Africa’s leading Telecommunications Company, Telecel Group, in collaboration with Startupbootcamp AfriTech, has hosted a FastTack event to scout start-ups in the country for Africa Start-up Initiative Programme (ASIP) Cohort 3.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Deputy and ASIP Director, Eleanor Azar, stated that the Africa Start-up Initiative Programme aims at contributing to the community by supporting the next generation of early-stage African tech start-ups.
“Africa Start-up Initiative Programme was created to give back to the communities in which Telecel Group operates. Driven by Telecel Group values and the belief that all its entities will do better in thriving environments and communities, Telecel is developing social programmes to help them while maintaining its policy for its mobile network operators to continue being an opportunity creator in terms of direct and indirect jobs in their respective countries, and developing a profound respect to the environment, contributing in all ways possible to a greener lifestyle,” she said.
She added that the company will provide the start-ups with support and access to markets through their mobile services across the continent.
“At ASIP, we recruit top innovative start-ups in Africa, and offer them support and guidance. We are continuously selecting the best of the start-ups. These are the future businesses that will build and lead the economies on the African continent; these are the ones who can find solutions to their everyday challenges because they understand the context they live in and the needs better than anyone. All we have to do is support them and nurture them to become the leading businesses of the future,” she stated.
Also, the Director of ASIP, Henry Ojuor, stated that the FastTrack event gives the participating start-ups a competitive advantage.
“We usually encourage start-ups to attend the country FastTrack events to enable them to get real-time feedback from our panel of experts. From our experience, about 20 percent of start-ups that attend the events usually make it to the final round. It is a fantastic opportunity to network with our investment team, and get more information about the programme,” he said.
The Africa Start-up Initiative Programme – Cohort 3 will be launched in February 2023, and will include FinTech, InsureTech, AgriTech, Climate-tech, eCommerce, Digital Health, CleanTech, Mobility, Micro-leasing, and digitising the informal economy.
The initiative created the first virtual accelerator programme launched across Africa, and has a range of successful start-ups from several African capitals, including Abidjan, Lagos, Kampala, Addis Ababa and Nairobi.
ASIP was designed to develop new businesses across the continent by working with start-ups and early-stage companies to define their business strategy and secure funding. The programme has, since 2021, empowered 21 businesses through the support of the leading Pan-African tech accelerator, Startupbootcam AfriTech.
