Three local startups will represent Zimbabwe at the Regional Grand Finale of the Southern Africa Start-up Awards 2018 that are going to be held in South Africa later this month. Southern Africa Start-up Awards is part of a global initiative that aims to improve the visibility of local start-ups to international investors/venture capitalists.
Wait. What’s Southern Africa Start-up Awards?
Southern Africa Start-up Awards is part of the Global Start-up Awards, providing an annual spotlight to those who dare to dream big and shape the way our future will look. Bringing together amazing ideas and best talents from 7 regions, 50+ countries across the globe to celebrate entrepreneurial spirit and start-ups. The competition process for finding the winners involves all aspects of a start-up ecosystem by using a network of local ambassadors, country partners, national jury members, international jury members from entire globe as well as key advisors counting everyone from top investors, political stakeholders, founders, and community builders.
The start-ups representing Zimbabwe
The three Zimbabwean start-ups that will feature at the awards are Vote Africa, Shiri, and myRunner. We will introduce to you these start-ups below. Before these start-ups were bestowed the honor to represent Zimbabwe at Regional Grand Finale, they competed with other start-ups at National level and thus they emerged as the winners. At National level, Vote Africa was voted Start-up of the Year, Best EduTech Start-up and Best Social Impact Start-up. Shiri was voted Best FoodTech/AgriTech Start-up and myRunner was also voted Best Social Impact Start-up along with Vote Africa at National level.
More about the start-ups
Vote Africa
Vote Africa is a start-up that has a mobile application which educates people (voters) on the ins and outs of the electoral process. The app provides voters with “voter guides, polling station locations, and details of party representatives and manifestos”. The app comes equipped with a chatbot that helps voters to answer any question for you in Realtime.
Shiri
Shiri is a start-up that uses “software and mobile applications as agricultural service solutions for farmers while creating a vibrant ecosystem of agricultural alliances”. Shiri provides tech solutions that provide Africans with agriculture information to enhance and manage food production, thus minimizing the likelihood of food shortages in the continent.
myRunner
myRunner makes it easier for you to make your online bookings and be able to track where the bus you want to board is. Not to mention the ability to get to know the safety of some buses as they will be rated through myRunner.
More representing Zim
Besides the above-mentioned start-ups, Zimbabwe will also be represented by Impact Hub Harare which was voted Best Start-up Ecosystem Initiative and Tatenda Ndambakuwa who was voted Female Role Model of the year, both at the national level.
When will the awards be held?
The awards will be held on the 22nd of November 2018
