Blue Invest Africa is a 2-day international B2B hybrid event that will take place on March 15th and 16th, 2022. It is intended for companies that operate in the African blue economy to exchange with African and European investors. The European Union in collaboration with the government of the Republic of Seychelles are the organisers of this event. This event will be hosted in Seychelles for those selected to attend in person as well as online for those not selected. (Blue Invest Africa Call for Applications- African SMEs In The Blue Economy)
The core of this event will be match-making between investors and entrepreneurs and this will be in the form of pitching sessions. Other activities that this event will consist of are;
- Visits to Seychellois blue economy projects
- Meetings in the form of B2B
- Showcasing small-scale African projects in the form of exhibitions
- Networking between participants to enable them meet potential future partners
What’s Required
Thirty (30) companies will be chosen to pitch their ideas using a selection process from the applying companies. These companies will participate on-site and will be given the opportunity to present their projects to investors present. All travel, accommodation and catering are covered for these selected companies at the event. The requirements to participate include;
- The company must be active and legally based in an African country
- The company must meet EU recommendation 2003/361 that defines an SME
- The presenter must be present in Seychelles to deliver the pitch about the business
- The pitchers’ project should focus on a blue economy sector that includes either a maritime or coastal area in Africa or in African inland waters
- The proposed projects should be compliant with one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)
The pitching process will comprise of short and concise presentation of the project of a company and it will last for a period of four to five minutes with lively interventions.
The goals of this pitching process are to;
- Attract the attention of investors present at the event as well as stimulate their interest in the project
- Convince them about the profitability and growth opportunities presented by the product or service with potential for further development of the project. The final aim is to receive funds for more development of the project
- Blue Invest Africa will provide the Blue Invest following for start-up companies and SMEs;
- An opportunity to meet other African project holders and SMEs who are engaged in blue’s actions
- A unique platform for receiving direct guidance from different industry captains operating in Africa
- Many side-events on finance access, direct contacts with development banks and other financial institutions as well as awards for those pitching
- Coaching and mentoring sessions and networking as a whole
Focus for Development
All maritime activities and sectors that include traditional and emerging whether based in the marine environ or on land are considered under the blue economy. Global blue economic would be the seventh largest in the world providing millions of direct jobs and generating significant amount of revenues and generating direct jobs in millions if compared to a national economy.
To develop their socio-economic aspirations, Africa and Europe have both identified blue economy as their key sector.
Key Benefits
Participants are supported to take advantage of local contacts and networks provided by GIZ to implement their business solutions sustainably
For on-site participants
Sponsored activities
- They will receive sponsored travel and accommodation
- They will be able to send their business representatives and pitch their projects
- They will foresee three Ted-talkers and also engage with the moderator
Non-sponsored activity
- They will meet investors and other private sector’s operators
- Engage with press and the media
- They will meet with representatives from public authorities as well as other attendees
For online participants
Interactivity tools and live interpretation on all sessions will allow online attendees access to the content of the event since they will be streamed live. On-site and online participants will interact and network through a match-making app.
The objective of this first ever Blue Invest edition out of Europe is to showcase the African potential as well as foster entrepreneurship and participation of the private and public sectors in the fast-developing blue economy in Africa and to promote innovative sustainable solutions. The event will be covered by inviting the international media and press to increase its global coverage.
Business contacts and opportunities, discovery of business projects from the field, exchange of best practices and ideas and the development of a network of potential partners will be realised by one hundred fifty (150) participants both on-site and remote from Africa and Europe together with investors and entrepreneurs.
The target audience for this event will be;
- Private sector, active blue economy start-ups in Africa
- International financial institutions, public and private institutional investors
- National, regional and international organizations
- Incubators, innovators and research institutions
For more information on this event and how you can apply, please click here
For more Information about Blue Invest Africa Call for Applications- African SMEs In The Blue Economy VisitÂ
