Pitch AgriHack set to kick off on the 25 September 2016

A new pitching competition, dubbed Pitch AgriHack, aims to help a variety of e-agriculture startups.

The competition, part of AgriHack’s talent initiative, is meant to contribute to the agricultural sector and address youth employment challenges.

The project is undertaken in collaboration with African Development Bank (AfDB), along with the support from partners such as the Centre for Agricultural Bioscience International (CABI) and mLab East Africa.

The pitching competition is open for young ICTs from African, Caribbean and Pacific nations which offer innovative solutions and services to their agricultural sector.

Winning teams of the Pitch AgriHack’s Early Stage Platform will receive a cash prize of up to €15 000 to develop a proof of concept.

The project will provide accepted startups with access to a business training boot camp, as well as conduct a pitching competition and offer grants to facilitate access to investments and additional capacity-building and promotional opportunities.

There will be two categories available for startups to enter. The first category, dubbed Early Stage Platform, is for startups that have developed software as well as a business model that still needs improving. These participants are required to demonstrate their potential and functional features of their business.

The second category, Advanced Platform, is for applicants which have already started generating revenue and are currently in operation.

Winning teams will receive a cash prize of €15 000 as well as promotional support and capacity to expand their networking opportunities.

Startups will be required to provide details on concerning agricultural problems, a technical solution to said problems, key metrics, customer segment targets as well as “the unique value proposition compared to their competition”, said AgriHack in a blog post.  Selected startups will need to demonstrate that they’ve incorporated their solutions or are about to close this process.

The deadline for registration is the 25 September 2016 and selected startups will be announced on 22 October 2016.  The pitching event will happen from 23 November to 24 November 2016 in Kenya.

To nominate a startup or register yourself, click here.

Featured image: Viktor Dobai via Flickr