Viva Technology and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) has announced the top 45 startups long-listed for the first edition of the AfricaTech Awards.
AfricaTech Awards, a pan-African initiative, aims to recognize and support emerging startups focused on driving innovation and development impact across the continent in three main sectors – Climate Tech, FinTech, and Health Tech.
The 45 start-ups – 15 in each of the three Awards categories – have been selected from a total pool of more than 300 applications, with Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, and Morocco showing the highest participation rates. Overall, FinTech is the category that received the most applications (124), followed by Health Tech (95), and Climate Tech (93). Nearly 60% of the applicant start-ups have at least one woman on their board.
“The number and quality of applications received is a testament to Africa’s vibrant tech scene, which has proven to be resilient even in the face of the many challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Makhtar Diop, IFC’s Managing Director. “These Awards will help scale innovations in key sectors like climate tech, health, and financial services, which are critical to supporting the continent’s sustainable and inclusive growth.”
The final winners (one per category) will be announced at the first AfricaTech Awards ceremony, which will take place during the 2022 edition of Viva Technology on June 15-18 in Paris. The three winning start-ups will benefit from access to the Viva Technology, IFC and category sponsors’ networks, as well as select one-on-one meetings with leaders and top executives in the tech industry.
“Africa is a breeding ground for talent and new ideas, and we are delighted to see so many innovative entrepreneurs participating in this first edition of the AfricaTech Awards,” said Viva Technology Co-Presidents Maurice Lévy and Pierre Louette, and Managing Director Julie Ranty. “It is a pleasure to be able to highlight these impactful start-ups and help promote their solutions across the continent and beyond.”
The top 15 startups in the FinTech category, sponsored by Cassava Technologies, include:
- abela – South Africa
- Applied Logic Ltd – Niger
- Click2Sure – South Africa
- Crop2Cash – Niger
- DREAMCASH Cameroon SA – Cameroon
- Duhqa – Kenya
- eMaisha Pay – Uganda
- Franc – South Africa
- ImaliPay – Kenya
- Lipa Later – Kenya
- Neqabty – Egypt
- Popote pay – Kenya
- Premiercredit – Zambia
- Proxalys – Senegal
- Singpay2022 – Gabon
The top 15 startups in the Health Tech category, sponsored by Orange, include:
- Access Afya – Kenya
- BokDoc – Egypt
- Chefaa – Egypt
- Keeplyna – Tunisia
- Med – Tunisia
- Meditect – Qatar
- Primed E-Health – France, Nigeria, Uganda
- SonoCare Healthcare – Niger
- The Aviro Pocket Clinic – South Africa
- Vekta Innovations – South Africa
- Vula Mobile – Dr W Mapham – South Africa
- Wala Digital Health – Ghana
- Welnes – Egypt
- Zencey – Ivory Coast
- Zuri Health – Kenya
The top 15 startups in the Climate Tech category, sponsored by New Energy Nexus, include:
- AGROTECH PLUS – Kenya
- ARESS – Benin
- ATLAN Space – Morocco
- Bekia – Egypt
- Chafi – Niger
- Easy Matatu – Uganda
- Eco-V GreenTower – South Africa
- Farmtopia – Egypt
- iShamba Limited – Kenya
- Koolboks – France, Nigeria, and 12 additional countries
- Kumulus – France and Tunisia
- Seavo – Egypt
- Sunpave – Egypt
- The Awareness Company – South Africa
- WEEE Centre – Kenya
KEY DATA
3 award categories:
Climate Tech, FinTech, Health Tech,
312 applications
45 long-listed start-ups
3 final winners to be announced at VivaTech in June
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