Entries are now open for the 2023 FNF GreenPitch Challenge!
Innovators and entrepreneurs, this is your chance. Get ready to share your business idea and network with potential investors and important decision-makers.
CEO Mike Mulcahy (ALI Fellow Class XII: Isilimela) and his company GreenCape, in partnership with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF), invite innovators and entrepreneurs with economically viable green economy innovation business ideas to enter the 2023 FNF GreenPitch Challenge. Submit no later than 8 June 2023.
Enter your green economy business in
- early stage start-up stage (proof of concept e.g. pilot project running, looking for first round of seed funding) and/or
- pre-growth stage (registered and trading, with sales – looking for series A funding)
to stand a chance of pitching to a panel of esteemed judges at a “shark tank-style” hybrid networking event, hosted in Cape Town on 27 July 2023. Network with potential investors, business incubators, local government decision-makers and green economy experts.
Key event dates
Entries Open: 16 May 2023
Entries Close: 8 June 2023
Finalists Announced: 30 June 2023
Pitch prep workshop with RMB: 20 July 2023 (FNB Portside, Cape Town)
Pitching event: 27 July 2023 (venue in Cape Town, TBC)
Entry requirement
Your business idea has to be positioned within at least one of the Green Economy sectors – refer to the investment opportunities highlighted in GreenCape’s Market Intelligence Reports. Your business can be based anywhere in South Africa. Terms and conditions apply.
Who should enter?
Innovators and entrepreneurs with economically viable green economy innovation business ideas.
The business idea has to be 1) Early stage start-up (Proof of concept e.g. pilot project running, looking for first round of seed funding), or 2) Pre-growth (Registered and trading, with sales – looking for series A funding).
Why enter? Prizes on offer
As part of the journey towards resilience, GreenCape (supported by FNF Africa) offers their support to innovators and entrepreneurs in the green economy landscape. The winner and finalists of the 2023 FNF GreenPitch Challenge will be awarded a range of prizes to the value of more than R300 000. These will include but are not limited to:
- Cash prizes (Winner)
- A full-day workshop to all finalists on investment strategies (All finalists)
- Mentoring support
- Research
- Access to a network of potential funders to accelerate your business idea
- Express entry into the Google Startups for Sustainable Development programme (Winner)
- Top 10 finalists with an interest in international collaborations will receive support via the International Cleantech Network, through a partner matching process, to develop funding applications for the Eureka Eurostars programme, which provides support to SMEs for international R&D collaboration.
- The winner will receive two job advertisement slots on AltGen website (running for 1 month and include social media postings and a newsletter slot) and 10% discount on recruitment (Ts&Cs apply).
LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/
