Applications run until Wednesday, September 11, 2019. Finalists would be shortlisted on Tuesday, October 8, 2019.

Featured Image: Innovation-village

The ITU Innovation challenge is opening opportunities for changemakers to facilitate digital transformation and get involved in building innovative capabilities.

With the use of knowledge exchange, the result from this is set, to lead to the development of bankable projects that promote sustainability.
10 global winners would be selected, while additional winners may be sponsored.

Global and regional winners in collaboration would develop winning ideas that will get pitched.

Categories Of The Challenge

The digital transformation from the ITU challenge is categorized into 3 segments, as follows:

• Digital change-maker challenge
• Ecosystem Best Practice Challenge
• Smart Communities Challenge

Benefits Of The Challenge

• Air ticket between applicants country and event centre
• Free hotel accommodation
• Mentoring & capacity building
• Recognition and innovation champion.

Eligibility For The Challenge

• All participants can be from any nationality
• All age are welcome, except participants in the Young ICT Leaders Forum, (18-35)
• You can apply as a team, or, as an individual

Evaluation Criteria

Participants would face a panel of jury for the following:

• Originality
• Sustainability
• Visibility
• Co- Creation
• Creativity

Do you have what it takes, to create a digital world? Then, this application is for you. Check here to visit the site.

Deadline for application for ITU Innovation Challenge is Wednesday, July 10, 2019

GSMA Innovation fund, for the digitization of agricultural value chains, opens application for African Agri-tech Startups.

The programme aims to scale a digital solution for agriculture and assist small-scale farmers, in attaining a level of financial inclusion and livelihood.

The priority of the fund targets enterprises, such as Agribusiness and Cooperative Societies, that procure from small-scale holders, having the focus on those living within $2 per day.

A total number of eight grants, amounting to $280,000, is made available in support of the projects.

GSMA, in addition, would, also, provide consultancy services and other kinds of support, to assist in the development of the business plans and implementation.

This will get carried out through business intelligence, market research and user-testing, with the staffs and small-scale holders of agribusiness.

The grants are made available, in two categories for applicants into the program.

The mobile money-driven category and the data-driven category. Applicants to both categories will be assessed, through a two-stage application process.

Submission of a concept note is required, thereafter, applicants whose concept notes get the pass mark of the objectives and eligibility requirements, are shortlisted and invited to develop their business plan.

At the concept note stage, all eligible applicants, irrespective of getting the grant, or, not, would get an invite, to join the GSMA Agri-tech Priority Learning Partners Initiative.

Here, they would gain access to a significant number of resources, events and webinars, on the concept of enterprise solutions

Are you an Agritech Startup? Visit the link here, to apply. The application ends on Wednesday, July 31, 2019.

Featured Image: creative market

Google Africa has announced its plans to give scholarship to 30,000 young African Developers, who want to be certified on Google’s Android, Web and Cloud technologies.

In 2017, Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, paid a visit to Nigeria and he announced that Google will continue its initiatives, focused on digital skills training, education, economic opportunity and support for African Developers and Startups.

“Google is committed to helping advance a healthy and vibrant ecosystem, by providing support for training and certifications that will help bridge the unemployment gap on the continent, through increasing the number of employable software developers”, Sundar Pichai, stressed.

Google, in partnership with Pluralsight and Andela, will be carrying out an intensive learning curriculum that will take the Developers through designed entry-level and intermediate roles, as software developers in these fields.

“We are committed towards young Africans, for future jobs, through the LaunchPad Accelerator and we are offering 30,000 additional scholarship opportunities and 1,000 grants for young developers”, Charles Murito, Google Kenya Manager, explained.

The free application is open to young Africans across the continent. It will close on Wednesday, May 15, 2019.

Eligibility Criteria:
• Applicants must be, at least, 18 years of age
• Be a resident of a country in Africa

Applicants will be prioritized, based on Pluralsight Skill IQs, amount of Pluralsight content consumed and other target demographics.

Google Africa Certification Scholarship Benefits:
• Master in-demand Google Developer skills, with expert-authored Pluralsight content
• Receive support from the ALC program
• Qualify to receive a Google certification grant and take the related Google certification exam for free
• Opportunity to join Andela, as a Software Engineer.

Method of Application:
Interested candidates, who meet the criteria listed above, should apply by visiting here.

Featured Image: developers.googleblog

Bell Labs, was founded as a result of the passion of extraordinary Scientists and Engineers, who aspire to invent components of our modern information-centric lives.

We can say that Bell Labs’ major objective is to make information technology and communications better. It aims at making the world a better and easier place to live in, through technology.

They originated in several engineering departments, within the American Telephone and Telegraph, (AT&T), Company and the Western Electric Company, the manufacturing organization, for the Bell Labs system.

It puts in an extra effort at making inventions, by creating new laboratories that can help its research.

Bell Labs, is organizing game-changing and impacting ideas, that will transform our philosophies about the way we live, work and communicate, through technology.

The competition is based on the participants, submitting proposals on how to better approach the ICT sector, by a factor of 10.

