Although agripreneurs feed the world, business support and funding for agriculture are often quite difficult to access, more so for women entrepreneurs. The United Nations has said that we need to double food production by 2050 to meet the growing demand for food.
To support Africa’s food warriors working towards the transformation of the continent’s food system, Generation Africa, is inviting young agripreneurs from across Africa to apply for the 2022 GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition. The organization whose co-founders include but are not limited to the African Development Bank Group, Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, Bayer and Yara International, is on the lookout for social and business led-ventures, led by dynamic young people innovating across the entire agricultural value chain.
Two persons – one male and one female with scalable ideas will be walking away with a grand prize of $50,000 that is expected to be put towards the launch, growth, or scale-up of their business ventures. Other benefits for agribusinesses include an opportunity to attend the 2022 annual African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) at Kigali, Rwanda, access to a network of investors via the GoGettaz community page, and access to education as well as mentorship opportunities.
GoGettaz alumni often go on to win significant recognition and support for their work. For example, Chichi Eriobu of Phronesis Foods, a food processing and packaging company that makes Nigeria’s indigenous foods available to global consumers was one of the winners of the maiden edition of the Narrative Changers African Food Fellowship.
Judges will be focusing on the market potential and traction of the business, and innovative ideas with social and environmental impact in selecting a winner. Attention will also be given to the company’s founder and team and most importantly, the business model.
Eligibility Criteria
- The entrepreneur is expected to be aged 35 or below on the date of entry submission.
- The entrepreneur should be a legally recognized adult in their country of nationality.
- Applicants are expected to be nationals of a member country of the African Union.
- All applicants should be active founders/co-founders of the business they are representing.
- Entrepreneurs are expected to have no criminal record relating to tax evasion, corruption or other applicable offences.
The Organization
- Only legally registered ventures from a member country of the African Union are eligible to apply.
- The venture should have commenced registration before 1 July 2022.
- The headquarter of the venture should be situated in any member country of the African Union.
- Financial sustainability of the business either as a for-profit or a non-profit entity, generating some revenue and aiming not to be dependent on donor funding is expected.
Eligible agri-food sectors include
- Agri-food research & development
- Primary food production (farming)
- Crop nutrition
- Irrigation
- Mechanisation, automation or robotics, including drones
- Crop protection
- Hydroponics or urban farming
- Transport, distribution, storage or logistics
- Food processing
- Packaging or marketing
- Food retail or service
- Waste management or recycling
- Digital or technology solutions/services to the agri-food sector
- Innovative finance solutions/services to the agri-food sector
- Renewable energy or environmental solutions/services to the agri-food sector
Program Timeline
Application deadline: June 6, 2022
Selection of 12 finalists via email and WhatsApp: July 2022
Interested founders should visit Generation Africa to apply.
