Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology

The Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST) is a Pan-African training program, seed fund and incubator in Accra, Ghana.[1][2] The three-phase school and incubator program were founded in 2008 by Jørn Lyseggen to provide training, investment, and mentoring for aspiring technology entrepreneurs with the goal of creating globally successful companies that create wealth and jobs locally in Africa.[3][4][5]

Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology
MEST logo
Founder(s)Jørn Lyseggen
Established2008
MissionCreate jobs in Africa
Budget$2 million/year
OwnerMeltwater Foundation
Location
Accra
,
Ghana
Websitemeltwater.org

Since launching in 2008, MEST backed startups have been acquired by investors, or recognized internationally by organisations such as Techstars, 500 Startups, Y Combinator[6] and at events like the LAUNCH Conference in San Francisco.[7][8]

History

MEST was announced in 2007, when Meltwater announced plans to establish an entrepreneurial training program in Africa. The school opened in February 2008 with the first class of Entrepreneurs in Training (EITs).[9] In February 2010, the first class of EITs graduated and the MEST Incubator was launched with seed funding for incubator companies started by the first group of EITs.[10]

In January 2015, MEST partnered with Vodafone Ghana to sponsor a 48-hour hackathon to help develop access to information, simplify transactions and shorten business processes.[11][12] In February 2015, the school was recognized as one of the top 10 most innovative companies of Africa by Fast Company.[13] MEST announced a partnership with Samsung in April 2015. As part of the agreement, Samsung provided subsidized devices and internship positions, as well as marketing services and mobile application distribution, in exchange for the opportunity to invest in MEST companies through its Samsung Enterprise Business Partners.[14] MEST hosted the first Africa Technology Summit in November 2015 in Accra, Ghana, the event featured panels and keynote presentations from a variety of global and African businesses.[15]

In 2016, MEST began recruiting EITs from the French-speaking Ivory Coast[16] and opened an additional business incubator in Lagos while planning to open an additional location in Cape Town.[17][18][19] That same year, MEST entered a partnership with Kosmos Energy to form the Kosmos Innovation Centre to focus on creating agriculture solutions.[20][21] In December 2016, MEST hosted the second Africa Tech Summit in Lagos, Nigeria, including speakers from Google, Uber, Interswitch, Vodacom and Samsung.[22][23]

In September 2017, MEST named Aaron Fu as its Managing Director.[24] The organization also announced that it would expand its presence across the continent with several new incubator spaces in additional African markets.[25][26]

Program

MEST sponsors African entrepreneurs in completing a 12-month program focused on software development, business fundamentals and entrepreneurship.[19] Top graduates from schools in Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa Entrepreneurs-In-Training (EITs) are selected each year to receive comprehensive training in computer programming, product management, finance, marketing, sales, business leadership, and other skills required to build a successful technology business.[13] Upon completion of the training program, the best business ideas are provided seed funding and incubated as startup companies.[27]

Portfolio

MEST Accra
  • meQasa
  • Leti Arts
  • Kudobuzz
  • Tress
  • Asoriba
  • DevLess
  • RetailTower
  • Loystar
  • Ghalani
  • Flippy Campus
  • SynCommerce
  • PollAfrique
  • Transgov GH
  • TroTro Tractor
  • Nandimobile
  • AdGeek
  • Ampersand
  • CodeLn

MEST Lagos
  • Curacel Health
  • Amplify
  • Oncenout
  • Dropque

Past companies
  • Saya
  • FreelancePro
  • Beam
  • Vestracker
  • Orgaroo
  • Suba
  • Dropifi
  • Adsbrook
  • PaySail
  • Claim Sync
  • mPawa

See also

References
  1. Thekkepat, Shiva Kumar (15 April 2011). "A Leg-Up With Start-Ups in Ghana". Gulf News. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  2. Bright, Jake (17 October 2015). "Ghana's MEST Incubator to Launch Pan-African VC Fund, Expand Training Programs". TechCrunch. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  3. Nsehe, Mfonobong (20 July 2011). "EBay Billionaire Omidyar Gives Nigerian Tech Incubator $200,000". Forbes. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  4. Quandzie, Ekow (5 December 2011). "Meltwater Foundation Provides Seed Funding for Two New Ghanaian Software Startups". Ghana Business News. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  5. Abdelkrim, Samir (29 January 2016). "MEST, l'incubateur de Silicon Valley Africaines". Le Monde Afrique. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  6. Agunbiade, Tola (28 June 2016). "Hairstyle Inspiration App, Tress, Has Been Accepted Into The Y Combinator Fellowship Program". TechCabal. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  7. Porter, Kiesha (10 July 2013). "Ghana's 'Dropifi' Startup Takes on Silicon Valley". CNN. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  8. "Nandimobile Limited named". www.ghanaweb.com. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
  9. Jamaluddin, Monica (23 January 2013). "A Year in Review at Meltwater Incubator in Accra - Ghana". Silicon Africa. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  10. Butcher, Mike (14 June 2012). "Out of Africa - A Whole MEST of Startups Emerges in Ghana". TechCrunch. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  11. Jackson, Tom (28 January 2015). "MEST Partners Vodafone Ghana for Hackathon". Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  12. "Vodafone, MEST Hackathon App Developer Competition Finalised". Ghana News Agency. 24 March 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  13. "The World's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies of 2015 in Africa". Fast Company. 9 February 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  14. Jackson, Tom (23 April 2015). "MEST Partners Samsung to Support West African Startups". Disrupt Africa. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  15. "African Technology Summit (ATS) 2015, Accra Ghana". Tech Afrique. 12 August 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  16. Abdelkrim, Samir (30 November 2016). "L'incubateur Ghanéen MEST Lance à Abidjan son " Erasmus " des Start-up Africaines". Le Monde. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  17. Adegoke, Yinka (13 April 2016). "Ghana's Startup Hub Pioneer is Going Pan-African With a $50 Million Fund". Quartz Africa. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  18. Osamuyi, Osarumen (2 August 2016). "Neku Atawodi Has Taken the Reins at MEST's New Lagos Incubator". TechCabal. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  19. Mugendi, Eric (22 March 2016). "The MEST Training Programme Is Recruiting In South Africa And Expanding to Kenya and Nigeria". TechCabal. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  20. Debrah, Ameyaw (April 2016). "Kosmos Innovation Centre Launched in Accra". Yen. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  21. "Kosmos Makes Strides in Addressing Challenges in Agric Sector". Citifm Online. 21 June 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  22. Jackson, Tom (20 October 2016). "MEST to Host Tech Summit in Lagos". Disrupt Africa. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  23. "MEST Take Africa Tech Summit to Nigeria - AB2020". AB2020. 5 November 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  24. Bright, Jake (11 September 2017). "With New Managing Director, Ghana's MEST Scales As Pan-African Incubator". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
  25. Jackson, Tom (26 September 2017). "New MEST Boss Plots Major Expansion Across Africa". Disrupt Africa. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
  26. Nsehe, Mfonobong (12 September 2017). "Meet Aaron Fu, The New Boss of Africa's Largest Tech Incubator". Forbes. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
  27. "Seven African Technology Start-Ups to Receive Funding From MEST". 24 September 2010. Retrieved 1 January 2017.

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