Seedstars : Five African startups in the running for the major global emerging markets competition

The regional finalists for the Online Seedstars World Competition 2020/21 (SSW) have been announced and 5 startups from Africa have been chosen to join the group of 20 winners advancing to the next stage. From 94 startups, only 20 are moving on to the Regional Finals for a chance to secure a spot at the Grand Finale, the final round of competition. In the Finale, only one startup will emerge as the Global winner, receiving the grand prize of $500K in funding. Add event to your calendar to watch the Africa regional finals: http://seedsta.rs/3rf0XoT

Five African startups in the running for the major global emerging markets competition

“With how hard and unexpected 2020 was to each one of us, it was really amazing to see our finalists grow over the competition while going through the Online Seedstars Academy as well as the 1 month Investment Readiness Program. It’s going to be an exciting Regional Finals!” said Eugenia Shevchenko, lead of the competition.

Seedstars, the Swiss-based investment holding with a mission to impact people’s lives in emerging markets, annually holds the Seedstars World Competition to scout for the most promising startups around the Asia, Africa, CEE, MENA, and LATAM regions. 

From the African region, five startups are set to join the Global Finale. Taking on the agriculture industry, Flamingoo Foods from Tanzania is using cutting edge technology and their trained staff to mill rice collected from trusted farmers within the Rukwa Rift Valley. Another AgriTech joining the finals is startup CAPTURE Solutions from Ivory Coast. They provide B2B ICT applications to companies and organizations in need of re-organizing and streamlining their working processes.

FinTech startups are also joining the lineup of finalists. Crowdfunding and payments solutions are represented by Ladda (Nigeria), a one-stop investment platform, and Sparco Inc. (Zambia),  a startup providing a Pan-African payment infrastructure that unifies all payments market players on the continent. Completing the list of global finalists for Africa is HealthTech startup Rohobot Home from Ethiopia. They provide home based health care service for chronic ill and aged people with affordable prices. 

The startups from Africa are part of the twenty regional finalists moving on to the next round, where each startup has a chance to bag a slot at the Grand Finale and win a grand prize of USD 500K in equity investment. Check out the full list of regional finalists here. 

The regional finals for Africa will be aired on April 16, 2021. The remaining finalists will battle it out through their pitches and viewers will get the chance to watch it all happen online. 

Viewers can also tune into the Ecosystem Insights presentation and panel discussion on the topic of Women Empowerment & Gender Equality in Africa with speakers Stephanie Vaks-Stephens, Global Private Equity and Venture Capital Funds at International Finance Corporation/World Bank Group, Vuyolwethu Dubese, Innovation Consultant and Bethelhem Dejene, Founder & CEO ar Zafree Papers. Anne-Alice Fievet, Project Manager for Africa at Seedstars will be moderating the session.