Etudesk win the Côte d’Ivoire leg of Seedstars World

Etudesk, a web platform which allows academic institutions to easily set up their e-learning platform, has won the Côte d’Ivoire round of Seedstars World. They will be heading to Switzerland for their spot in the final pitching event.

The final event will have 65 startups pitching for their chance to grab US$1-million in prizes. The main prize is a US$500 000 equity investment and there’s also a US$50 000 prize to the best startup in education.

“We are very passionate about improving education not only in the country but in Africa. We really think that education has the power to improve people’s lives and why not start with the institutions first,” said the founder of Etudesk Lamine Barro.

“We are extremely happy to be back in Abidjan. We see it as a very important part of encouraging early stage entrepreneurs and providing them with mentorship, access to investment, support and learning. Not only did the quality of startups this year improve, we also had an increasing interest from different stakeholders in the ecosystem,” said Claudia Makadristo, associate for Seedstars World in Africa.

The Côte d’Ivoire leg of Seedstars World was organised with the support of the founder and CEO of the IFID, Rites Massamba. “We have a lot of talented people in Côte d’Ivoire. However, talent alone is not always enough. We need opportunities and opportunities come with the people we meet,” said Massamba.

Transforming Education in Cocoa Communities (TRECC), an Abidjan-based partnership of public and private stakeholders, is the  sponsor for the Transforming Education Prize.

“I got a tremendous energy boost from seeing young entrepreneurs that decide to take their future into their own hands and I’m amazed to see that these are true entrepreneurs, trying to tackle real problems and challenges,” said TRECC Country Director, Sabini Vigani.

Seedstars World’s next stop on their way to the final in Switzerland is Bamako on 4 September 2016 at the Impact Hub to find the best startup in Mali.

Featured image: Seedstars World