Jack Ma Foundation; The Africa Netpreneur Prize Initiative will Open Applications Soon
Commencing from Wednesday, March 27, 2019, the Africa Netpreneur Prize Initiative, (ANPI), will open applications for African entrepreneurs. The funding opportunity is a $10 million competition founded by the Jack Ma Foundation.
Annually, for the next decade, the ANPI will host a pitch competition across Africa, where ten finalists will challenge for the $1 million prize money. The focus of the prize money is to empower a new generation of entrepreneurs delving into small businesses, grassroots community development, and women-founded enterprises.
Sam Gichuru, Founder and CEO, Nailab, who is also a partner in the prize money, in a statement, said, “The Netpreneur Prize Initiative has brought together a strong ecosystem of players to support both technology-driven and traditional businesses. We look forward to unveiling the full slate of regional partners and to receiving applications from promising African entrepreneurs in the coming weeks.”
The Jack Ma Foundation has its focus on the environment, education and personal development, therefore, it has tasked itself with the responsibility of enhancing a sustainable model for a better world.
Beth Yu, Executive Secretary-General, Jack Ma Foundation stated that; “By 2030, we hope to identify and shine a spotlight on 100 African entrepreneur heroes who will inspire the continent. From day one, our approach has been community-based and focused on inclusiveness; to be truely for Africans and by Africans. To realize these goals, we are excited to work with Nailab as our implementing partner in Africa and multiple African partners across to the continent.”
Benefits of participation
All the ten finalists would receive;
- Grant funding from the Jack Ma Foundation
- Access to the Netpreneur community of African business leaders
These will afford them the opportunity to leverage the community’s shared expertise, best practices, and resources.
Who can apply
- Open to entrepreneurs from any of the 54 African countries
- Open to all industry sectors
Young business-minded individuals, both male and female entrepreneurs, are encouraged to apply. Following the launch on March 27, 2019, the deadline for the submission of applications is Sunday, June 30, 2019.
An announcement of the top 50 regional finalists would take place in August 2019, while that of the final 10 will be held in October. The grand finale, where the pitch event would take place, will come up in November 2019.
