Hello, community.

This is #EiAweekendreading 24.

While preparing EiA-SDG #3, we came across this great session on frugal innovation.

For our readers in Portuguese-speaking countries, check GEM Angola 2020/2021.

Here’s an article by Judith Mwaya on the potentials of an instant pan-African payment infrastructure.

Issue #7 of the EiA Innovation Insights newsletter was launched.

Le Temps wrote about how the world is opening up for African cultures.

Read about the implementation of the SDG in EU regions and the 2022 SDG progress report.

All for now. Good weekend with good readings 🙂

Call for applications:
Are you an exceptional founder with a knack for solving problems for the African market? Our Acceleration supports your venture to access investment and get ready to scale to new markets. Learn more about the programme and the criteria at >> techbridgeinvest.com.

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Hello, community.

Close to 100 people registered for the 2^nd EiA SDG session. Not all of you could make it, so we have decided to make the session available as a podcast.

Some highlights:

“Knowing how to put all the knowledge together […] what do you prioritise, what do you deprioritise, that process is very difficult and lengthy. […] I think that’s a skill that is built over time and that’s why you find, especially in startup environments, people who have own this skill” - Elsie Onsongo.

“It starts very closely to what they are already doing and then add small things together with them to see if we can make it a little bit more entrepreneurial – and make sure that it fits what they are already doing” - Lindsey Schwidder.

“The main reason why we chose design thinking is because it allows room for error and it allows room to going back to the drawing board […] and not being afraid to change halfway through. We are very flexible in the way we move forward” - Ana Djú.

Are you an African startup looking to make a positive impact in the blue economy? 🌊

Join the BlueInvest Africa event in the Republic of Seychelles on September 7 to 8, 2022.

Organized by the European Union with the government of the Republic of Seychelles, the event will bring together the most innovative African businesses contributing to the development of the blue economy on the continent.

👉 This is a great opportunity to connect and network with over 150 on-site participants such as decision-makers and other investors alongside hundreds of remote attendees from Africa and Europe to grow your community.

Key actors of the blue economy will participate, such as the member of the European Commission in charge of Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, and H.E Wavel Ramkalawan - President of the Republic of Seychelles.

Learn more and register here: https://blueinvest-africa-2022.b2match.io/

In partnership with Bond’innov, the Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) of Toyota Tsusho & CFAO Group have launched the 2022 Digital Transformation Challenge.

The most promising startups will have the opportunity to meet the group's investment teams for tickets starting at €100K. They will also be able to participate in a major entrepreneurial event by the end of August 2022, as part of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD).

👉⚕️ African startups in the health sector, apply now to the 2022 Digital Transformation Challenge and get direct access to the Corporate Venture Capital of CFAO Group in Healthcare - Health54.

📢 Apply before June 15th 2022, 23:59 GMT at this link : https://challenge-health54.com

🚀 Don’t miss out on the opportunity to take part in a special event dedicated to African innovation.

In partnership with Bond’innov, the Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) of Toyota Tsusho & CFAO Group have launched the 2022 Digital Transformation Challenge.

The most promising startups will have the opportunity to meet the group's investment teams for tickets starting at €100K. They will also be able to participate in a major entrepreneurial event by the end of August 2022, as part of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD).

👉🚘 African startups in the mobility sector, apply now to the 2022 Digital Transformation Challenge and get direct access to the well established Toyota Tsusho & CFAO group’s CVC - Mobility54.

📢 Apply before June 15th 2022, 23:59 GMT at this link : https://challenge-mobility54.com

🚀 Don’t miss out on the opportunity to take part in a special event dedicated to African innovation.

Hello, community.

This is #EiAweekendreading 23.

Check The Republic's interview with investment banker, technologist and author Lucy Quist: "Most nations developed by capitalizing on their human resources. Our people are our greatest asset. We must not allow ourselves to be convinced otherwise. It is the investment in these people with the opportunities for them to realize their potential that will lead to our collective prosperity".

Read the 6^th number of the EiA Innovation Insights newsletter.

For our Angolan readers, the GEM Angola 2020/2021 report was launched yesterday, in Luanda.

What is the cost to Africa of the global-north-dominated science and research ecosystem? This is an interesting read.

Also, check the speakers for the upcoming EiA Sustainable Development Goals session.

All for now. Good weekend with good readings 🙂

The second session of the EiA series of conferences on entrepreneurship and innovation to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals is coming up.

Block it in your calendar: June 28, 14:00 - 15:00 GMT. 

The topic for the session is innovation and entrepreneurship driven by needs.

The speakers are: Elsie Onsong (International Centre for Frugal Innovation), Ana Dju (UNDP Guinea-Bissau Accelerator Lab) and Lindsey Schwidder (TUDelft).

Register for this session.

Hello, community 🙂

This is #EiAweekendreading 22. 

So, Elon Musk bought Twitter, which sparked not-so-new (and important) debates around capitalism and Big Tech, and one in particular that some Africans take to heart — how ‘connectivity’ and the whole ‘digital thing’ has replaced the 'West civilising mission’, i.e., a new reason for the scramble for Africa.

This is an oldie but quite critical article on the issue – a good read.

The EU also had a word on Musk’s intentions. 

Check the cities of #TheAfricaWeWant, in a report by the Rise Africa platform.

Here’s a piece on the Kenyans who are farming in forests. The results: incomes rise and deforestation falls.  

Good weekend with good readings.

Hello, community 🙂

Time for #EiAweekendreading suggestions. 

Here’s a good read for clean energy entrepreneurs:

Check Bloomberg’s story on why investors are piling into African startups. And remember to cherry-pick your investors. 🙂

If you watch the previous suggestion, don’t forget to read the BIG STORY shaking the African tech scene: Flutterwave, the African Unicorn built on quicksand 

Okay, good news now: look to West Africa for the future of green architecture. Yup, coming back to Francis Kéré because… Isn’t he doing amazing architecture with African identity and sustainable materials? A compelling reason to track his work. 

That's all for now, folks. Good weekend with good readings.

 BioElit un produit naturel à base de plantes, à dominance de graines de margousier plus connues sous le nom de « neem » en Afrique, constitue actuellement un espoir pour les producteurs de cacao en Côte d’Ivoire, confrontés à la maladie du swollen-shoot qui se manifeste par des gonflements au niveau des rameaux et des racines, provoquant une faible production.

James Adjovi, le concepteur de ce produit naturel explique sa création. « Le produit baptisé BioElit est issu d’extraits de plantes dominés par les graines de neem, sans ajout de produits de synthèse industriel ou chimique, avec les fonctions d’insecticide, de fongicide et de fertilisant, sans effet négatif sur le producteur ni sur le consommateur » assure-t-il.

https://youtu.be/BGxK9axLMYIhttps://www.scidev.net/afrique-sub-saharienne/news/un-produit-naturel-vient-bout-d-une-grave-maladie-du-cacaoyer-16112020/