After a week-long boot camp, the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) released the names of 10 shortlisted innovators for a $220,000 (330 million) prize on Demo Day.
The shortlisted innovators, comprising startups, pitched their solutions before an expert panel of business and tech leaders.
The NSIA confirmed the selection in a statement issued on Wednesday, June 3, 2024, in Abuja. The statement stated that the selected startups will proceed to the Demo Day of NPI 2.0.
The top 10 startups come from several sectors of the Nigerian economy and emerged from evaluations based on critical criteria such as scalability, product, financial projection, unique value proposition, competitor analysis, and target market size.
The shortlisted firms span across health-tech and payment solutions companies.
They include Yalo Technologies, BetaLife Health, Magic, Carpet Studio, MaterialsPro, Doctorconnect, PaveHQ, VPay Africa, TribalPay, Kunda Kids and Sycamore.
The startups will compete for $220,000 in prize money on Demo Day and participate in five weeks of all-expense-paid training at Draper University in Silicon Valley, USA.
According to reports, Aminu Umar-Sadiq, the NSIAâs MD and chief executive officer, expressed pleasure at the programme’s growing acceptance.
Leadership reports say that he said the NSIA recognizes technology’s important role in propelling positive socio-economic outcomes.
TimesNow.com.ng previously reported that the agency stated that the participating businesses would be exposed to interactive training sessions, networking opportunities with innovators, and tailored workshops during the boot camp.
This comes after the federal government said employment opportunities were available for its 3 Million Technical Talents (3MTT) program graduates.Â
The programme coordinators announced the opportunities in a post shared on X, formerly Twitter.Â
In the post, the coordinators encouraged fellows to begin applying for positions.
TimesNow.com.ng previously reported that Bosun Tijani, the Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, has revealed that over one million applications have been received for its Three Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme.
The minister announced the development via his post on X (formerly Twitter) account on Monday, November 6, 2023.
According to Tijani, the next step for the applicants would be announced in the next 12 hours.
Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at TimesNow.com.ng
Source: TimesNow.com.ng
