Seedstars Africa entrepreneurship summit to kick off in Morocco

Startup initiative for emerging markets Seedstars World will host its first ever Africa summit in Casablanca, Morocco late this January.

Seedstars Africa seeks to connect entrepreneurs, investors and entrepreneurship ecosystems from around the continent with the world. The initiative has partnered with Moroccan startup organisation StartupYourLife to bring together 300 startup talents, investors, speakers and mentors from over 20 different countries across Africa and Europe.

“We have gathered some of the most experienced, influential and active ecosystem leaders, investors and entrepreneurs from Africa, the Middle East and Europe for a promising three-day event full of learning, inspirational speeches, and key insights about the state and potential of entrepreneurship on the continent,” says Kenza Lahlou, Founder and Managing Director of StartupYourLife.

Some of the speakers for the event include Emmanuel Quartey, head of product of MEST in Ghana, Alexandra Fraser, Founding member of the African Business Angel Network (ABAN) in South Africa, Uri Gonda, experienced mentor and startup coach based in London, Hasan Heider, Venture Partner at 500startups based in Bahrein, Sam Gichuru, Co-founder and CEO of Nailab in Kenya.

The summit follows Seedstars World’s seven-month African roadshow, visiting 12 different countries around the continent. Startups were invited to pitch in countries such as Mozambique, South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Botswana. Regional finalists will compete for a total of US$1.5-million in equity investments and various other prizes in Geneva, Switzerland in March.

Read more: Meet Seedstars World’s 11 top startups of Ethiopia

“The event will offer a tour across the innovation landscape in Africa from the comfort of one place,” says Marcello Schermer, Regional Manager for Africa at Seedstars World. “It’s a great opportunity to make connections, meet potential business partners and learn best practices in building and scaling a company and a startup ecosystem from across the world.”

The event will be held on January 30th in Casablanca, Morocco and early bird tickets are available until 28 January. Click here for more info.

Image by Dmitriy Fomenko via Flickr