1 month ago
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First City Monument Bank (FCMB) and the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO) are joining forces to ignite innovation successful Nigeria’s cultivation assemblage done an Agritech Hackathon and Venture Building programme. The initiative, delivered by Heave Ventures, invites startups, entrepreneurs, and innovators to make solutions for challenges similar recognition access, infrastructure, and nutrient security.
The programme includes a 48-hour hackathon, a 4-week venture-building residency, and a stakeholder conference. Winners volition person up to ₦23 cardinal successful prizes and further vulnerability to maturation opportunities. Applications for the programme are present unfastened astatine on.fcmb.com/AgricTech-Hackathon and volition tally from August 5 to September 5.
Commenting connected the programme, FCMB’s Divisional Head, Agribusiness & Non-Oil Exports, Mr Kudzai Gumunyu, said:
‘’This inaugural aims to code the perennial symptom points successful Nigeria and Africa’s agribusiness ecosystems, transforming them into monetised opportunities for innovators. We are so excited to spouse with FMO and Heave Ventures to organise the Agritech Hackathon and Venture Building programme. It is an accidental for innovators to conceptualise and make solutions that volition span immoderate of the identified gaps successful the agribusiness ecosystem to herald a caller epoch of businesslike cultivation practices for each stakeholders. We volition proceed to champion initiatives that foster inclusive and sustainable maturation wrong communities by gathering a supportive ecosystem rooted successful Africa, connecting people, capital, and markets”.
The agritech hackathon and venture-building programme volition extremity with demo days wherever winners volition beryllium rewarded with currency grants and different benefits.
Martine Sanders, Technical Assistance Manager astatine FMO, added: FMO is thrilled to spouse with FCMB connected this Agritech Hackathon and Venture Building programme. By empowering early-stage companies done concern improvement services and funding, we purpose to foster innovative ideas that code cardinal challenges successful the agriculture space, a strategical assemblage successful Nigeria. This inaugural is captious for unlocking concern for MSMEs, promoting sustainable growth, and strengthening the ecosystem. This perfectly aligns with the objectives of NASIRA, the portfolio warrant and method assistance programme nether which FMO and FCMB person partnered, which is funded by the European Commission. Together with FCMB, we look guardant to jointly supporting sustainable improvement successful Nigeria and creating a lasting interaction crossed Nigeria’s agribusiness landscape.
In addition, the programme volition diagnostic a league that volition bring unneurotic stakeholders successful the agribusiness assemblage to sermon existent and emerging challenges to make solutions that thrust productivity successful the agribusiness worth chain. The league volition person keynote presentations, sheet discussions, workshops, and masterclasses.
Nigeria’s cultivation assemblage contributes 21.09% to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product and employs astir 70% of the population. Despite its captious importance, the assemblage faces galore challenges, specified arsenic constricted entree to land, over-reliance connected rain-fed irrigation, inadequate retention facilities, mediocre marketplace access, and debased adoption of modern cultivation technologies. These person resulted successful debased yields and post-harvest losses, hindering the assemblage from reaching its afloat potential.
FCMB and FMO precocious signed a $25 cardinal NASIRA warrant statement to checkmate these challenges. Funded by the European Commission, the warrant volition ena
FCMB and FMO question cultivation solutions successful Nigeria with agritech hackathon
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