Eligible Fields

Bell Labs’ game-changing, are open to these fields:

Web applications, cloud services, information theory, computational sciences, cryptography, distributed systems, data privacy, mathematics of networks, modulation schemes, optical systems, or, components, communications systems, network protocols, network architecture, radio frequency design, sustainability, wireless, fixed network technologies, software-defined networks, virtualization technologies, real-time analytics, search algorithm’s, self-optimizing networks and interference systems.

The participants will go through two, (2), stages of the interview. The first phase of the interview requires the candidates to write an essay of about 250 words about the ICT sector. The winners of this phase will be notified by a mail on May 24, 2019.

The final phase involves 10 candidates, who will work with Bell Labs as researchers and help to develop its proposal, worthy of being presented at the Bell Labs judging panel.

Awards

The winners for the 2019 Bells Labs prize will receive:

• The first position will go away with the sum of $100,000
• The second position will walk away with a sum of $50 000
• The third position will walk away with a sum of $25000

In addition, to the above, all the three winners will be considered for an opportunity to work with Bell Labs, to further explore their ideas.

Qualification Process

The proposal will be based on three different criteria:

• How your proposal can affect the desired change
• How technically structured your proposal is built, such that it talks, not just about the now, but how it can help for future advancements
• Your proposal should include strategies on how you can build a better profit generating organization and necessary steps to be taken to achieve this

If your essay scales through this stage to the next phase, then, you will be evaluated on how best your proposal can create a desired solution.

The last panel to declare the successful candidates, which will be released on December 4, 2019, will be led by the Bell Labs President, Marcus Weldon and consisting of industry leaders from within Bell Labs, Nokia and other high-tech companies.

Only innovators from Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa, are eligible to apply for the prize.

The proposal submission deadline is Friday, April 26, 2019.

From the 20 Tech Startups selected to participate in the first edition of the Glo Global Africa Program, seven are Nigerian. The aim of the program is to assist the tech Startups, to improve their capacity for business skills.

The Nigerian Startups that made the selection include; Innovation Corner, Thrive Agric, eTrash2Cash, PiggyVest, HelpMum, Social Lender and Helium Health.

Also included, are 6 Startups from Kenya and 7 from South Africa, for this first edition. With over 400 applicants to the program from Water Management, Healthcare, Fintech, and Agritech, the 20 selected, got an edge in the development of cutting-edge products and services.

As part of the UK governments’ effort to establish a mutual partnership with Africa, the Go Global Africa program was established, to solve local and global issues.

With the UK’s thriving tech sector, the program would serve as a channel to build links between Startups, to enhance trading in the future for the African tech space.

Initially, the initiative was a product of UK-Israel Tech Hub, which has seen collaboration between the two countries in the digital economy, over the last four years. According to reports, the UK-Israel Tech Hub has produced 175 tech partnerships deals worth £85 million.

The selected Startups for this first edition would receive mentoring and training from firms like Enterprise Academy, Price Water House Coopers, Bethnal Green Ventures accelerator and Natwest Fintech Accelerator.

They would get exposed to the art of public speaking, pitching sessions, advice on scaling Startups and level of insights required to position a tech Startup for a good venture. In addition, there would be guidance on methods of raising funds.

The 2-week long program would see Startups receive support form Uk’s International Tech Hub Network that has its branches in three continents.

The Startups will also act as Go Global champions, while sharing the skills they learned, to mentor upcoming Startups in their respective countries. This will further ensure the propagation of digital skills and the entrepreneurial spirit to create jobs.

Global payment technology company, Visa, has launched Visa Everywhere Initiative, a global edition for women.

The initiative tasks Startups in providing a solution to payment challenges and also renders assistance to participants through enhancing the proposition of their products. The global innovation program will also assist the Startups in providing solutions for partners in Visa’s network.

The program would feature two aspects; social impact and Fintech challenge, which will see 12 finalists, emerged from both challenges. Two finalists each would be selected from Visa’s six region- North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Central Europe Middle East and Africa- of operation.

This will lead them to France in June, where they would pitch in the presence of Visa executives. The eventual winner would get awarded a cash prize of $100 000, with mentorship by the organizers.

As mentioned earlier, two challenges would be the main focus of the Visa program. Here is an overview of these challenges:

Social impact challenge
This challenge looks out for how social impact is driven by women entrepreneurs, through sustainability and strengthening of local economies.
It will also focus on women who have impacted business development in the small business sector.

Fintech challenge
This challenge tasks participants with how viable their solution can be, in improving online payment methods for individuals and business transactions.

The application of this solution surrounds the concept around Fintech; wallet transfer, online banking, and payment solutions.
Asides the prize money involved, the winners would attend the opening match of the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Consideration for the application includes women Founders, or, Co-Founders only. The number of employees in their organization should also be between 2 and 50. Their mission must align with Visa’s social impact challenge. They do not necessarily have to be a Fintech or Tech Startup.

Applications for the Visa Everywhere initiative program ends on Sunday, April 14, 2019.