OceanHub Africa welcomes 8 start-ups driving change

OceanHub Africa (OHA), the renowned non-profit ocean-impact catalyst, has revealed the selection of its fourth cohort consisting of eight promising ocean-minded start-ups. The chosen ventures were meticulously picked from a pool of 188 applications originating from 19 different countries across Africa.

This new cohort encompasses a diverse range of innovative solutions aimed at addressing pressing ocean-related challenges. OHA takes pride in announcing that a substantial number of start-ups in this cohort are led and owned by women, underlining the organisation’s commitment to fostering gender diversity and inclusion in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The selected start-ups for OHA’s fourth cohort are poised to bring about transformative change in various areas related to ocean conservation and sustainability:

• Akili (South Africa): Akili takes on the challenge of plastic and e-waste by repurposing components from broken laptops and transforming PET bottles into recycled 3D filament (rPET) to create entry-level computers, promoting sustainability and digital access.
• D-Olivette (Nigeria): D-Olivette pioneers the conversion of household waste into clean energy, organic fertilizer, and reusable water with their innovative Digesters and accessories, contributing to waste management and renewable energy solutions.
• Healthy Seaweed Company (Tanzania): This startup produces high-quality seaweed-based food products, with the dual aim of increasing local consumption and creating markets for female seaweed farmers, empowering women in coastal communities.
• Kuza Freezer (Kenya): Kuza Freezer offers innovative and low-cost solar-powered freezers to small-scale businesses in the fish value and supply chains, reducing post-harvest losses and increasing daily income sustainably.
• Reef Pulse (Réunion): Reef Pulse focuses on developing decision-support solutions for coral reef conservation stakeholders through non-intrusive coral reef monitoring using hydrophones, contributing to the preservation of fragile marine ecosystems.
• ReNile (Egypt): ReNile provides end-to-end solutions for smart farming, with a particular focus on water, air, and soil quality management, leveraging online application models for farming to enhance agricultural sustainability.
• Sealife Organics Ltd (Mauritius): Sealife Organics utilises seaweed and green waste to create affordable and organic agricultural products, promoting eco-friendly and sustainable agricultural practices.
• Tunisa Baits (Tunisia): Tunisa Baits introduces marine worms as an alternative and sustainable source of protein feed for aquaculture industries, reducing the ecological impact of traditional feed sources.

Over the next eight months, the selected start-ups will receive comprehensive support from OHA’s accelerator team, gaining access to a wide range of networks, services, and resources tailored to their specific needs. This support aims to bolster their growth and impact potential, providing them with the necessary tools to create lasting change in ocean-related industries.

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