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MEST Africa has announced the launch of applications for its third annual MEST Africa Challenge, a Pan-African pitch competition for companies based in Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Senegal, Ethiopia or Tanzania.
The MEST Africa Challenge is aimed at post-revenue, tech-enabled startups that want to expand into new markets.
Semi-final competitions will take place in all those markets, with finalists competing at the MEST Africa Summit on June 15 in Accra, Ghana for US$50,000 in investment from the Meltwater Foundation.
Applications for this year’s challenge are open until April 18, with pre-seed or seed-stage startups that are currently generating revenue and can demonstrate traction in one or more of the nine relevant markets invited to apply. You can apply for the challenge here.
MEST said on its website that due to the coronavirus, it currently advises against all non-essential local and international travel.
“All MEST events will be local, closed events with the potential to move digital as the need arises,” it said.
The top 10 startups from each of the respective countries will pitch at MEST Incubator locations or local partners offices between 1 and 22 May. MEST said the exact dates are subject to change if the challenge moves online.
For more than 10 years, MEST has trained aspiring African entrepreneurs and invested in exceptional businesses with Pan-African ambitions. These businesses have gone on to enter new markets, with MEST growing alongside them as we’ve learned about the opportunities and challenges they face as they scale. Today, MEST Africa is the continent’s largest incubator network, present in Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa and Cote d’Ivoire.
The inaugural MEST Africa Challenge in 2018 saw over 700 applications across four markets, out of which 40 made it into the regional finals in Accra, Lagos, Nairobi and Cape Town.
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