Nine startups have been selected for the Venture Exploitation Programme, the second phase of the Solution Space e-Track Programme, aimed at accelerating their ventures.
The Solution Space e-Track Programme, based at the University of Cape Town (UCT), in partnership with the MTN Group, is a three-part acceleration and capacity building programme for high impact individuals.
It is designed to support teams build scalable businesses with international potential. Individual participants can either explore their own business idea or join an existing venture.
The first phase of the programme involved a pre-selection process which included the submission of pitches by shortlisted businesses, culminating in the second phase of the programme – the 12-week Venture Exploitation Programme.
Nine startups have been selected for this latest phase, including security-enabled panic button card Contego Protego, mobile remittance payment platform ZarGa, online beauty and wellness service platform Prim-U, mobile device audiometer Lalela, and automated legal consultancy AskCicero.
The list is completed by visual interactive learning kit Visar, an online education platform GreenED, online conceptual learning platform SameStart, and DreamFactory Foundation, which provides an educational programme for youth to drive entrepreneurial development and employment opportunities.
“The programme is a key MTN initiative to help scale promising ideas and teams in the digital and mobile financial services space in order to create and stimulate an ecosystem leveraging various MTN platforms. It also aims to identify and attract top talent,” said Eero Tarjanne, general manager of ecosystem development at MTN Group.
