Looking to get into the South African startup scene or brush up on some of your skills? Well, you’ve come to the right place.
This article is part of a weekly series that highlights all the top startup competitions, networking sessions, workshops and conferences around South Africa, and the greater region. If you have any event recommendations for us to add to the list, or next week’s, please let us know in the comments below or send us an email.
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Not all of the events are free and some will require booking in advance. Please click on the event names to find out more information.
Cape Town
Cape Town-based mobility startup Go Metro will this week launch its GoMetro Pro platform. The launch event will include a panel discussion on how tech can improve the way Cape Town moves.
Date: 15 May, 6pm
Location: MEST Incubator Cape Town, Woodstock Exchange, Albert Road, 401A, Cape Town
MEST Africa Community Conversations: The Entrepreneurship journey
Join MEST this week for a community conversation with GirlHype founder and CEO Baratang Miya as chats about her entrepreneurial journey and how she landed up in the technology space.
In 2015 Miya was chosen by the US State Department’s TechWomen programme as an Emerging leader. She was placed at Adobe for her mentorship as part of the TechWomen 2015 award. She also serves on the Silicon Cape executive committee as head of Transformation and was the 1st runner up for MTN Women In ICT Community Builder Award 2016.
Date: 16 May, 1pm to 2pm
Location: MEST Incubator Cape Town, Woodstock Exchange, Albert Road, 401A, Cape Town
This 24-hour event forms part of a series of hackathons leading up to the final Rehive Fintech Challenge. Throughout the series sponsors will give away over $100 000 in prizes for the best projects. There will be R10 000 prize money up for grabs on the day!
Date: 19 to 20 May, 10am to 2pm
Location: Terrace Building, South Park, Black River Park, 2 Fir St, Observatory, Cape Town
For those working in startups, Lean (startup) coffee is a weekly one-hour coffee meetup that runs a mashup of leancoffee.org with theleanstartup.com.
Date: 16 May, 8.30am to 9.30am
Location: 1 Somerset Road, Green Point, Cape Town
Johannesburg
Internet of Everything Africa: Smart water or water smart?
Join entrepreneurs, policy makers, decision makers, and academics for insightful presentations and panel discussions around the future of water and how we can best manage it.
Date: 15 May, 4.30pm to 7.30pm
Location: Tshimologong Precinct, 42 Juta Street, Braamfontein, Johannnesburg
What digital startups need to know about copyright in South Africa
If you are a web or software developer or if you are working on a digital start up, then you are probably using software, images or text created by others. That means you need to know how to stay the right side of copyright law.
Come to this Jamlab workshop with international copyright expert Sean Flynn on what every start up and developer needs to know to stay within the law and how to ensure the law works for you.
Date: 17 May, 3pm to 4.30pm
Location: Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct, 41 Juta Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg
Women in Tech Breakfast with Nneile Nkholise (iMed Tech Group)
The Jozihub Women in Tech Breakfast series, held in collaboration with PinkCodrs, is focused on showcasing successful women with careers or businesses in the technology sector who are creating innovative solutions in South Africa.
This week join iMed Tech Group founder Nneile Nkholise as she chats about her startup which develops breast prosthesis products.
Date: 18 May, 9.30am to 11am
Location: 44 Stanley Avenue, Milpark, Johannesburg
Join Geekulcha Student Society and Engineers Without Borders as the welcome women within the ICT industry to share their stories and advice on how to prepare for the industry.
Date: 19 May, 8.30am to 9.30am
Location: Tshwane University of Technology Soshanguve South Campus, 2 Aubrey Matlakala Street, Pretoria
Startup Grind Women: Defining your business model canvas with Tiffany Smith
Tiltas founder Tiffany Smith will this week headline Startup Grind as she chats about business model canvas and defining a unique value proposition.
Date: 17 May, 6pm to 9pm
Location: SAP Africa Building One, 1 Woodmead Drive, Johannesburg
Ghana
Founders Live is a competition where five handpicked founders take the hot seat — with only 99 seconds to pitch their company — and describe their value proposition in front of an audience.
After the pitches and audience Q&A, the crowd will vote on a winner who will not only receive an award, but recognition from the crowd and also the opportunity to talk more about their product or service.
