Multiple Choice Africa Accelerator
Johannesburg, Nov. 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Nov. 2022 — Following the success of the MultiChoice Africa Accelerator Program, which secured $16 million in funding for six start-ups last year, the program has Expanded to eight additional countries in Africa.
More small businesses in Africa’s technology sector now have the opportunity to benefit from the 2023 plan, which provides the skills and opportunities needed to attract transformative business funding.
“We are very excited to expand the MultiChoice Africa Accelerator Program to more African countries,” said Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice Group CEO, announcing the launch. “This is part of our long-term commitment to developing and expanding Africa’s technological potential, which is critical to our future growth.”
Launched during Global Entrepreneurship Week, the MultiChoice Africa accelerator program targets established start-ups and small businesses in specific technology sectors (healthtech, agtech, fintech, edtech, circular economy and creative industries).
“There’s such incredible business talent all over Africa,” Mavela said. “MultiChoice Africa Accelerator provides an opportunity for investors and small businesses to collaborate to amplify the impact of this talent and extend it across Africa.”
The MultiChoice Africa Accelerator launched in South Africa in 2021 and is currently expanding to Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Zambia, Angola and Ethiopia. The program enables budding entrepreneurs to access funding and scale their businesses, and also provides opportunities to pitch to international investors.
Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank, previously pointed out that “the private sector is the growth accelerator in Africa”, and several African countries have made supporting the development of small businesses a part of their economic strategies. The MultiChoice Africa Accelerator aligns with these development goals.
The MultiChoice Africa Accelerator Program is an initiative of the MultiChoice Innovation Fund in partnership with Dubai-based business incubator Companies Creating Change (C3), to provide entrepreneurs with the tools, skills and financial support they need to grow their businesses. MultiChoice is also partnering with EOH, a technology services company, where they will bring their expertise to the table, especially in technical consulting, development sprints and technical support.
In the first phase of the MultiChoice Africa Accelerator Programme, public and private sector partners in each country nominate businesses or entrepreneurs for the programme. From there, 29 start-ups embarked on an intensive virtual training session. The program targets established businesses that are already operating and want to scale up by attracting more investment.
“Startup founders can learn everything from how to properly research your business sector and market, to how to create a niche for your business,” says Boitumelo Monageng of Swypa, one of last year’s finalists. “During the workshop, we were encouraged to dig deeper and I realized we had the potential to compete on a larger scale.”
The virtual training sessions run over several weeks and teach startup owners media skills, how to best market their business to investors, how to create a compelling business plan, and understand what investors want.
Later, the entrepreneurs will meet for the final round, where 11 start-ups will be selected for the final pitch. They will attend a dedicated C3 Bootcamp to learn how to shape their story for international investors and get ‘pitch ready’ ahead of their big presentation.
“We believe that SMEs in the technology, sustainable development and creative sectors will form the foundation for Africa’s next phase of growth,” Mavila said. “The MultiChoice Africa Accelerator aims to identify the most promising start-ups and empower them to play this critical role.”
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CONTACT: Elizabeth Ferreira MultiChoice Group Ltd 0834825241 fourie_elizabeth@yahoo.com
