Top 30 startups selected for DEMO Africa 2015

By Miguel Heilbron

DEMO Africa will launch 30 of the most innovative start-ups in Africa and highlight some of the best new technology innovations from across the continent. The 30 finalists have gone through two rigorous screening processes with the final vetting and adjudication done by a pan-African panel of judges comprised of entrepreneurs, VCs and academia.

The 30 start-ups have been selected from over 600 applicants with four earning direct nominations during DEMO Africa pre-pitch events. The ventures are addressing opportunities in Agriculture, Health, Education, Manufacturing, Retail, Media & Entertainment, Communication, Transport and Logistics, Energy, Finance & Banking, Water & Sanitation, and Waste Management & Recycling. On September 24 & 25, these 30 entrepreneurs will present their plans to a global audience of investors, media, strategic buyers, C-level executives, and other entrepreneurs.

Last year’s giant, Nigeria, tops the list again with 8 representatives followed by Kenya with 6. South Africa is third with 3 representatives while Ghana, Egypt, Cameroon and Zimbabwe each have two. Uganda, Tanzania and new comer Ivory Coast will each be represented by 1 start-up. The presence of Ivory Coast on the list of giants is a strong signal that more African nations are warming up to the ability of the continent to craft her own solutions to various needs. The highest represented category on the 2015 list is Finance and Banking with 8 products. Other popular categories include Education, Transport and Logistics, Retail, Communication and Media and entertainment.

The team at DEMO Africa, and everyone part of the VC4Africa community, would like to congratulate the selected entrepreneurs for their achievement!

Here is an overview of the selected ventures. Click on the tiles to find out more.

