African Entrepreneurs Begin Training and Networking Week in Swiss Startup Ecosystem
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Winners of the Swiss Sub-Saharan Africa Innovation Initiative started their week-long dive into the local startup ecosystem by stress-testing their business cases. The entrepreneurs' training continued with inspirations and introductions to Switzerland's startup resources and networks.
The startup founders from Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria and Zambia, arrived in Basel to update coaches on business developments since winning their trips at an Advanced Entrepreneurship Camp in Nairobi last year. The cohort, selected from more than 1,000 applications from 20 countries, are developing companies in agritech, mobile health, shopping software, mobile finance and digital freelancing.
They met entrepreneurs at the University of Basel to learn about Switzerland's approach to digital health, and travelled to Zurich for a first-hand account of the cultural challenges and entrepreneurial opportunities for Africans building businesses in Switzerland.
Gnanli Landrou, described his journey from farming in Togo through to founding Oxara in Switzerland. The ETH Zurich spin-off transforms construction waste into ecological, cement-free concrete, that reduces the financial and environmental cost of building safe and affordable housing. Landrou, recognized by Forbes magazine among the most innovative entrepreneurs in Europe, aims to build a business to serve the extra two billion people projected to share our planet by 2050.
SABII winners
They met entrepreneurs at the University of Basel to learn about Switzerland's approach to digital health, and travelled to Zurich for a first-hand account of the cultural challenges and entrepreneurial opportunities for Africans building businesses in Switzerland.
Gnanli Landrou, described his journey from farming in Togo through to founding Oxara in Switzerland. The ETH Zurich spin-off transforms construction waste into ecological, cement-free concrete, that reduces the financial and environmental cost of building safe and affordable housing. Landrou, recognized by Forbes magazine among the most innovative entrepreneurs in Europe, aims to build a business to serve the extra two billion people projected to share our planet by 2050.
SABII winners Accadius Lunayo, Chisepo Chirwa, David Sayia, Elorm Allavi, Nonso Opurum, Oladele Bakare, and Ruth Kerubo, will pitch tomorrow to win six-months further training with Afrilabs. On Thursday they'll meet Zurich-based startups Embotech, GreenTEG, and Parquery at the Technopark.
Accadius Lunyao, University of Nairobi. His company Nairobi-based Til'Data LLC uses 3D computational modelling to develop more efficient fertilizers and crop-vaccines for farmers. www.lunayo.co.nf
Chisepo Chirwa, studied computer science at ZCAS University in Zambia. His Lusaka, Zambias-based Outsource Now Ltd makes software for businesses, schools and restaurants. www.zpos.co.zm
David Sayia, University of Eldoret, Kenya. His platform, Paybobby, connects freelancers with those looking to hire digital talent. www.paybobby.com
Elorm Allavi, University of Ghana. His company mfarmPay uses alternative datasets and algorithms to facilitate loans for farmers. www.mfarmpay.com
Nonso Opurum, Greenwich University. Abuja-based medical platform JaraCare offers medical consultations and hospital comparisons. www.jaracare.com
Oladele Bakare, Anglia Ruskin University, U.K. Findworka, his Lagos-based platform outsources software development and digital services. www.findworka.com
Ruth Kerubo, Karabak University, Nairobi-based M-shamba Ltd offers a mobile application to help smallholder farmers increase their yield and profit, broadcasting weather forecasts and agronomic advice. www.m-shamba.netSABII, an initiative of the University of Basel, aims to boost entrepreneurial knowledge and give international exposure to university graduates in sub-Saharan Africa. The program's workshops, supported by the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, are co-organized by Afrilabs in Kenya and Venturelab in Switzerland.
