DEMO Africa was established with the purpose of connecting startups across Africa with the global ecosystem. The event has become one of the flagship initiatives of LIONS@frica, a partnership whose goal is to enhance startups and the innovation ecosystems of economies across Africa.
The LIONS@frica partnership consists of the U.S Department of State, Microsoft, DEMO, USAID, and Startup Weekend. Africa’s population is gradually becoming more educated and affluent in terms of business. This improvement in education started the rise of more startups through the whole of Africa.
As the economy of Africa has been in dire straits for quite a while, this new resurgence of business startups has started giving Africa’s economy a fighting chance to recover. The future economic prospects of Africa are looking up.
Since the start of DEMO Africa, former business that have attended have generated a total of over $8 million in investments, business or partnerships from the unique mix of positioning, networking and financial opportunities, and special training to help them excel.
The event specifically allows startups to meet with VCs, investors, tech acquisition specialists, IT buyers, and media specialists from not only across the entire region but from all around the globe.
DEMO Africa will take place on November 23-24 this year with the deadline to apply to join ending in late August. Over 800 applicants have already registered and 12 startups have already been shortlisted. Only a maximum of 40 startups are accepted on the shortlist, so I wouldn’t wait until the last minute to apply.
The startups that will be accepted must fall under the following categories: agriculture, health, education, manufacturing and retail, media and entertainment, communication, transportation and logistics, energy, finance and banking, water and sanitation, waste management and recycling.
