A Nigerian health innovation company, HubPharm Africa, has emerged as the overall winner of the second ECOWAS Startup Awards, held in Abuja, carting home the 30,000-dollar star prize.
HubPharm Africa, co-founded by licensed clinical pharmacist Tope Kareem, beat four other finalists from across West Africa to claim the first prize from a total prize pool of 65,000 dollars. Gaynako, a Senegalese start-up led by Pape Natango Mbaye, came first runner-up with 20,000 dollars, while My Opinion, from Côte d’Ivoire, took third place and 15,000 dollars. The other top-five finalists were Baykart, led by The Gambia’s Muhammad Marong, and Cape Verde’s Afrikan Coders.
The top three winners will also get access to five million dollars in potential investment deals and investor deal rooms.
Presenting the trophy on behalf of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Dehpue Zuo, said the awards were more than a competition for money. He said each of the winners has a unique story, and that the message of saving lives beyond one’s border would carry the message of integration and equity for people, encouraging other start-ups to respond to the global need for human health and human development.
In her acceptance speech, Kareem described the award as a validation for young Africans building global solutions. She recalled seeing innovations from young people solving global problems that could affect millions of lives, and thanked ECOWAS for believing in start-ups like hers.
Kareem said the competition had opened doors to partnerships and investors, adding that HubPharm does not need to have a physical presence in every country to deliver impact.
The second ECOWAS Startup Awards celebrate young West African entrepreneurs building businesses with regional reach, and the Abuja ceremony placed a Nigerian company at the top of the field for the second edition of the prize.
Source: News Agency of Nigeria, Daily Trust
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