The fellowship programme behind Ampion Venture Bus has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo this week.
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The initiative is looking to raise US$35 000 before 26 October. The money will be used to take more than 160 participants across the continent, in four buses, in a mission to churn up a group of savvy startups and further promote the evolving African tech scene, both locally and abroad.
While there are perks to be gained such as T-shirts and the like, supporters of the Indiegogo campaign have the opportunity to house or, as they put it, adopt one of the startups or entrepreneurs. “Adopting a startup enables its transition from an innovative idea into a real business, which also contributes to African job creation and entrepreneurial ecosystem improvement,” the programme explains in press release.
Ampion is a non-profit dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs in Africa by helping them become local change makers. The Ampion Fellowship Program will seek to nurture the winning business ideas which can contribute to the local economies. Here’s a breakdown of where the funds will go:
The online fundraising campaign isn’t only looking to raise funds though. By increasing the interactivity between the sponsors and the sponsored, Ampion hopes to improve the transparency of its Fellowship Program and give supporters the possibility to keep track of their donation’s impact.
Last year’s startup bus initiative saw the development of edtech company Sterio.me. Since its inception, it’s been named a finalist at the Harvard Africa Business Award, as well as the MIT Africa Innovate and Mobile World Congress 4YFN competitions.
Some success stories include Bribed (an anti-bribery app), which are now collaborating with Transparency International in Germany and Workforce (a mobile matching platform for informal labor). Click here to see the full list of last year’s finalists.
