StarNews has recently introduced the Starnews Business Competition, with the goal of motivating and aiding small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Nigeria.
StarNewsStarNews Mobile, in collaboration with the Global Black Economic Forum (GBEF), has issued a call for applications for the Business Competition in Lagos, Nigeria. The competition will provide promising Nigerian SMEs with an opportunity to secure vital investments and partnerships from the United States.
MTN and the United Nations Agency for International Development (USAID) are partners in this initiative.
The competition will take place between April 8 to June 14, 2024, over a period of 10 weeks and aims to help emerging entrepreneurs showcase their ventures and gain nationwide recognition.
The exclusive hosting rights for the business competition will be under StarNews.
Program Details
StarNews Mobile, which was established in 2017, offers African content creators an innovative way to monetize their work through a subscription-based model.
With a subscriber base of over 4 million and a vibrant community of more than 120 content creators, the platform has become a leading platform in six African countries, including Cameroon, Nigeria, Côte D’Ivoire, Congo, Benin, and Ghana. StarNews Mobile has also formed significant partnerships with major telecommunications companies like MTN and Orange.
In collaboration with MTN, USAID, and GBEF, the Business Competition aims to provide vital support to SMEs in the form of funding, mentorship, and collaboration opportunities.
The competition seeks to empower and enable these small and medium-sized enterprises to flourish and achieve success.
Benefits
- Mentoring
- Funding
- Collaborations
- Utilization of socio-economic development resources provided by the Global Black Economic Forum.
- StarNews will offer participants an opportunity to win cash prizes of up to NGN5,000,000.
- They also gain access to StarNews’s network of investors and receive national exposure by having their business featured on the StarNews website.
- The top three winners will receive mentorship from GBEF’s Academy for Advancing Excellence and become active members of GBEF’s network of global leaders committed to promoting social and economic justice within the Black Diaspora.
Eligibility Criteria
- Business must have a majority ownership and operation that is Nigerian-based.
- Business must be officially registered in Nigeria with a valid Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) certification.
- The core business activities should primarily occur within Africa.
- Must have an online presence, such as a website or social media accounts, with a minimum of 1,000 followers.
- The business should have been established for a minimum of 2 years and have a consistent record of revenue generation for at least 2 years.
- The business should have a positive impact on Africa by directly contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
How To Apply
To kick start your application, click here.
Application Deadline
April 5th 2024.
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