Tech By Her is a tech accelerator initiative focused on supporting African female founders to become globally competitive and sustainable brands.
Launched in Accra recently, Tech By Her is powered by MEST with support from the Tech Entrepreneurship Initiative, ‘Make-IT in Africa’, (implemented by Deutsche für Gesellschaft Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
About the Program:
Being a successful tech entrepreneur in Africa can be an incredibly challenging and demanding feat for anyone.
Female tech entrepreneurs are even more disadvantaged, due to the societal pressures and demands on African women, compounded with less access to networks than men have and the incorrect assumption that women are not skilled in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).
The Tech By Her Accelerator will address the unique challenges of the female tech entrepreneur.
It is a 3-month industry-agnostic program for ten (10) female founders of early-stage tech companies in Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria.
The program aims at fueling growth among female-led businesses by recognizing and maximizing the unique strengths of the female entrepreneur and equipping them with the needed knowledge, tools, and resources to scale and sustain their businesses in a competitive environment.
Eligibility
Ten (10) of the best and most impactful female entrepreneurs in Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya will be selected for the Tech by Her Accelerator. Outside of drive, ambition, and a genuine interest in the growth of your business, you should also:
1.) Be a founder/co-founder of your organisation, female and available to participate fully in all aspects of the program.
2.) Be an early-stage startup and have achieved commercialisation and monetisation phase.
3.) Be technology-based, or have technology as the core enabler of the business.
4.) Have begun operations at least one (1) year before applying for this program and have a live product or service on the market.
5.) Be an African national or resident and have registered the business in one of the three operational countries (Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya).
6.) Have evidence of revenue and a clearly demonstrated potential to scale.
7.) Be a business model with a social impact, i.e. with a solution to a problem as described in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (locally and/or globally)
8.) Be willing to organize at least one (1) community event in your operational country with support from the local MEST office.
9.) Be willing, as a founder, to be an ambassador of the program and of tech entrepreneurship, encouraging and motivating other females in the entrepreneurial space.
Benefits
1.) Holistic Coaching and Training
2.) Access to industry leaders and experts from across the continent
3.) Supportive Community of leading female entrepreneurs
4.) Invitation to the alumni network of successful female entrepreneurs
5.) An expansive network of tech experts
6.) 2 Intensive Boot Camps in Accra, Ghana, all expenses paid
7.) 3 months of virtual mentoring and coaching.
8.) Media publicity and visibility through our social media pages, websites and partner media.
Selection Dates
Applications Open: 17th Feb
Shortlisting: 14th-15th March
Selection Panel Sits: 16th March
Interviews: 17th-19th March
Announcement of Selected Candidates: 20th March
Applications close on 13th March. Click here apply.
