Kinaya Ventures, an open innovation platform based in Abidjan and Dakar, has been developing acceleration programs for African startups since 2018. Co-founded by Laïssa Mouen and Eva Sow Ebion, Kinaya Ventures works alongside Facebook on the "Boost my Facebook" program. This program aims to support the digital transformation of 10,000 SMEs in six countries and 16 cities in French-speaking Africa.
A few days ago, Kinaya Ventures officially launched a new program called Spring Fellowship, in partnership with ELLE.ci and the Nestlé group. Aimed at startups and students, this program will focus on improving entrepreneurs' skills and connecting promising African startups with large corporations and investors. Thanks to the partnership with the Nestlé group, four innovation challenges will be organized.
Elle Côte d'Ivoire is also involved. Through this program, the digital media outlet plans to collaborate with startups specializing in MarTech and AdTech to create a specialized solution that improves customer relationship management and content sharing.
A pan-African tour has been organized to identify young startups specializing in AgTech, FoodTech, AdTech, MarTech, and RetailTech that are capable of meeting the challenges of innovation in Africa. Launched in Accra in early June, the tour will visit six other African cities, including Lagos, Nairobi, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Abidjan, and finally Dakar. The program will begin at the end of August 2019 in Côte d'Ivoire.