The Global Start-up Awards (GSA) Africa this year recognised 71 startups from across Africa as regional winners.
The list of regional winners includes 23 winners from African nations.
Organizers received 8,272 entries from 54 African states during the 2022–23 season and selected winners for the Northern, Southern, Eastern, Western, and Central Africa competitions.
Kenyan start-ups won seven awards in Eastern Africa, while those from Uganda won three, Ethiopia won two, and firms from Mauritius, Rwanda, and Tanzania also took home prizes.
Start-ups from Nigeria won six awards in Western Africa, three winners from Ghana. Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Senegal, and Benin also had winners.
During this year’s Global Startup Awards, start-ups from the Democratic Republic of the Congo won four awards and those from Cameroon bagged five.
Moreover, Gabon and the Congo received recognition.
Before competing for a spot as a regional finalist, participants in the competition had to first compete at the national level.
The winners were then chosen by an impartial jury that provided a comprehensive assessment of the African tech sector.
Thirteen start-ups from Egypt were named winners in the Northern Africa competition, followed by finalists from Morocco and Tunisia.
Similarly, in Southern Africa, start-ups from South Africa won eleven awards, with entries from Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Namibia taking home the remaining medals.
The Global Start-up Awards Africa competition’s Continental Finals will now see all 71 regional winners compete for the title of African champion.
African winners will have the exclusive opportunity to engage with the Global Innovation Initiative Group (GIIG), the competition’s dedicated investment partner, through its GIIG Africa Fund and GIIG Africa Foundation.
The announcement was made at the launch edition of GITEX Africa 2023 in Marrakech, Morocco.