Set Up, Stand Up, Scale Up, Boost Up – technology startups invited to enroll in the 2021 Boost Up programme
Small startup enterprises that uses technology to solve societal challenges are invited to submit their applications for Boost Up 2021, a mentoring programme that equips the budding entrepreneurs with the skills to pitch and scale up their businesses.
Boost Up is run under the auspices of the National Commission on Research, Science and Technology. Applications close at midnight on Sunday 06 June 2021. More information as well as the application form can be obtained from, the Southern Africa Innovation Support (SAIS) website at sais2.org/boostup.
Alternatively, an email can be sent to the acting Head of Corporate Communication and Marketing at the science commission, Angela K. Ntemwa.
Boost Up is a three-part startup support programme jointly organised by the Connected Hubs network and the Southern Africa Innovation Support Programme (SAIS 2) in Botswana, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Namibia where the focal point is the National Commission on Research, Science and Technology.
The SAIS 2 programme management office is supported by national Focal Points which are the national organisations mandated to promote and coordinate Science, Technology, and Innovation in the five SAIS 2 partner countries. The programme is funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland in partnership with the governments of Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia as well as the SADC Secretariat.
Set Up, Stand Up, Scale Up, Boost Up!
The Boost Up series comprises the following stages:
1. Set Up training events, which provide entrepreneurs with practical tools to package their business idea and develop a pitch to attract their target market. The training sessions are organised separately in each of the Boost Up countries.
2. Stand Up national pitch competitions offer the best Set Up participants an opportunity to practise their pitching skills while competing for a chance to enter the regional Scale Up incubator and bootcamp.
3. Scale Up is a programme for impact-driven startups eager to become more investable. This stage includes an online incubation programme and an on-site bootcamp in Helsinki, Finland, in November and December 2021.
The National Commission on Research, Science and Technology stated “Early-stage entrepreneurs using technology and innovation to make a social impact are encouraged to apply.”
