tiphub Hosts Inaugural Diaspora Demo Day African Startup Showcase & Networking Reception

tiphub Business Accelerator & Consultancy Brings Together Entrepreneurs, Investors, Policy Makers and Influencers in Support of African Innovators
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AfriTrade CEO Chioma Achebe Pitches Platform
AfriTrade CEO Chioma Achebe Pitches Platform
WASHINGTON - Nov. 24, 2014 - PRLog -- On Saturday, November 22, tiphub, the mentorship driven accelerator and business consultancy that develops and supports seed stage technology and social impact ventures within Africa and the African Diaspora hosted its 1st Annual Diaspora Demo Day African Startup Showcase & Networking Reception at the World Bank in Washington, DC. The event brought together 250 entrepreneurs, investors, policy makers and supporters to showcase African-centered startups from Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda  & the United States of America in celebration of Global Entrepreneurship Week.

Diaspora Demo Day was hosted in in conjunction with She Leads Africa and the African Technology Foundation and presented startups with the opportunity to give 6 minute pitches to an audience of impact and angel investors, policy makers, fellow entrepreneurs and an esteemed panel of industry experts including Samer Atlaher, Regional Director of MENA for Vital Voices;  Issac Babu-Boateng, Founder of Face2Face Africa; Chinesom Ejiasa, Director Private EquityOPIC;Gloria La Cava, Co-Coordinator World Bank Middle East & North Africa Youth Program; Ngozi Bell, Regional Advocate for the Small Business Administration; Jon Gosier, Managing Partner of AppsAfrica Fund; Bunmi Okunowu, Special Advisor to the Nigerian Ministry of Communications; Alex Dixon, Director of the Rockefeller Aspen Diaspora Program; Samuel Suraphel, Founder Mansa: CoLabs; Celena Green, Director of Africa Vital Voices; Karen Attiah, Dep. Digital Editor Washington Post; Antwaun Griffin, Dep. Asst. Secretary - International Trade Administration; Rebecca Enonchong, Founder & CEO of AppsTech and Adrienne Gifford, Sen. Program Manager - Initiative of Global Development.

Emceed by tiphub’s Executive Director Chinedu Enekwe & Marketing Director Amanda Spann, the event also included a luncheon, a demo hall, a networking reception and series of keynotes from renowned thought leaders including Thomson Reuter’s VP of Strategy & Business Innovation Saidah Nash Carter who spoke on the Crossroads of Innovation & Startups shaping Mobile Banking ; Gamerholic Founder & CEO Anari Sengbe educated attendees on the New Currency of Financial Inclusion; InfoDev’s Aun Rahman who shared insights into How to Access Finance; Market Atlas’ Justin Mahwikizi presented on Big Data & Unlocking African Opportunities; former BET CTO & Max Leverage Solutions Founder Navarrow Wright inspired with a speech on Closing the Digital Divide and Maximizing Opportunities in Technology and USAID’s Romi Bhatia closed the day with a presentation on Pathways to Diaspora Engagement. Notable investor & impact institutional attendees included Grameen Foundation, Calvert Funds, Enclude Solutions, Iya Ventures, Accion, Pan African Investment Company, Kupanda Capital and many more.

The event featured 21 startups across 3 categories: Alpha, Startups seeking up to $250k in funding; Beta, Startups seeking $250k to $1 million in funding and Delta, startups seeking $1 million or more in funding. Attendees voted on best pitch and business concept and the winners were as followed:

Alpha Group: Hello Tractor, Hello Tractor provides affordable agriculture machinery to small and medium sized farms in West Africa.

Beta Group: Tie; Coders4Africa, a full service software development and consulting company with a strong focus on Africa & Thando's Shoes, Thandos provides a platform that empowers aspiring African artists to design women’s fashion footwear that is comfortable, convenient and affordable.

Delta Group:Wecyclers,Wecyclers offers a convenient household recycling service using a fleet of low-cost cargo bikes.

Diaspora Demo Day was made possible by the following corporate sponsors: AppsTech, D’USSE, Thoughtworks, Gamerholics, Bingham McCutchen, Market Atlas and Evernote;  Participating media partners:  AllAfrica.com, Ventures Africa, Applause Africa, Innov8tiv, The Africa Channel, Africa 2.0; and complimented a host of community partners including NewGen Angels, Ghana International Chamber of Commerce, The World Bank’s Young African Society, Diaspora African Women’s Network, Toniic, Young African MBA’s, Impact Hub,  Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative, Georgetown Aspiring Minority Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs, and The African Impact Group.

“Diaspora Demo Day was conceptualized to be a conduit of engagement, enrichment, and empowerment of entrepreneurs and social innovators in Africa and the Diaspora,” says tiphub Marketing Director Amanda Spann, “Through this event we hope to connect startups directly to the investors, mentors, and strategic partners needed to fuel their growth from anywhere in the world. At tiphub, It is our goal to be a catalyst for entrepreneurial advancement, an accelerator for high-growth investment and to create a community of camaraderie across the Atlantic.”

To access the full agenda including a complete list and description of participating startups please visit : http://my.yapp.us/DIASPORADEMO

For media inquiries or interview requests contact tiphub Marketing Director Amanda Spann at Amanda@tiphub.org.

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About tiphub, inc

tiphub is a mentorship driven accelerator and business consultancy that develops and supports seed stage technology and social impact ventures within Africa and the African Diaspora.

The Washington, DC based collaborative educates, engages and empowers global entrepreneurs through its special programming, investment fund, business development services, and extensive network of renowned mentors.

About the African Technology Foundation

The African Technology Foundation exists to globalize African technologies and introduce global technologies to the African ecosystem. To achieve this, we support a broad range of initiatives around key economic sectors and are committed to providing African technology startups and enterprises with the necessary knowledge and resources that empower them to raise the economic profiles of their communities, municipalities and countries.

About She Leads Africa

She Leads Africa curates the most talented female entrepreneurs across the African continent and diaspora and provides them with access to the knowledge, networks and financing needed to build and scale strong businesses. Our goal is to jumpstart female entrepreneurs from SMEs to pan-African industry leaders.
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