	Abacus – helping investors make smarter, faster and more decisions by providing access to real time market data, news and analytics.	Joel Macharia	Kenya
	Airshop – unleashing the untapped potential of duty-free stores by enabling passengers to make special orders of high value products in advance.	Francis Yapobi	Ivory Coast
	BambaPOS – allowing retail merchants to access point of sale and inventory management automation with any android smart device.	Karogi Kamau	Kenya
	Bitsoko – an Android mobile wallet removing the cost of transferring money between two individuals and increasing access to payment services.	Daniel Bloch                    Kenya
	Bozza Media – a digital distribution platform enabling artists to connect with fans who want locally relevant content via mobile and web.	Emma Kaye	South Africa
	Carparts Nigeria –  an online car and truck parts and accessories store with millions of inventoried parts and a quick and simple search.	Ade Oladapo	Nigeria
	Eco-mc² Compressed Air Hydraulic Energy Storage – innovative air- compression storage based products ensure the power stays on, without the disadvantages of battery based systems.	Magriet Leaper	South Africa
	Edge Books – a digital platform for eBooks and other digital platforms such as magazines, comics & Journals.	Daniel Oluwagbemiga ben-Daniel	South Africa
	ENT-Mobile – converting human conversation on social media and mobile platforms to actionable and quantifiable data for business decision making.	Andrew Kamau                 Kenya
	Feem Wifi – providing an easy way to transfer music, videos, documents and other files – and listen to music or play videos when you are not transferring files.	Fritz Ekwoge Ekwoge     Cameroon
	Flippy Campus – Flippy Campus is a social application that helps students get updated on what is happening on their campuses.	David Mumuni	Ghana
	iKon Tracker – iKon Tracker is a conveniently sized bluetooth tracking device paired with a downloadable iKon smartphone application.	Adedayo Charis               Nigeria
	InsureAfrika.com – InsureAfrika.com is an online comparison platform which enables users to compare insurance quotes across insurance categories.	Gagan Hayer	Kenya
	IPC eProductivity – IPC eProductivity is an on-line productivity calculator that helps organisations determine their key drivers of productivity.	Lovemore Jokonya	Zimbabwe
	Koomzo – Koomzo is a hosted (cloud based) SaaS School ERP platform that automates core school processes (academic and administrative).	Longchi Gide Kanouo	Cameroon
	Lipaplus – LipaPlus helps SMEs accept credit/debit card payments and also manage their sales, inventory and finances using just their phones.	Ndeeri Macharia              Kenya
	LocName – a web and mobile application that gives a short, unique name for your address, which you can then share easily in just 2 seconds.	Mourad Ashry                  Egypt
	Mavis Computel Ltd – Mavis Computel Ltd provides a Talking Books & Talking Posters education solution.	Chizaram Ucheaga	Nigeria
	ogaVenue – making it easy to search, check availability and book event venues online, by aggregating variety of event venues.	Andrew Airelobhegbe	Nigeria
	PoshRite – PoshRite is an online beauty social network that aims to encourage women to express their inner beauty by offering a web platform.	Chidimma Nwankwo       Nigeria
	Raye7 – provides a greener, cheaper, nicer, safer and time-efficient way of transporting people aiming for a better tomorrow.	Ahmed Negm	Egypt
	Road Rules – a mobile app that will disrupt and revolutionize the way individuals study, practice and prepare for their driver’s license exam.	Chikosi Tawanda	Zimbabwe
	Roundbob – allows travelers to create travel wallets facilitating travel savings, installment payment options, reducing cost exposure and supporting this with relevant content.	David Gonahasa	Uganda
	Shield Finance – a FinTech company using proprietary technology while leveraging on Mobile Money to offer under banked employees affordable salary advances directly to their mobile phones.	Kenny R	Kenya
	SimbaPay – offers mobile apps that allow for fast, convenient and cheap money remittance to Africa.	Nyasinga Onyancha        Nigeria
	SmartEdu – an Education Technology Startup that helps Educators and Parents monitor and improve students’ academic performance.	Molawi Adesuyi	Nigeria
	Talking Bookz – a business focused on making learning interactive and entertaining by using mobile application to transform the learning experience for students.	Kolapo Ogungbile           Nigeria
	Tango TV – a Tanzanian technology company focusing on integrated media streaming services, beginning with African Movies, music videos and TV shows.	Victor Joseph	Tanzania
	Zeepay Mobile Financial Services – Mobile payments for both USSD and smart phones using NFC and supporting international remittances onto PoS.	Andrew Takyi-Appiah	Ghana
	Zuvaa – Zuvaa is an online marketplace for African Fashion.	Kelechi Anyadiegwu        Nigeria

Want to see these companies present on stage? 

You can now book your tickets for the DEMO Africa event, to be held in Lagos, Nigeria, on September 24-25, or join as a V.I.P. if you are an investor.

More people continue to book their slots to witness the unveiling of the selected thirty products. The full event will take place between the 21st and 25th September, 2015 at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Lagos Nigeria. Over 500 guests including investors, IT buyers, IT consumers and media are expected.

DEMO Africa is the premier platform for the best and brightest companies throughout the continent seeking to launch their products in front of a global audience. VC4Africa represents the largest community of entrepreneurs building innovative early stage companies.

The selected start-ups will now be placed under a mentorship programme which will run until September 22nd 2015. This programme is aimed at sharpening the pitching skills of the entrepreneurs readying them for the DEMO Africa stage.

This year, DEMO Africa introduces knowledge streams to delve into critical topics including Business Modelling, Scaling Businesses, Creating an unfair advantage, and Raising Capital. Top industry players including Jorn Lyseggen-MEST Founder, Harry Tomi Davies-ABAN President, Folabi Esan-Partner, Adlevo Capital, Jason Njoku-IROKO TV CEO among others will lead the discussion. Other notable activities at the 2015 DEMO Africa event include an investor roundtable forum and the LIONS@FRICA Summit with the uptake of Africa generated technology being expected to dominate the conversations.

The event will be co-hosted by DEMO Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Communication Technology and National Information Technology Agency-Nigeria in collaboration with LIONS@FRICA partnership and VC4Africa.