UrbUNx Basecamp

UrbUNx is a startup and scaleup acceleration program designed to enable African entrepreneurs to create sustainable solutions to urban challenges. The initiative will support local African founders through our knowledge, network & resources to scale globally with a particular focus on the Chinese market.

To kick-start the program in Africa, UrbUNx is launching the very first UrbUNx Basecamp supported by World Bank & UN-Habitat to give a quick boost to startups looking to scale and/ or raise their next round of funding.

Winners will be prized an all-expense-paid trip to China and introduced to our entrepreneur and investor ecosystem.

The basecamp is a full month virtual training on the nuts & bolts of building and scaling your business provided by top-notch entrepreneurs and experts that have built global businesses successfully.

Topics covered in the basecamp range from:

• an intro to lean startups,
• the lean canvas,
• customer problem validation,
• no-code MVP and user testing,
• growth and experimentation,
• financial modeling,
• pitching and investment deck

Who should apply?

• Startups founded by local African founders with a minimum viable product that is preparing for a pre-A or A funding round within the next 6 months.
• Startups with a focus on urban issues in Kenya such as, but not limited to, inclusive urban finance, urban manufacturing and industrialization, urban basic services, and urban climate change responses with the potential to scale to China.
• Startups with at least one co-founder (and no more than 3 cofounders) available to join the bootcamp in Nairobi.
• Startups with traction in their home market. This can mean different things, but it’s typically a strong demonstration of product-market fit and/or some institutional funding for their expansion into new markets.
• We are looking for startups that are serious about launching their product or service into the Chinese market.
• One member of the founding team/one decision-maker needs to be able to commit to the UrbunX Basecamp as well as the potential (fully paid) trip to China

The startup selection criteria include:

1. Pre series A funding, but have raised some external funding
2. Registered entity
3. Have existing staff
4. Have a prototype or already have revenue