Three startups from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa have been named as finalists for the third edition of the US$1 million Chivas Regal The Venture competition.
The Venture is a global competition aimed at identifying the world’s most promising social entrepreneurs. Two African startups have made headlines in the past with Kenya’s WeFarm scooping cash prize last year and South Africa’s Lumkani winning in 2015.
Over 6,000 applications were received for this year’s competition, with three African companies among the 30 chosen finalists. To be at the competition is in itself a major achievement for any company.
This year will see Kenya’s Sanivation, which installs container-based toilets that use waste as a resource, Nigeria’s RecyclePoints, which rewards customers for recycling waste, and South Africa’s iDrop Water, which purifies and dispenses water battling it out for the top honors.
The 30 finalists will now attend a five-day Accelerator Week program where they will take part in practical training and meet professional innovators and experts, while a public vote will take place in May. This vote will determine how an initial US$250,000 is split among the companies.
The final event on July 13 in Los Angeles will see the remaining US$750,000 awarded to the overall winner.
We’d like to see an African startup scoop the award and we are vouching guys to vote vote vote when the time comes.
Chivas Regal global brand director,Richard Black said “We were blown away by the calibre of entries for this year’s Chivas Venture competition. The businesses are a great example of the ingenuity and passion of entrepreneurs across the world who are committed to creating a better world for generations to come. “
