The Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa will play host to the Global Startup Awards (GSA) Africa Summit in October 2023, according to a joint announcement by the Global Innovation Initiative Group (GIIG) and Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI).
The annual GSA Africa Summit, which will be held at the recently opened Museum of Art and Science, aims to bring the African startup ecosystem together and recognize the outstanding accomplishments of startups, business owners, and innovators from all over the continent.
The summit will bring together important players in African innovation, including decision-makers from business, government, academia, and the broader ecosystem, to network and discuss the best technological advancements on the continent. Here, startups will have the chance to take part in a series of workshops on solution exchange, where they can connect with professionals in the field to look into possible joint ventures.
15 regional finalists will be announced as the winners of the GSA Africa season for 2022–2023 during a gala dinner. These startups will be honoured as African winners for their exceptional contribution to solving pressing global problems. Additionally, they will have the sole chance to interact with the GIIG Africa Fund, providing a route to potential investment as future changemakers.
“Critically, we want this event to act as a spark for younger generations, to encourage them to explore the world of innovation as a promising career path. The African Development Bank projects that our continent’s youth population will more than double to 830 million by 2050. This means that an additional quarter of the population will need food, jobs, housing, and healthcare that we’re currently not equipped for. But by nurturing innovation and the growth of new, leap-frogging ideas, we can grow whole new industries of opportunity. And if we can do that, then we ensure that our actions today have a meaningful impact on the generations of tomorrow,” said GIIG and GSA Africa co-founder Jo Griffiths.
