3 TECH STARTUPS EMERGE, WINNERS OF THE VODACOM DIGITAL ACCELERATOR, SEASON 2

Managing Director of Vodacom Tanzania PLC, Philip Besiimire (right) hands over an award to the first winner of the second season of the Vodacom Digital Accelerator to the Founder and CEO of BizyTech through their Kilimo Bando product, Ms. Isabella Fernandes (left). The winners were announced from among 12 tech startups that participated and pitched the demo of their services to win over Tsh. 200 million to support and empower their early-stage growth. Witnessing the moment on the right and left are judges who went through the pitch presentations to come up with the three winners in an event that took place at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dar es Salaam over the weekend.

Managing Director of Vodacom Tanzania PLC, Philip Besiimire (fourth right) in a group photo with the three tech-startup winners and judges of the second season of the Vodacom Digital Accelerator whereby BizyTech through their Kilimo Bando product, Smart Darasa, and Twenzao were announced, winners. The winners were announced from among 12 tech startups that participated and pitched the demo of their services to win over Tsh. 200 million to support and empower their early-stage growth in an event that took place at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dar es Salaam over the weekend.

Managing Director of Vodacom Tanzania PLC, Philip Besiimire (with the microphone) speaks to the participants and guests (not in the photo) after announcing the three tech-startup winners of the second season of the Vodacom Digital Accelerator whereby BizyTech through their Kilimo Bando product, Smart Darasa, and Twenzao were announced, winners. The winners were announced from among 12 tech startups that participated and pitched the demo of their services to win over Tsh. 200 million to support and empower their early-stage growth in an event that took place at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dar es Salaam over the weekend.

Dar es Salaam - March 3, 2023; Three tech startups have emerged as the top winners of the Vodacom Digital Accelerator season 2. The winning start-ups were selected after a rigorous pitching event before expert judges and a public voting process. The 3 will be awarded over 200+ Million TZS of value-based support and potential of follow-on investments.

Speaking at the Demo Day event, Dr. Amos Nungu the Director General of the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) commended Vodacom Tanzania PLC for their efforts in supporting early-stage and growth-stage technology startups with disruptive products and services that have the potential to be brought into the market and scale into profitable, revenue-generating businesses.

“This is a notable initiative to grow Tanzanian tech startups across the country, we all know how advancements in science and technology have impacted communities socially and economically around the world. COSTECH acknowledges these efforts, and our doors are open for support. I would like to urge other companies and individuals who are passionate about technology to support such initiatives as Vodacom Digital Accelerator or establish others like this one. The objective is to have as many as we can so that we can reach more tech startups across the country, our societies are still facing many challenges that require technological solutions,” said Dr. Nungu

The Vodacom Digital Accelerator program being sponsored by Vodacom Tanzania Plc and run by SmartLab, is the only corporate accelerator in the Tanzania innovation ecosystem and its Curriculum is tailor-made for startups' growth. Now in its 2nd season, the accelerator has received over 700 applications since its launch in 2019 with 28 startups being part of the program and receiving assistance in developing their marketing strategies, technical aspects, and connections with potential investors and partners. In this second cohort, 12 start-ups were selected from different sectors including fintech, health, e-commerce, education, agriculture, and cybersecurity industries.

Addressing the participants and guests after handing over the prize to the winners of the second season of the Vodacom Digital Accelerator, Managing Director of Vodacom Tanzania PLC, Philip Besiimire said was proud to see the program has encouraged the participants to come up with tech-solutions to tackle challenges facing agriculture, education, and transport sectors in the society.

“I am proud to see most of the tech-startups founders are young and energetic with lots of innovative ideas which could benefit a great deal the Tanzanian society in the future. But the highlight of this program is to see a woman top the overall winner something that could challenge the status quo. You have witnessed that most of the founders and CEOs of most of the 12 tech startups are men, and so is their managerial structure. It is time to challenge this by either coming up with a special cohort that will feature women only or advocating for diversity in top managerial positions. Also, we need to have inclusivity in a sense that all groups of people have a fair shot in such platforms as people with disability,” concluded Mr. Besiimire.

“I congratulate BizyTech through their Kilimo Bando product, Smart Darasa, and Twenzao for emerging the winners today and all the other startups who have been part of the VDA season 2. The judges had a hard time selecting a winner because you all had great business ideas. It is inspiring to see young people turn technology-driven solutions into revenue-generating businesses. I hope these winners will encourage more tech startups to participate in our upcoming programs and come up with innovative ideas that will solve the challenges facing our communities” said Director of Digital Services, Vodacom Tanzania PLC, Nguvu Kamando.

Nguvu called on other corporates to ideate and support such initiatives since there was the need to bring in more start-ups that need acceleration. “We received hundreds of applicants but could only accommodate a few. Maybe the government can look into providingincentives to corporates that support such initiatives to increase the appetite and partner with us to support more start-ups” he concluded.

On his/her part one of the founders who emerged among the three winners Founder and CEO of BizyTech through their Kilimo Bando product Ms. Isabella Fernandes said, “it was quite an experience to participate and get an opportunity to present a pitch for our company with other innovative tech startups. Apart from being announced as an overall winner, I am highly convinced that Tanzania has reached a stage where we can compete in bigger tech platforms. These companies presented today all deserve a chance to see they operate and benefit our communities. I believe they will take advantage of the connections initiated by organizers to ensure their dreams become a reality.”

The second season of the Vodacom Digital Accelerator is a program championed by Vodacom Tanzania PLC in partnership with Smart Lab. This program was created to support and empower early-stage post-revenue startups in Tanzania and provide them with guidance and support from application and mentorship training to validation and growth.

The three winners will be supported and empowered in the validation phase of the program, where they will receive equity-free funding, follow-on investment, access to M-PESA for business services, access to industry experts, access to training and tools, regulatory and compliance support, technology support, and go-to-market support for six months.

The tech startups that were in the run for the final prize include Shule Yetu Innovations, Smart Darasa, LangoAcademy, and Vijana Tech, under Edutech. Hack it Consultancy representing the cyber security space. Seto, Twenzao, Get Value, and Spidi Africa under the e-Commerce banner. Others are Medpack representing Health tech, and finally, Bizy Tech and Bizzy Pay on the Fintech side.

About Vodacom Tanzania:

Vodacom Tanzania Plc is the country’s leading mobile operator and mobile financial services provider. We provide a wide range of communication services for consumers and enterprises – including voice, data and messaging, video, cloud and hosting, mobile solutions, and financial services – to over 17 million customers. Vodacom Tanzania Plc and its subsidiary companies are part of the Vodacom Group registered in South Africa, which is in turn owned by Vodacom Group Plc of the United Kingdom. It has been registered on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) with registration number ISIN: TZ1886102715 and Stock name: VODA.

For further information please visit our website: www.vodacom.co.tz