Dream big, make a daring proposal, and advance your company’s and your entrepreneurial development. A fantastic opportunity awaits early-stage technology firms looking to reach their full potential and unleash creative solutions. Join the fifth MEST Africa Challenge 2023 to gain access to funding, mentoring, and unmatched possibilities to advance the success of your firm.
This year, MEST is happy to provide early-stage entrepreneurs with businesses situated in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Kenya, and South Africa even more enthusiasm. Tech founders that participate in this prestigious competition have the opportunity to earn the highly sought-after USD 50,000 in equity, gain international exposure, and join the lifelong-supportive network of MEST Africa.
Showcase your ground-breaking product at Africa’s top startup pitch competition to join the continent’s growing community of digital entrepreneurs and innovators. With the help from MEST, grow your company to new heights! A Pan-African pitch competition for early-stage technology businesses looking to gain traction and grow is called the MEST Africa Challenge (MAC). The competition was started with the intention of giving technology startups a platform to raise money, develop industry networks, and gain global visibility. It has since developed into a key fixture in Africa’s startup technology industry, providing hundreds of African entrepreneurs with an unheard-of global platform.
MEST is a hub network, internal seed fund, and training programme for tech entrepreneurs that serves the entire continent of Africa. MEST Africa offers young, aspiring, and existing African businesspeople the knowledge, perspective, and experiences needed to launch a successful software company on a global scale. MEST Africa offers real-world advantages to entrepreneurs through investment, company incubation, and access to a global tech network, in addition to training them in tech and entrepreneurial skills.
Different stages of MEST Africa Challenge 2023:
- Complete an online application
- Submit a pitch deck and a 3mins Video pitch
- Selection of the top 10 finalists from each country
- Virtual Regional Finals competition held for each country
- Selection of top 5 startups (1 from each country)
- The top 5 compete at the grand finale and Demo Day
Timeline:
- Application opens: 28th August 2023
- Application closes: 9th October 2023
- Regional Finalist Announcement: 3rd November 2023
- Regional Finals: 20th November 2023 – 24th November 2023
- Finalist announcement: 27th November 2023
- Final Demo Day: December 2023
Location:
Online, GhanaBenefits
- $50,000 in equity investment.
- Access to MEST Portfolio resources and strategic partnerships.
- 1 year professional business coaching in addition to other benefits.
- Prizes for main winner and Regional Finalists.
- Regional Finalists will be fully sponsored with travel to and from Accra, housing, and transport for the final pitch day in December 2023. Regional finalists should plan to arrive in Accra a few days before.
Eligibilities
- Early-stage technology startup
- Operational in either Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa or Senegal
- Monthly Recurring Revenue: A minimum of $5k
- Funding raised: $0 to $1M cumulative
- Years in existence: 3 years and below
- Traction: At least 6 months of recurring revenue
- Founding team: At least 2 founding team members
- Registered in Delaware (This is preferred)
- Any industry
- Any business model (B2B, B2C, B2B2C, B2G etc…)
- All participants must pitch in English
Application Process
- Apply though though apply link\ Apply button from the official website.
- Sing up with Email/Google/Facebook/LinkedIn.
- Complete all the information as instructed.
Application Deadline: October 9, 2023
Application ClosedOfficial link
