Recent collaborations with accelerators and incubators to offer industry-based start-ups access to markets, technical skills, and funding too.
Microsoft has declared new initiatives aimed at stimulating the growth of 10,000 African start-ups and fast-track investment in Africa’s start-up ecosystem over the next five years. This will be achieved under the umbrella of their recently founded Africa Transformation Office (ATO).
Microsoft’s global Founders Hub which gives support to start-ups from ideas to exit will now be accessible to African start-ups through the ATO. The Founders Hub is a self-service hub that provides start-ups with a variety of resources, including access to mentors, skilling content, tools like Microsoft Azure and GitHub, and go-to-market and business backing.
The Founders Hub comprises chances for startups to sell to Microsoft’s corporate and enterprise customers as well. Microsoft will also fund startups in geo-expansion activities, where startups can upgrade by selling in other countries or regions.
Microsoft is also establishing fresh partnerships with accelerators and incubators in the whole of Africa, including Greenhouse, Grindstone, FlapMax, and Seedstars, to offer the industry-based start-ups with entry to markets, technical skills, and funding alternatives.
These agreements will provide African start-ups with access to skilling programs, access to markets, encompassing opportunities to co-sell with Microsoft, and admission to technology, with help from Microsoft, ’s engineering and product teams for co-innovation opportunities.
To ensure that start-ups upgrade using investment funding, Microsoft is creating industry alliances and partnerships with venture capital investors that will promote access to $500 million in potential funding for African start-ups. This funding will come from the network of venture capital investors, who will devote a portion of their financial aid to start-ups in the Microsoft network.
Microsoft has already created partnerships with many major venture capital investors, including Global Venture Capital, Banque Misr, and Get Funded Africa, to expand this network of venture capital investors in the coming five years. To boost financing and enable them to scale up and steer economic development.
Microsoft thinks the active African start-up market is in a better position to become a cornerstone of the continent’s digital economy, assisting local innovation through relevant solutions to societal challenges.
“Investments into Africa’s start-up ecosystem are growing at an exciting pace. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), there are more than 640 active tech hubs across Africa, accelerating innovation and creating employment, particularly among the youth,” says Wael Elkabbany, Managing Director, Microsoft Africa Transformation Office.
“However,” Elkabbany points out, “currently the African start-up market represents less than one percent of total investments worldwide. This needs to change.”
He discloses that Microsoft’s endeavor to dramatically up-scale its influence will be steered by an overarching program with three major focus areas.
“The Founders Hub allows Microsoft to engage with accelerators, incubators, and tech hubs across the continent. Our partnerships with key African accelerators provide crucial support to accelerate growth-stage startups with their business development and market expansion plans,” said Gerald Maithya, Start-Ups Lead, Microsoft Africa Transformation Office.
Microsoft will partner with B2B-focused start-ups, scaleups, “soonicorns” (businesses with the potential to become unicorns), unicorns over a range of leading African industries, and those focused on working with SMEs.
“We understand that each start-up is unique and exists beyond the limitations of a one-size-fits-all partnership model. Therefore Microsoft will tailor each partnership to the needs of individual start-ups, providing support and access – whether to technology, markets, and co-sell opportunities, funding, or digital skills – to enable them to grow and contribute to the wider economic growth of Africa,” said Maithya.
The main goal of these partnerships will be to give support in the following aspects:
Access to technology: Stretching from the condition of cloud credits and developer and productivity tools such as GitHub to entry to Microsoft’s common partner ecosystem, technical support, and enablement. This also entails contact with Microsoft’s an engineering and product teams for co-innovation.
Access to markets: Comprising the chance to co-sell with Microsoft from the SME Marketplace and the capacity to partner with Microsoft on expansion activities, jointly with access to relevant enterprise and government partners. Microsoft will enable start-ups to get to new levels through geographical expansion into new countries and co-selling opportunities.
Access to funds: Microsoft’s cooperations with venture capital investors will offer qualified start-ups access to funding.
Access to skilling enablement: Microsoft will provide an exceptional, self-contained, and high-quality killing package. From a single interface, startups will be admitted to multiple technical, workshops, self-paced training, instructor-led sessions, and virtual training.
The platform will additionally offer growth learning tracks strived at empowering startups to accomplish more. As part of the engagement norm to benefit as many startups as possible, Microsoft will also be eyeing partnering with the government startup programs, regional ecosystems of startups networks and associations, and accelerators.
Microsoft has confirmed new initiatives to stimulate the growth of 10,000 African start-ups and fast-track investment in Africa’s start-up ecosystem in the coming five years. This will be accomplished through the umbrella of their newly founded Africa Transformation Office (ATO).
To enable start-ups to rapidly scale using investment funding, Microsoft is establishing industry alliances and partnerships with venture capital investors that will facilitate access to $500 million in potential funding for African start-ups. This funding will come from a network of venture capital investors, who will dedicate a portion of their financial support to start-ups in the Microsoft network.
Microsoft has already established partnerships with several key venture capital investors, including Banque Misr, Global Venture Capital, and Get Funded Africa, and the intention is to grow this network of venture capital investors in the next five years to increase funding and enable them to scale up and drive economic growth.
Microsoft believes the vibrant African start-up market is well placed to become a cornerstone of the continent’s digital economy, supporting local innovation through relevant solutions to societal challenges.
“Investments into Africa’s start-up ecosystem are growing at an exciting pace. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), there are more than 640 active tech hubs across Africa, accelerating innovation and creating employment, particularly among the youth,” said Wael Elkabbany, Managing Director, Microsoft Africa Transformation Office.
“However,” Elkabbany points out, “currently the African start-up market represents less than one percent of total investments worldwide. This needs to change.”
He reveals that Microsoft’s endeavor to dramatically scale its impact will be driven by an overarching strategy withthree key focus areas.
The organization will be establishing partnerships with venture capital investors, primarily those with global reach and regional bases, who are interested in one or more regions within Africa.
“Our goal in establishing these partnerships with venture capital investors is to extend the network of potential partnerships between Microsoft, venture capital investors, and startups, thereby increasing the funding made available to eligible startups,” continued Maithya.
Elkabbany concludes, “There is huge potential for Africa to become a thriving hub of digital innovation on the global start-up landscape. Our ambition is to see an explosion of local inventions that will contribute positively, not just to Africa’s digital economy, but to global society.”
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