Budding African entrepreneurs can now apply for the Africa Netpreneur Prize Initiative (ANPI), founded by the Jack Ma Foundation, for a $10 million prize.



The application process which is
in partnership with Nailab was officially opened by Jason Pau, Senior Director
and Chief of Staff International to Jack Ma, Alibaba Group Executive Chairman.



“<a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Africa Netpreneur Prize (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.netpreneur.africa/" target="_blank">Africa Netpreneur Prize</a> is about looking for heroes. We are looking to shine the spotlight on existing African entrepreneurs’ whether they are in the traditional sector or tech sector or men or women who come from any of the 54 countries that are part of this continent” said Pau.  



Pau says for the next ten years the foundation will host a pitch competition in Africa where ten finalists from across the continent will compete for $1 million in total prize money. 



“Jack Ma will personally commit one million dollars in grant money. The trick to the part is for ten finalists to compete every year for the next ten years.  He wants to turn it into something like a show. A million dollars for entrepreneurs’ is not a lot of money but what we think we could do is to have their stories remembered and watched across the continent,” says Pau. 



The prospective entrepreneurs will get assistance from experts. 



On the advisory board is Jack Ma,
Ban Ki-moon, 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations and Graca Machel,
Chair of the Graca Machel Trust Board. 



Pau says he believes having the
Graca Machel Trust will expose the potential of women across Africa. He says
their aim is to uplift the confidence in women of ‘you can and you should’.



“Through their networks, I believe they can reach a million or more women across Africa. I believe it is two things, one is confidence building. I think a lot of times women don’t really believe they could compete with men for whatever reasons,” said Pau. 



Pau added that because the
majority of women in the continent are single parents and breadwinners, they
need all the support they can receive. 



“We need to find those breadwinners and a lot of them are women… we are not only looking for tech-entrepreneurs we want to include the traditional sector because a lot of women are active in sectors such as agriculture. So if we could include a prize in industries that women in Africa are strong at, then that is the prize,” said Pau. 



Shungu Gwarinda, Director of Programmes for Graca Machel Trust, says their mission is to connect women and put them at the center of Africa’s development.   



“We strongly believe that the social and economic transformation that we seek to see towards building the Africa that we want, that nascent potential lies with women. Seventy percent of production on your lower level is driven by women, but at a lower level,” she said. 



Gwarinda says she believes that
through the partnership with Jack Ma Foundation they will better amplify the
voices of women across the continent and build on their networks.

Jack Ma Attends Hupan University Opening Ceremony In Hangzhou

$10 million for Africa’s next great entrepreneurs

Chinese billionaire and Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma came calling to Rwanda to sign a deal to boost its digital economy.



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When a Chinese billionaire comes calling, for two consecutive years, it means serious business. 



On Jack Ma’s November trip to Rwanda, he announced a first-of-its- kind-in-Africa deal with the Rwandan government. 



The Alibaba Group, one of the world’s largest e-commerce businesses that Maco-founded and chairs, has established an electronic world trade platform(eWTP) hub that will enable Rwandan products to be sold in the Chinese market and boost cross-border trade. 



Ma, with an estimated net worth of $34.4 billion according to FORBES, called Rwanda “a great country that walks the talk” at the launch of the hub at the Kigali Convention Centre. The mood was euphoric as Rwandans took to Twitter with the hashtag #Rwandaworks. 



“It’s a great honor for myself and Alibaba to be able to partner with Rwanda. People ask me, why Rwanda? There are so many countries in Africa. It’s so difficult we have a lot of criteria to pick a country to be an eWTP hub. My answer is why not Rwanda?” said Ma. 



“When I first came here, I was shocked by its safety, cleanliness and by its power to embrace change. Last year was my maiden visit to Africa, I realized that it is so different from what I thought. I said if every country in Africa was like Rwanda, how powerful Africa would be. 



“Rwanda is making things happen. Most countries talk about supporting 



small businesses, young people, farmers but very few of them take action&#8230; This is why we came here. When other people complain, we take that as a great opportunity. What impressed us is not only the products you have but also the government’s efficiency.” 



He said he was proud to know Kagame. The leader, in turn, also paid tribute to Ma, whom he referred to as “my friend”. 



He commended Ma for looking at Africa differently. 



&nbsp;“Jack is a believer and in most cases, he believes correctly,” said Kagame. 



The eWTP partnership covers tourism, capacity-building and e-payments as the primary areas of cooperation. 



It ultimately aims to enhance the capabilities of small and medium enterprises to produce and export quality, globally-competitive products while supporting the development of the digital economy in Rwanda. 



Products sold on the platform will initially be handicrafts and coffee, which is Rwanda’s third biggest foreign exchange earner after mining and tourism. 



The platform presents an opportunity for Rwanda’s coffee producers to access the Chinese market whose coffee consumption is growing at 15% per annum. 



On the platform, Rwandan coffee farmers will be receiving $12 per $16 sold, which is significantly higher compared to other markets like the US where they normally get $8 per $16 sold. 



The deal will also attract high- spending Chinese tourists. 



Players in Rwanda’s business community, especially in the trade and tourism sector, call the deal unprecedented and overdue. 



Abdallah Bawazzir, Director General of New Dawn Associates, says: “We’ve been having issues as far as e-commerce is concerned. We’ve had promises from other big entities which come around and nothing really tangible comes of it. Alibaba having done this in China, I’m sure they are very much capable of doing this in Rwanda.” 



Ephraim Rwamwenge, Chief Executive Officer at Rwa Business Group, adds: “One of the challenges that plagued our export markets such as China, which is a massive market, is access. It was next to impossible to find customers to take your products but thanks to technology, it’s now cheaper to do business across borders.”



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Steven Muvunyi&nbsp;</li></ul>



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/economy/2018/12/05/rwanda-the-emerging-economy-to-watch/">Rwanda The Emerging Economy To Watch</a>

Tag: Jack Ma

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

$10 million for Africa’s next great entrepreneurs

Rwanda ‘Walks The Talk’ Says Jack Ma