Date: 15 May, 10am to 1pm
Location: University of Professional Studies Accra, Graduate School Room 9, Accra, Greater Accra Region
Do you have an idea for a startup that could use some refinement? Then you might want to consider attending the Startup Ideation Bootcamp.
What are the components of a great idea? How do you know if you are working in an attractive market? How do you validate that your idea is great? In just three hours, this intensive workshop will help you improve your idea, come up with new ideas and even recruit potential co-founders.
Date: 15 May, 6.30pm to 9.30pm
Location: KPMG Headquarters, Ocean House, 13 Yiyiwa Drive Off The Olusegun Obasanjo Way, Abelenkpe, Accra
MEST Africa Master Class: Growth hacking
May’s Master Class brings you Rym Bachouche, master marketer and sales person. Bachouche has spent the past nine years working for Meltwater and currently serves as their head of marketing and communications for France, Benelux, and the Middle East.
If your company is struggling to create growth and traction with little to no budget, then this workshop is for you! Join this event to earn great growth hacking techniques, all about the best free software, and more.
Date: 16 May, 12pm to 2pm
Location: MEST Incubator Accra, 19 Banana Street, Accra
Kenya
Running a successful tech business in West Africa
MEST Accra Incubator general manager Ashwin Ravichandran will conduct this masterclass running a successful tech business in West Africa.
Date: 14 May, 11am to 1pm
Location: Mettā Nairobi, 6F Belgravia Building, 14 Riverside Drive, Nairobi
As an entrepreneur you pitch all the time — to potential customers, partners, and investors — and you only get one chance to get it right.
Which is why you need to pitch to the Ladykillers. These are experienced business women and women investors. They have experience sitting in panels and judging ideas as part of pitching competitions and will help you perfect your pitch.
Date: 17 May, 1pm to 4pm
Location: The Entrepreneurs Hub, Waiyaki Way, Nairobi
How press can impact your business
Getting press coverage for your business may either seem impenetrable or not a priority, but in reality press can impact many aspects of your business — from brand awareness to investor interest. As a busy founder, how can you do this effectively and efficiently?
In this workshop by Stephany Zoo, head of marketing at BitPesa and founder of the China Africa Tech Initiative will cover; writing press releases, pitching to media maintaining relationships, obtaining by-lines and guest columns and creating a media outreach list.
Date: 15 May, 6pm to 7pm
Location: Nairobi Garage Westlands, Chiromo Road, Mirage, Floor M2, Nairobi, Nairobi County
Nigeria
MEST Lagos Masterclass: Building successful corporate partnerships
As an entrepreneur, building a successful business requires a push on various fronts. From hiring the right people, to building a fantastic service or product, to ensuring you leverage the right distribution and market-pull programs to acquire your customers. One critical opportunity platform is corporate partnerships.
Join Charles Ojei and Alex Osikhena on this masterclass on how to build successful corporate partnerships.
Date: 17 May, 5.30pm to 8pm
Location: MEST Incubator Lagos, 19B Adeyemi Lawson Street, Lagos
Experienced speakers will discuss the blockchain era and exciting technology solutions that are changing the future of money & the digital asset space.
Date: 19 May, 3pm
Location: Strategic Hub, Fonte House, behind M.R.S Fuel Station, By Artillery Aba Road, Portharcourt
Mozambique
Young Lioness Lean In Series brings together inspirational African women entrepreneurs to share, inspire and connect with the next generation of great women-led startups.
The two-and-a-half-hour event starts with networking and involves speakers who share their own experiences and travels in the world of entrepreneurship. Speakers this week include Madina Abacar, Dali Banga Events and Mulandi Brindes’ Vanessa Nhabete and Gilipe’s Cidia Chissungo.
Date: 18 May, 1.30pm to 4.30pm
Location: Standard Bank Incubator, Sports Street, No. 119, 1st Floor, Maputo
Tanzania
Join international guest speakers including Fraser Douther as they discuss the blockchain era and technology solutions that are changing the future of money and the digital asset space.
Date: 19 to 20 May, 2pm to 8pm
Location: Holiday Inn, Azikiwe Street, Upanga Road, Dar es Salaam, Ilala
Uganda
How will blockchain change the money and digital assets space? Learn more from a team of international guest speakers as they discuss this and other issues about the blockchain.
Date: 16 May, 2pm to 9pm
Location: Protea Hotel by Marriott Kampala, 4 Elgon Terrace, Kololo, Kampala
