A total of 22 startups that focus on smart cities innovations showcased their achievements and investment readiness on the 20th of June 2022 during a virtual Demo Day. The startups had successfully completed the Smart Cities Innovation Programme (SCIP) – a nine-months-long accelerator programme supported by the German and Rwandan governments.
Green mobility in African capitals, solar-powered cooling technology, or micro-banking services for low-income households – these are just three examples of how African innovation can benefit the smart urban future and citizen of the continent. The startups that participated in SCIP have been pushing such innovations for a greener and more equitable future in African cities.
As part of the programme, smart cities startups participated in online and offline training and exchanges – meeting physically for a week-long bootcamp in Kigali, a pilot city for smart innovation – and received continuous in-depth coaching and mentoring to further grow their business and polish up their products and services. They collaborated with key partner from the public and private sector, including big names such as Amazon Web Services, Siemens, Volkswagen, University of Rwanda and many more. Now, after completing the programme, they showcased their achievements and investment readiness.
During the Demo Day of SCIP, investors, corporates, entrepreneurship support organisations and fellow startups got an opportunity to meet and greet with the founders that participated in the programme. The audience included, beyond core partners, big names such as ATOS, DB Schenker, Anza Capital, Angaza Capital, BiD, Viktoria Ventures, VBAN Angel Network, East Africa Investments, Goodwell Investments, Bestseller Foundation and Wellspring Foundation. The over 100 attendees were welcomed by Permanent Secretary of the Rwandan Ministry of ICT and Innovation, Yves Iradukunda, whose organisation has been supporting SCIP from the start, welcoming startups from across the continent to Rwanda. Afterwards, the five most investment-ready startups (KaCyber, Koolboks, Instadriver, Cladfy, Naa Sika) pitched their products and services, while the remaining startups presented their innovative business models and preparedness for market scale.
The Smart Cities Innovation Programme was an accelerator programme implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) which we implemented together with the Special Initiative on Training and Job Creation – known under the brand Invest for Jobs.
