West Africa tech startups take the stage at AfricArena 2021

AfricArena, in partnership with Délégation Générale à l’Entreprenariat Rapide des Femmes et des Jeunes, Senegal Government ( DER/FJ) and ITC United Nations #FastTrackTech Africa project has announced that the West Africa Summit will take place in Dakar, Senegal from 22 to 23 June 2021. 

AfricArena to host summit in Senegal

Papa Amadou Sarr, General Delegate of DER/fj comments on the event being held in Senegal this year. 

“The AfricArena Summit is the place to be for a deep dive into African technology. For this West African regional edition, Senegal has the honor of being the host country thanks to the support of the DER/fj to this internationally recognized initiative. A way to allow West African startups, VCs, ESOs, and other major actors of our technology and innovation scene to come together, share experiences and opportunities, co-create, stimulate our digital champions and strengthen our ecosystem global exposure.” 

The two-day conference will provide 20 tech startups from the region the opportunity to pitch their business model and participate in keynotes and panel discussions from experts in the fields of business, tech, and investment in Africa. 

West Africa Events

The day before the two-day Summit, pitching startups will also be invited to take part in a day-long bootcamp facilitated by a local incubator, Impact Hub Dakar. 

Over the two days, the Summit expects just over 20 startups to showcase their innovative solutions. The startups that will be pitching will mostly be pre-selected through a series of virtual pitch sessions that will take place from 25 May to 10 June 2021.

Parallel to the Founders Bootcamp will be the much anticipated, invite-only West Africa Investor Unconference – where Africa-focused startup investors and VCs will take part in discussions and workshops centred around co-investing and how to ease the process of investing in tech startups on the continent. Between 20 to 30 investors are expected to attend. 

Christophe Viarnaud, Founder of AfricArena comments on how the event aims to support West African startups. 

“West Africa is a solid, growing ecosystem – with incredibly innovative tech startups and an increasingly active investor community. This three-day programme aims to bring together the key ecosystem stakeholders and promote collaboration that will take the region and the continent forward.” 

How to apply

Startups that wish to register for the event can apply online. 

A series of regional events

This year, AfricArena will organise four hybrid events across four regions in Africa, all building up to the annual AfricArena Summit in Cape Town at the end of the year. 

The regional events will bring together startups, investors, and corporations operating in the region with over 20 startups from around West Africa being selected to pitch at the Dakar event. 

While bringing invaluable awareness and networking opportunities to the region’s ecosystem, the events will also act as a semi-final pitch session, used to select startups to pitch at the Grand Summit in Cape Town in December 2021. 

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Featured image: Supplied