AGRF, Heifer International, and Generation Africa announced the launch of Pitch AgriHack 2022, marking the second year the organizations have come together to provide cash grants that accelerate entrepreneurial growth and job creation in Africa’s agriculture sector.
Pitch AgriHack identifies innovative youth-led businesses with technological solutions to food security challenges, awarding the most impactful businesses with cash grants, media visibility, and investor exposure.
“Pitch AgriHack is about promoting digital jobs and smart technologies that appeal to the youth. This competition calls on the innovative minds of Africa to empower themselves and their communities by harnessing and developing ground-breaking technologies in the agri-food sector,” said Dickson Naftali, Head of Generation Africa.
During Pitch AgriHack 2022, US$45,000 in prizes will be awarded to six winners in three open competition categories. Businesses can compete as Early-stage, Mature or Growth-stage, and Woman-led ventures. Farm equipment manufacturers, agricultural drone services for precision farming, data and analytics providers, mobile apps, online crowdfunding and finance platforms, e-commerce and logistics services, and more have featured strongly in previous Pitch AgriHack competitions.
The Pitch AgriHack 2022 finals will see the Top 12 applicants face off in a business pitching contest at the African Green Revolution Forum Summit (AGRF) in September. Finalists will participate in the AGRF Agribusiness Deal Room, where over 800 companies, 15 government delegations, and 150 public and private investors will convene to generate exciting new opportunities.
A fourth invite-only category known as the AYuTe Africa Challenge, sponsored by Heifer International, will award up to US$1.5 million in grants to scalable ventures that are already generating measurable impact for Africa’s smallholder farmers. Winners from the 2022 AYuTe Africa Challenge will also be featured at the AGRF Summit.
Applications for Pitch AgriHack are open from 20 June 2022 to 29 July 2022. African founders or co-founders aged 18-40 of technology-based and digital services businesses in the agriculture sector are eligible to enter the 2022 competition. The Top 12 applicants will be selected by an expert jury, followed by an award ceremony where three category winners and three runners-up will receive cash grants to grow their businesses.
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