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AYuTe Africa Challenge Kenya

AYuTe Africa Challenge Kenya promotes agricultural innovation in Kenyan youth, contributing to the country’s food security.

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About the Challenge

The challenge is an initiative of Heifer Kenya, which is working closely with E4Impact Accelerator to run the competition. E4Impact Accelerator will employ its expertise in business acceleration to develop a strategic direction for youth, agriculture, and technology in line with Heifer Kenya’s mission and approach.

Kenya’s agriculture industry is the backbone of its economy. However, young Kenyans, who represent more than half of the national labor force, remain almost entirely excluded from this significant industry. This is due to challenges such as negative perceptions of agriculture, lack of awareness of agribusiness value chains, and limited opportunities offered by new technologies and innovative business models.

Young people have the potential to significantly reduce poverty and establish Kenya as one of the key players in agricultural markets. AYuTe Africa Challenge Kenya will translate the energy and ideas of young Kenyan agri-tech innovators into meaningful impact for smallholder farmers across the country and support the winners to grow their businesses and profile.

    • John Waweru – Optimerce Consulting Ltd – KES 1,000,000
      Innovation: Digitizing the process of produce collection at farm-gate through mobile apps.

    • 1st Runner-up: Joshua Gitonga – RafikiPay – KES 750,000
      Innovation: Processing of sunflower, groundnuts, soya and canola oil from hybrid seeds.

    • 2nd Runner-up: Grace Kyarimpa – Agrodiverse Ltd Kenya – KES 250,000

  • Read the press release for the 2022 AYuTe Kenya Champions here:

  • Enterprises can expect to receive the following:

    1. Cash Prize awards of up to Ksh. 2,000,000 for the top winners.

    2. Customized 2 months incubation program for the top 24 finalists.

    3. Customized training boot camps at the various levels of the competition.

    4. Technical assistance at the various levels of the challenge to strengthen the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and the business and financial model of the start-up.

    5. Coaching and mentorship personalized to unpack training into business implementation.

    6. Links to financial & investment opportunities.

    7.  Networking opportunities to showcase your solution and meet with investors and other stakeholders.

    1. Established or registered in Kenya.

    2. Early-stage start-up (less than 3 years old).

    3. Have an innovative agri-tech solution responding to the needs of the agri-value chain at various levels (e.g., production, aggregation, post-harvest losses management, value addition, access to markets, financing, etc).

    4. Have a focus on impacting the lives of smallholder farmers.

    5. The innovation should demonstrate a strong potential to scale

  • To apply, fill out the application form here - https://bit.ly/AYuteChallengeKe

    The call for applications is open until 3rd April 2023 at 11.59 PM EAT. Any queries? Please write to info.kenya@heifer.org / accelerator.kenya@e4impact.org

  • The call for applications is open until 3rd April 2023 at 11.59 PM EAT.

  • Who runs AYuTe Africa Challenge Kenya? The AYuTe Africa Challenge Kenya is an initiative of Heifer Kenya, which works closely with E4Impact Accelerator (E4I) to run the challenge.

    How long will the challenge run? The challenge will run for 7 months from the time of the call for application to the awarding of the winners.

    How many stages are there? The challenge will commence at the county level during which we will select 48 innovators who will proceed to the national level. The number will then be narrowed down to 24 finalists who will be offered the opportunity to join a two-month incubation program and thereafter top 6 agri-tech innovators crowned as winners of this year’s challenge in an award ceremony event.

    Program Eligibility:

    Is the AYuTe Kenya challenge only open to Kenyan enterprises? Yes, only enterprises undergoing registration or are already registered in Kenya are eligible to apply.

    What stage of enterprise can apply? Early-stage start-ups (less than 3 years old).

    Is there an age criterion for the founders of the enterprise? Yes, the founders should be youths ie aged between 18-35 years.

    What kind of innovations do you expect the enterprises to be? Innovations offering an agri-tech solution responding to the needs of the agri-value chain at various levels e.g. production, aggregation, post-harvest losses management, value addition, access to markets, financing, etc.

    What are the various innovation stages that an enterprise will be considered?

    • Idea Stage - You have a clear idea of the problem you’re trying to solve, and a clear vision of how your business/product will solve that problem.

    • Proof of Concept - You can demonstrate that the idea is feasible.

    • Prototype Stage - You understand how the product will work in reality.

    • Minimum Viable Product - You have an early version of your product that has the core functionality

    • Product Stage - You have a product in the market that customers are starting to buy.

    Your application

    How do I participate in the AYuTe Africa Challenge Kenya Competition? To participate, you need to fill in the online application form here: https://bit.ly/AYuteChallengeKe

    Before completing your application form, make sure that you have:

    1. Familiarized yourself with the AYuTe Africa Challenge Kenya requirements and the eligibility criteria;

    2. Filled out the application form with as many details as possible to all the questions asked and then;

    3. Submit your application before the lapse of the application deadline which is 21st March 2023 at 11.59 pm EAT.

    Is my application automatically saved? Yes.

    Is the entry to the competition confidential? Yes, it is. Any information provided in the application will be held in full confidence as we comply with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).