Deadline: 31-Jul-23
Applications are now open for the AYuTe Africa Challenge Nigeria, a enterprise development program initiated by Heifer International and implemented by Wennovation Hub to identify, nurture, and support innovative, relevant and technology-driven agric-centric enterprises to grow, scale and thrive.
Candidates should be early-stage or growth-stage youth-led agritech businesses/companies with innovative solutions impacting smallholder farmers at scale.
What program benefits do enterprises receive through the program?
- Challenge applicants can expect to receive the following benefits:
- Coaching and mentorship, personalized to unpack training into business implementation for the top-5 finalists
- Technical assistance at the various levels of the challenge to strengthen the MVP and the business and financial model of the start-up
- Links to financial and investment opportunities
- Networking opportunities to showcase your solution and meet with investors and other stakeholders
- Cash prize awards of a total of $20,000 for the top three winners:
- Winner: $10,000
- First Runner-Up: $6,000
- Second Runner-Up: $4,000
How long will the challenge run?
- The challenge will run for three months, during which three agritech innovators to be awarded the top prizes (winner, first runner-up, second runner-up).
Eligibility Criteria
- Applicants must:
- Be aged 18-35 by the closing day of submission to the AYuTe Nigeria challenge
- Be a youth with innovative ideas focusing on the agriculture sector
- Have ideas that are proven to solve social problems and are implementable, technically feasible, economically sound (affordable), and environmentally smart (eco-friendly)
- Hold Nigerian nationality with official ID (national identity card, international passport, or permanent voters’ card)
- Produce financial statements for the venture
- Be the founder or co-founder of the enterprise represented in the competition and play an active role in its operations and leadership
- Have no criminal record related to corruption, tax evasion, financial impropriety, felony or other offences
- Have the potential for partnership and collaboration with other actors/stakeholders
- The company must have:
- Been registered/incorporated with the relevant government agencies in Nigeria
- The ability to scale and impact a large number of smallholder farmers, including recorded evidence of demonstrated impact on smallholder farmers’ revenue and/or operations
- The potential for job creation and poverty reduction
- Alignment with relevant national policies and international treaties (e.g., SDGs)
- An identifiable technological innovation that addresses the following problems for smallholder farmers:
- Smallholder farmer productivity
- Smallholder farmer income
- Labour intensiveness of operations
- Resilience
- Access to information
- Strong competitive advantage.
For more information, visit AYuTe Africa Challenge.