Back in July 2015,
during the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, United States
President, Mr. Barrack Obama, promised the establishment of entrepreneurial
centres to empower women in the society. This was a topic that he was really
keen on during the summit and is quoted saying:
“Women are powerhouse entrepreneurs. The research shows
that when women entrepreneurs succeed, they drive economic growth and invest
more back into their families and communities”
His message was an
announcement of the new WECREATE Centres
(Women Entrepreneurial Center of Resources, Education, Access, and Training for
Economic Empowerment), a physical entrepreneurial community center that can be
replicated in any community. This project, the first of StartUp Cup’s major
endeavours on the African continent, is a public-private partnership between
the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs (EB) and
StartUp Cup. Kenya is the second one to be opened in Africa. The other centre
is at Zambia and another to be opened in Mali in the next coming months. A
couple of others have been set up in Pakistan and Cambodia. Over the course of
time, more centres will be opened up throughout the African continent.
In due regards to the
need to promote entrepreneurship and businesses in order to create a sustained
continent, many organisations are making commendable efforts, but StartUp Cup
hopes to achieve even more to ensure that each individual is empowered to
create jobs and provide sustained living through the Africa StartUp Cup,
commented Sean Griffin, CEO Founder of
StartUp Cup. StartUp Cup’s Africa regional presence is poised to ensure this,
as well as create an open environment for entrepreneurs to not only strive
within the continent but to also have a great impact on the lives of others.
The Africa StartUp
Cup is another great effort by StartUp Cup and the U.S. Department of State to
bridge this gap of educating and providing important tools to entrepreneurs in
Africa and the world at large. “In the wake of the rising inflation, high costs
of doing business, shortage of funding opportunities, among other challenges
that entrepreneurs face in modern times, it is only right that we lead
entrepreneurs to overcome such challenges” said Emmanuel Nyame, President &
Regional Director for Africa StartUp Cup.
The Africa StartUp
Cup summit is an extraordinary event designed to showcase and celebrate
entrepreneurs and is expected to host over five hundred (500) delegates from
every conceivable industry, and in the process shine a global light on the
power of Africa’s entrepreneurs and startups to improve lives. The event, which
takes place on April 29, includes a line-up of key experts with the know-how of
entrepreneurship development in Africa. In addition to the summit on Africa’s
progress in business, there would also be pitches from selected winners from
across Africa, as well as a great deal of networking with investors, business
leaders, governments, and the elite in Africa’s growth agenda.
Some of the confirmed speakers for the
summit include Sean Griffin, CEO & Founder of StartUp
Cup World (Washington DC) , Diana Ofwona, West
& Central Africa Regional Director
of UN
Women, Neal Hansch, Managing Director of MEST (Ghana) , Albert Biga, CEO of Zooba
Shop (Ghana) , Neeraj Gala, Product &
Innovations Director of Bharti Airtel Africa (Kenya Head Quarters) , Ethel Cofie, Founder
& CEO of Women
in Tech Africa (Ghana) , Eric Kinoti, CEO of Shade
Systems EA (Kenya and Eastern Africa), Lukonga
Lindunda, CEO of BongoHive (Zambia), Vuyisa Qabaka, CEO of Entrepreneur
Traction (South Africa), Zineb Rharrasse, Founder
of StartUp
Maroc (Morocco), Ahmed Maawy, Founder of Swahilibox(Kenya).
The summit is open to the public - To
acquire your pass for this summit, either to participate or exhibit your
products to a wider audience kindly visit the Africa
StartUp Cup Page. The program also includes a VIP Cocktail with investors,
governments, and selected dignitaries, to help boost networking and promote
more conversations about Africa’s next level in entrepreneurship.
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