Apply now for Wazo Challenge Nigeria

Deadline: 15 September 2023

Wazo Challenge Nigeria is aimed at 18 – 35 years old Nigerians, who have an idea to solve a local business/social problem, using technology.

With a near 220 Mn population having 220 Mn mobile phone subscriptions and 122 Mn internet users – technology will help take the leap forward, and solve social and business problems.

Hindsight Ventures is looking for enterprising youth (as individuals or teams) to use technology (Software/Hardware/Software+Hardware), and solve for one of the below:

Financial
Services
Healthcare
Agriculture
Retail & Supply Chain
Education
Sustainability

Takeaways from the Challenge

Venture Bootcamp: 30 high-potential founders will be selected for a 4-week venture mentorship and leadership development bootcamp, that will be delivered by successful founders, industry leaders, domain experts and investors from Hindsight Ventures and Lagos Innovates global network. The Venture Bootcamp will help establish / reiterate basic venture development processes, enable industry connections, international networks, peer community and more. During the course of the bootcamp, each selected startup will get access to $600,000 worth of technology credits that will help them build fast.

Week 1: Foundation
- Product Market Fit: Review, Identifying Gaps and Refining the idea
- Revisiting the Business Model
- Understanding Mission, Vision, and Goals
- Branding and Design
- Legal And IP
- Elevator Pitch for Investor and Customer
Week 2: Customer Development
- Customer Journey Mapping, Customer Segmentation, Value Proposition
- Customer Profiling/Validation
- Leadership, Work Life Balance, Business Culture
Week 3: Go- To Market And Scale
- Business Scalable Strategies
- Marketing Messaging
- Customer Acquisition
- Financial Modelling
- Unit Economics
Week 4: Pitch Ready
- Funding
- Pitch coaching and mock pitches
- Final Investor, Customer and Partner Pitches.

Benefits

Technology Credits
- Each startup gets in excess of $600,000 in technology credits from partners such as AWS, Zoho, IBM, Microsoft, Canva, DigitalOcean, FreshWorks and more.
Co-working Office Spaces
- Shortlisted startups also get an access to Co-working Office Spaces vouchers for 6-12 months depending on the stage of the startups.
International Demo Day
- The Venture Bootcamp will culminate with an international demo day, wherein the Top-10 – 12 startups from the cohort will pitch to an audience comprising investors and corporates. Prior to the demo day, the cohort will be ably coached by pitch coaches, to ensure that each pitch is succinct and conveys a compelling story.
Cash Prizes
- There’s a USD 5,000 grant money at stake, and the cohort will be pitching for the same. In addition, they sincerely hope that the international demo day will attract venture investors to take a serious look at the cohort, and many will get investor interest.