Forge Academy invites African tech startups to enter SMME Showcase

Joburg-based Forge Academy will host an SMME Showcase for tech startups and small and medium-sized enterprises on 30 June 2021. The event will be hosted on their premises at The Gantry in Fourways, Gauteng.

Applications now open for SMME Showcase

Nokia and the ICT SMME Chamber have partnered with Forge Academy for this event, which will focus on the development and growth of the SMME tech sector in South Africa. The showcase offers tech SMMEs and startups an opportunity to present their business ideas to the panel of judges, who will select six winners. The top six will exhibit their concepts at the Forge Academy Digital Street Festival on 18 November 2021 at Montecasino in Fourways, Gauteng.

The SMME Showcase

“We are on a drive to assist small and medium-sized micro-enterprises operating in the tech sector to gain exposure and to grow their businesses. The showcase will select some of the most forward-thinking and innovative tech start-ups and secure them a place to exhibit their businesses at the Digital Street Festival later in the year. The Festival will offer great exposure to potential investors who may be interested in injecting some capital to accelerate their growth,” says Arthur Wade Anderson, CEO of Forge Academy.

Selected participants will take part in a three-minute pitch challenge followed by a fireside Q&A with the judging panel.

The event will focus on shedding light on SMMEs and tech startups that are addressing social issues such as skills training, connectivity, transport, municipal services and employment.

In addition to presenting at the Digital Street Festival, the winners will receive digital marketing consultations, purchase order funding and invaluable opportunities to network with investors, as well as coaching and incubation sessions hosted at Forge Academy.

Muzi Makhaye, Executive Chairperson of the ICT SMME Chamber, comments:
“The ever-increasing rate of unemployment in South Africa, particularly amongst the youth has long been one of the most pressing socio-economic problems and should represent a dire warning to us all. We can ignore this warning at our own peril. More so, some young work-seekers are not sufficiently educated and do not have the skill sets that employers and the marketplace demand. Therefore, if entrepreneurs are encouraged and supported, like with the SMME Showcase opportunity, each tech startup can then be positioned to become successful and resolve the joblessness problem for a number of young people,”

Complete this application form to enter your business into the 2021 SMME Showcase.

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Featured image: Felipe Furtado via Unsplash