Instituto de Empresa, IE University has launched its first African Digital Venture Day on Friday in Lagos to aid innovation among entrepreneurs in Nigeria.
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Director, West Africa region, IE, Onyekachi Eke, explained that the cutting-edge, highly competitive programme was designed to identify start-ups that have the ability to create innovative digital-based solutions to everyday problems faced by businesses.
She said, “Six start-ups will be selected to pitch, giving them amazing opportunities and gain visibility. The start-ups will be selected based on their originality, financial viability, and ability to have a positive impact on major challenges for businesses.
“The winner of the IE Digital Venture Day will get the chance to pitch on IE’s stage in the South Summit Spain in order to win a full pass to the event taking place at the beginning of October 2020. The pass will include access to the Investor Den, conferences in all stages, one on one meetings and matchmaking service with investors and big corporations.
“The winner also receives a prize of €15,000 to be spent on Amazon Web Services; the other five finalists will receive a consolation prize of €3,000, also to be spent on Amazon Web Services.”
Consul General of Spain, Juan Moreda Otero, said that Nigerian entrepreneurs were resilient, focused and pacesetters, which is the reason IE decided to host its first African Digital Venture Day in Lagos, Nigeria.
He said, “It is important to note that the contributions of Africa, especially Nigeria, and its people are not only crucial to the world as it exists today, but will define it going into the future.”
IE University, based in Spain, is one of the top-ranked universities in Europe. The university has 130 different countries represented on campus each year, with over 75% of its students coming from outside Spain
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Since 2016, IE has held more than 35 of these International Venture Days in cities including Madrid, Shanghai, Tokyo, Miami, Bogota, London, Santiago de Chile, and Paris.
