Tech in Africa
The Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology Foundation runs the MEST Africa tech incubator programme. The seed fund and training programme will award the 7 participants of its latest cohort $700,000. The seven startups were picked from the top 15 finalists who pitched during the virtually held demo. Each startup stands to gain $100,000.
MEST was started in 2008 as a tech entrepreneurship training programme supporting promising startups with seed funding and incubation. Participants get crucial training, technical skills, support, and funding for their businesses, innovative software solutions, and communications. MEST is headquartered in Accra, Ghana, and is holding its 12th edition.
Startups making up the seven were Shopa (a Ghanian retail tech), KPI Lens (a Ghanian cloud-based M&E solution), Joovlin (Nigerian fintech), Eleka (Kenyan customer service app), Boxconn (Ghanian service delivery), Tendo (re-selling Ghanian platform, and Ghanaian Heny (retail-tech platform).
A statement shared by Ashwin Ravichandran, MEST M.D says, “We are incredibly excited about the seven companies we have decided to invest in and look forward to continuing our support and mentorship as they launch their businesses across the continent.”
The 7 startups that made it to MEST Africa 2020 will join 40 others drawn from Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria. Thus far, over $22 million has been invested into the Meltwater Foundation by MEST. Last year’s cohort of 11 startups received an $11 million investment.
