Nairobi’s tech ecosystem is vibrant, bustling with excitement. It’s alive with potential and promise. The upcoming AfricArena Nairobi Summit: Africa Climate Tech Week taking place next week from 3 – 4 September ahead of the Africa Fintech Summit will fuel Kenya’s growth and capital raising drive.
Nairobi, known as Africa’s Silicon Savannah, is the perfect city for over 20 of Africa’s top tech startups operating in the climate tech and green economy sectors to pitch their innovative ventures at the summit.
“We are thrilled to bring the AfricArena Summit back to Nairobi with the support of our partners, as we believe in the power of collaboration to ensure optimum success in building and strengthening Africa’s tech, innovation and investment ecosystem,” said Christophe Viarnaud, AfricArena CEO and founder.
The Africa Climate Tech Week, supported by AWS Startup, Silicon Overdrive and GIZ SAIS is taking place from 1 – 4 September, and the AfricArena Nairobi Summit is taking place from 3 – 4 September at Shamba Events in Nairobi, Kenya.
Kenya, one of Africa’s big four tech hubs, is East Africa’s leading key tech ecosystem driver, playing a critical role in driving the region’s exponential growth and in 2023, the country secured over 94% of all funding raised in East Africa and emerged as Africa’s leader in raising startup capital.
“This is an incredible achievement, as last year, Kenyan startups attracted just under $800 million in funds, made possible by the country’s strategic reforms and conducive business environment,” Viarnaud said. “We’re excited to see what is happening in Kenya, as so far, during the first half of 2024, Kenya continues to lead Africa in raising startup capital, with Kenyan startups having raised over $200 million, which accounts for 32% of all startup funding on the African continent to date.”
There is great excitement about next week’s AfricArena Nairobi Summit which is shining a light on climate tech, renewable energy and the green economy as notable startups such as Aquarech, Gene Plus Global, RHEA Soil Health, iShamba Limited, eAgro, Stable Foods, Maua Mazuri, Loowatt, Monsapo, Cinch, Africa Collect Textiles, Gjenge Limited, Knights & Apps, Bottle Logistics, Alternative Energy, Lean Energy Solutions, Ekotech Limited and six Korean startups who are scaling from Korea into Africa, in partnership with the Korea-Africa Foundation, Beyond Captur, Thanks Carbon, EcoLinks, BlueGold, Solarinno and TRCK Energy will be pitching their innovative solutions to investors attending the summit.
Tonee Ndungu, a visionary entrepreneur and the CEO of Kytabu will be the Masters of Ceremonies during the event, skillfully navigating the audience through East Africa’s successful capital raising story as he introduces the keynote speakers, moderators, panellists and startups.
Over 30 of Africa’s brilliant minds will speak at the summit, sharing their insights, key observations and takeaways that are relevant to Africa’s tech, innovation and investment ecosystem.
Keynote speakers are Joshua Romisher, CEO and Head of Portfolio at Holocene and Joshua Murima, Head of Engagement and Investor Relations at Briter Bridges.
Moderators and panellists are as follows:
Next-Gen Renewable Energy: The Impact of AI and Carbon Credits on Sustainability Panel Moderator: Cynthia Mwaura, Senior Investment Analyst (E3 Capital).
Panellists: Vivian Opondoh,Data Analyst; Asad Ali, Fellow, Stage Climate-tech Investor (Holocene); Diana Maranga, Business Development Lead (Octavia Carbon); Kamal-Deen Yakub, Chief Visionary Officer (Trotro Tractor); Caroline Kimani, Carbon Technical Expert (Climate Action Platform for Africa);
Fintech Sparks Green Finance: Bridging Policy and Investment Panel
Moderator: Stéphane Eboko, Managing Director and Co-Founder (101 Capital Partners) Panellists: Onyeka Ekeh, Acting COO and Head of Digital Impact (BlueSPACE Africa Technologies); Ugochukwu Chukwujiaka, Founder (Energy Talent Company); Keet Van Zyl, Co-Founder (Knife Capital Ventures); Koya Matsuno, COO and Co-Founder (VunaPay).
Green Tech Funding: Bridging Innovation and Impact Panel
Moderator: Victor Ndiege, CEO (Kenya Climate Ventures)
Panellists: Fares Seaidi, Advisor for Partnerships and Investor Relations (GIZ SAIS); Jacklyn Iminza-Anyamba, CEO (East Africa Private Equity and Venture Capital Association); Joshua Romisher, CEO and Head of Portfolio (Holocene); Susan Nakami, Regional Lead for Africa (Village Capital).
Future Farming: Integrating Climate-Resilient Crops with Smart Technology Panel Moderator: David Longdon, Senior Associate (Equator VC)
Panellists: Martha Haile, Founder (Abze); Damilola Thompson, Partner and Co-Founder (Diligence Africa); Philip Odino, Managing Partner (Pepea Capital); Hangyul Lee-Song, Data Lead (Briter Bridges).
The Circular Economy Revolution: Scaling Sustainable Solutions Panel
Moderator: Eva Waweru, Senior Associate for Communications, EMMEA (Village Capital) Panellists: Florent Nduwayezu, ClimateHack Nairobi Ambassador (HackGroup); Thomas Hart, Program Manager (French South African Tech Labs); Alvin Anderson, Country Director (BORDA South Africa).
Funding the Future: Building a Resilient Investment Ecosystem Panel
Moderator: Winston Reid, Partner and Co-Founder (Decarbonise Africa)
Panellists: Christine Namara, Partner, Africa Seed Fund (Flat6Labs); Jabez Mutune, Program Manager (KCIC); Towett Ngetich, Portfolio Associate (54 Collective VC); Vladimir Dugin, Senior Partner (E3 Capital).
The AfricArena Summit is set to accelerate the growth of startups pitching their highly scalable solutions at the summit, so don’t miss out! Get your tickets here and join the AfricArena community for a memorable Nairobi event!
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