Kelley African Business Challenge 2025 (up to $5,000 in prizes) – YOA

Deadline: November 20, 2025

Applications are open for the Kelley African Business Challenge 2025. The Kelley African Business Challenge is a platform designed to empower African entrepreneurs who’re driving innovation, impression, and financial development throughout the continent. The competitors offers early-stage founders the OPPORTUNITY to pitch their ventures, achieve visibility, and compete for monetary help to speed up their enterprise development. Participants will even obtain steerage from skilled professionals, fostering studying, confidence, and strategic growth.

Open to registered startups working in Africa for a minimum of one yr, this system seeks ventures with sturdy social-impression potential, scalable enterprise fashions, and sustainable worth creation. Finalists will showcase their concepts to a distinguished panel of judges and a worldwide viewers, with the possibility to safe money prizes and mentorship to elevate their entrepreneurial journey. This initiative champions African expertise and goals to help founders constructing significant and lasting options for the continent.

Prizes

• 1st place: $2,500
• 2nd place: $1,500
• third place: $1,000

Eligibility

• The competitors is open to African entrepreneurs based mostly in Africa. This should apply to a minimum of one member of the administration crew, however different folks could also be members of the administration crew and take part in planning the enterprise. A participant might submit just one enterprise pitch to the competitors.
• The competitors is open to African entrepreneurs who’ve created, managed, and presently personal ventures based mostly in Africa. In different phrases, African entrepreneurs should have performed a key position in creating the enterprise, have key administration roles and personal important fairness.
• The competitors is open to ventures with a viable enterprise mannequin which have been in operation for a minimum of one yr however lower than 5 years on the time of application submission.
• The enterprise pitch should signify the unique work of the crew members. The writer(s) shall retain all rights to the enterprise pitch concerning its use prior to and following the competitors. The enterprise pitch should not comprise any fabricated details about (however just isn’t restricted to) the background, expertise, or training of the administration crew, the stage of product growth, product efficiency claims, or market survey outcomes.

Evaluation Criteria

After studying the enterprise pitch, the reader ought to have the option to perceive the enterprise concept. The enterprise pitch shall be evaluated based mostly on three most important elements:

• Uniqueness of enterprise concept
• Clarity of the enterprise concept
• Viability of the enterprise.

Application

Click here to apply

For extra info, go to Kelley African Business Challenge.