The International Trade Centre (ITC) and Korea SMEs and
Startups Agency (KOSME) launched today the Youth Start-up Academy Uganda
project. The project will incubate 1,000 young entrepreneurs and improve the
start-up ecosystem in Uganda to increase youth employment and boost businesses.
Participating entrepreneurs will benefit from a three-stage
incubation programme, access a fully equipped business creation facility
including co-working spaces, IT room and maker spaces, the opportunity to widen
their business networks, and develop joint ventures with local, regional and
international start-ups.
The young entrepreneurs who will participate in the 1st
round of incubation, were recruited during the official opening ceremony held
in Kampala, while 10 entrepreneurs had the chance to pitch their business model
in front of judges at an investment relation pitching competition. The
programme will start in the second half of 2022.
The Youth Start-up Academy Uganda follows the success of the
same programme in the Republic of Korea, implemented by KOSME. Since its start,
the programme supported the creation of almost 4,800 start-ups, including two
unicorns with a current market valuation that exceeds $1 billion. The
Youth-Start-up Academy project in Uganda is a joint effort between ITC, KOSME,
the National Information Technology Authority (NITA-U) and Hive Colab, a
co-working space in Kampala.
Hatwib Mugasa, Executive Director of NITA-U, H.E. Chris
Baryomunsi, Minister for ICT & National Guidance Uganda and H.E. Sung-soo
Park, Ambassador at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Uganda participated
in the ceremony to congratulate the project launch and pledge their support.
Background
Uganda is a rising star in the African start-up ecosystem.
The country’s young population and fast-growing IT infrastructure are the main
drivers of the Ugandan ecosystem development. Especially Uganda’s Fintech
industry shows 35% of annual growth from 2016 to 2018. Despite the vitality of
the ecosystem and the success of the fintech sector, a significant number of
entrepreneurs from all sectors continue to face serious difficulties in
transforming their business ideas to viable and scalable businesses. Ensuring
that these entrepreneurs have access to the right support in a structure that
is ready to nurture their ideas and help them grow, is the project’s goal.
Quotes
“The Youth-Start Up Academy has a very ambitious goal. We
want to incubate the first Ugandan unicorn start-up. This is not going to be
easy. But by joining forces with our partners, we believe that we can do it.
The Youth Start-up Academy in the Republic of Korea has already incubated two
unicorns, and a Ugandan start-up supported by ITC in previous projects has
reached the pre-unicorn level.” Dorothy Tembo, Deputy Executive Director,
International Trade Centre
“The Youth Start-up Academy is the most successful
supporting programme for the Korean start-up ecosystem with over 5,800 alumni
since 2011. With today’s launching ceremony, KOSME expects it to be the motive
for fostering promising Ugandan young entrepreneurs and the starting point of
sustainable partnership between the Republic of Korea and Uganda.” Hak-Do Kim,
President, KOSME
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