MEST Africa has revealed that Sproutly (Nigeria), Kweli (Senegal), Swoove (Ghana), Hisa (Kenya), and Desert Green Africa (South Africa) are the start-ups who have made it into the grand finale of the 2022 MEST Africa Challenge pitch competition.
Before this development, 7 Kenyan startups had qualified for the next stage.
The pan-African pitch competition opened applications in July this year for pre-seed and seed-stage technology start-ups in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Kenya, and South Africa to bid for the ultimate prize of $50,000.
After going through the online application, regional pitches, and founder interview phases of the competition, these 5 finalists have been selected for the final pitch.
Each start-up will represent their country at the Demo Day and Final Pitch Competition that will be held in Accra Ghana in December 2022.
Sproutly is a Nigerian digital banking, and tuition financing solution for teens & students as well as payments, education management, and credits for schools.
Kwely is an innovative made-in-Africa B2B brand incubation and digital distribution platform.
Swoove is a last-mile delivery and fulfillment tech start-up building eCommerce infrastructure for SMEs and commerce companies in Africa.
Hisa, which is from Kenya, is building the tech infrastructure for investing in Africa. It is also associated with online business and tech publisher, the KenyanWallstreet.
Lastly, Desert Green Africa Agri-Investments is an Agritech transforming the informal Agri-value chain in Africa by providing more efficient delivery of Fresh produce from small-scale farmers to informal traders.
MEST will provide the winning start-up with investment capital to the amount of $50,000, coaching, and access to a global network of resources and partners as they build and scale successful businesses that add value to African economies and livelihoods.
All participating start-ups will have the opportunity to benefit from a host of exciting perks from MEST Africa and its strategic partners including global visibility, building their networks, professional coaching, mentorship from experts, and the opportunity to join the global MEST community for lifetime benefits.
Quotes
“It hasn’t been an easy process. Mostly because, this year, we saw so many valid business models and met some incredible founders with huge visions that align very closely with ours. But in the final analysis, we were able to zero in on the cream of the crop to select the top 5 companies from Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal, and South Africa in alignment with this year’s selection criteria. Our team is eager to work closely with each of the 5 finalists in preparation for the final competition day in December,” said the Director of Portfolio at MEST Africa, Melissa Nsiah.
