Social & Inclusive Business Camp: an Accelerator for Innovation

They are leaders in their respective fields. SIBC’s class of 2019 includes 60 entrepreneurs from across Africa, who are learning new investment techniques in preparation for Emerging Valley, a major annual event for African digital technology. 

Bootcamp for Emerging Entrepreneurs

The bootcamp features peer-to-peer coaching, meetings with potential partners and investors, and a great deal of collective learning. These entrepreneurs have been in operation for more than three years and are working to provide innovative and sustainable solutions to a variety of social problems on the African continent.  

The SIBC was created in 2017 and is an investment preparation program designed to address a two-pronged challenge. The first is to help these 60 social entrepreneurs fund-raise and scale up through four months of intensive remote coaching, followed by in-person training in Marseille.

The second is to enable financing stakeholders (AFD Group partners, investors, support organizations, mentors) to support them.

Do more, Better 

The goal is to help these innovative project leaders expand their networks to accelerate their growth as part of a dynamic learning community of entrepreneurs on the African continent.  

During the intensive coaching program, the entrepreneurs are encouraged to share their experiences, expertise, and contacts. They've just wrapped up at "Emerging Valley" at Aix-en-Provence, December 3-5, an event for African innovation and technology leaders focused on digital ecosystems in Africa and across the developing world. The event provides an excellent ‘real-world’ opportunity to present their projects to potential investors. 

This third edition of the SIBC is sponsored by Sarah Toumi, Executive Director of Acacias for All (an agro-ecology project) and Clément Uwajeneza, the Rwanda Director of Andela (a company that trains young IT developers on the continent).

By the end of this year’s edition, the SIBC network will include 150 people from 37 African countries who have received support and assistance from 60 mentors with world-renowned expertise. The SIBC community also includes 45,000 people on Facebook.  

As with Smart Investments, the Benefits Multiply

Starting in 2020, the SIBC program will take place on the African continent and be run by a consortium of qualified field operators in close collaboration with AFD Group’s development campus. This will allow the Group to expand its networks of partners, investors, support organizations, and mentors to help active entrepreneurs scale up and become mentors themselves. 

It’s all part of a virtuous circle whose benefits, like smart investments, will multiply over time.