Wazo Challenge East Africa

Wazo Challenge East Africa is aimed at young entrepreneurs in the 18 – 30 age group, who are residents of countries from the UN designated Eastern Africa region. We are looking for entrepreneurs who have an idea to solve a local business / social problem, by leveraging technology.

We are looking for enterprising youth (as individuals or teams) to use technology (Software / Hardware / Software+Hardware), and solve for one of the below:

• Financial services
• Healthcare
• Agriculture
• Energy/utility
• Education

Takeaways from the challenge

Venture bootcamp

10 high-potential founders will be selected for a 4-week venture building mentorship and leadership development bootcamp, that will be delivered by successful founders, industry leaders, domain experts and investors from Hindsight Ventures’s global network. The Venture Bootcamp will help establish / reiterate basic venture development processes, enable industry connections, international networks, peer community and more. During the course of the bootcamp, each selected startup will get access to $150,000 worth of technology credits from our partners, that will help the selected Founders to build fast, and at scale.

International demo day

The Venture Bootcamp will culminate with an international demo day, wherein the cohort will pitch to an audience comprising investors and corporates. Prior to the demo day, the cohort will be ably coached by pitch coaches, to ensure that each pitch is succinct and conveys a compelling story.

Cash prizes

Money! Money! Money!

There’s a USD 10,000 grant money at stake, and the cohort will be pitching for the same. In addition, we sincerely hope that the international demo day will attract venture investors to take a serious look at the cohort, and many will get investor interest.

Selection criteria

• 5% Founders of Eastern African origin, and in the age group of 18 – 30 years
• 5% If the company is incorporated within the immediate past 18-months
• 10% Minimum team size of 3 people
• 20% Uniqueness of the idea
• 25% Social and Community Impact
• 15% Innovation
• 10% Market Opportunity
• 10% Market Feasibility