Input Output Global’s Project Catalyst created Ariob, an incubator program, in partnership with iceaddis, a pan-African business incubator and accelerator. Ariob means “an accumulation of beginnings” in Ge’ez, an ancient Semitic language of Ethiopia.
This strategic partnership is designed to fuel the growth of projects funded by Project Catalyst, Cardano’s innovation engine, and provides high-potential Catalyst startups with access to venture-building expertise and resources to assist in product development help solve the real challenges in Africa.
Why Africa?
1.3 billion people live in Africa. It is a fascinating and diverse continent that is witnessing a tremendous acceleration in the adoption of new technologies such as blockchain. Since there are no allegiances to legacy systems, it is much easier for technological advances to take root. Financial services projects, national identity frameworks and developments in science have great potential to transform both industry and society. This development provides fertile ground for entrepreneurship and innovation to leapfrog past deadlocked approaches. Therefore, a focus on delivering cutting-edge programs in Africa can accelerate the growth of the Cardano ecosystem.
Last year, Input Output Global (IOG) announced its partnership with the Ethiopian Ministry of Education to enable five million Ethiopian students to verify their academic credentials using Cardano-based Atala PRISM technology. IOG is also partnering with World Mobile in Zanzibar to connect the unconnected and provide access to essential online services through blockchain technology.
Project Catalyst, mentoring and incubation
Project Catalyst is one of the largest decentralized innovation funds today. It is a focal point for ecosystem development and innovation driven by the Cardano community. With each funding round, the community presents challenges across a range of Cardano-related topics. These challenges are then answered by the community, which presents project proposals that define solutions and clear plans. The community then votes on the submitted proposals and selects projects to receive funding.
Catalyst enables people to create and implement great ideas, but funding is only part of the journey to success. Other factors such as education, mentoring, collaborations, and the development of product roadmaps are also required to nurture projects and help them formalize a business plan and effective go-to-market strategy.
The first entrepreneurship program, titled BoostCamps, to achieve Catalyst funding leveraged the Entreprenerdy platform, where participating projects could attend sessions focused on developing their business strategy. Fund7 is the latest round with an Accelerator & Mentor Challenge. Twelve projects will be funded to develop programs and tools to support businesses built on Cardano.
BoostCamps has taken on five cohorts so far, one of which focuses on projects aiming to create positive change in Africa. This activity inspired this latest innovation, the Ariob incubator, in which a select number of projects will be selected to participate in a support program that will run until the first half of 2022. This program offers services aimed at realizing creative potential, testing ideas and using prototypes to find the best product. Ariob will also help connect projects with educational institutions, government organizations, NGOs and local businesses.
Markos Lemma, Co-Founder and Chief Executive of iceaddis, said: “Cardano is a platform building solutions to real-world challenges in Africa, and one of our most valuable relationships is with the Cardano ecosystem. Together we want to show that the next big ideas are coming from African countries, and we are willing to invest our resources in this.
“As one of the leading pan-African incubators and accelerators, we are committed to driving the development of high-potential Catalyst startups through the Ariob incubator.”
Projects joining the Ariob incubator
DirectorEd is developing a solution to facilitate scholarships for students in low-income countries, leveraging the transparency, peer-to-peer and smart contract capabilities of blockchain technology to reduce costs and eliminate corruption. Many talented students lack the financial means to fulfill their potential, but philanthropists may hesitate to donate for two reasons. First, they cannot ensure that the money goes directly to the student, and second, it is costly to place strings on donations to ensure the funds are used for their intended purpose. DirectEd solves these problems by providing a transparent, secure, and affordable way to make peer-to-peer conditional donations directly to students.
CheCha: a digital USD voucher scheme to solve Zimbabwe’s pocket change crisis. CheCha acts as a trusted third party between customers and providers to facilitate microcredit. Vendors can join affiliate networks that allow for loan repayments within their closed system, and with the launch of ada wallets, user-to-user transfers are now possible. In addition, the platform will also become the first widely recognized fiat-crypto liquidity marketplace in the country.
CanuckCrypto Equivalent: a blockchain-based escrow service that allows users to apply the hawala system (a system of money transfer where the money is paid to an agent who then instructs a remote employee to pay the final recipient) to their money transfers. Ekival displays location-based value accumulations (pools of liquidity in the money transfer case) that users based in other locations can purchase on behalf of the beneficiaries.
Economical financing: a decentralized and trusted savings system managed, maintained and updated by THRIFT token holders. Thrift aims to create a more accessible and efficient financial system for Africa through smart contracts.
supply chain wants to disrupt the centralized postal industry with a blockchain-based peer-to-peer solution. The aim is to enable cheaper, faster and more reliable parcel delivery throughout Africa.
Hippocrates: A decentralized healthcare information exchange that uses blockchain to enable the sharing of information between healthcare systems without compromising security and privacy. Hippocrades also provides health modules and APIs for developers to create decentralized health applications that are Web3 ready.
WADA: Building a Web3 microcredit solution that empowers Africans on the continent and in diaspora. WADA’s vision is a more inclusive economy and society enabled by blockchain technology.
African Blockchain Center for Developers (ABCD): A talent ecosystem designed to mentor Africans and provide opportunities to build revolutionary projects. ABCD’s activities aim to fill the developer skills gap by providing learning opportunities and acting as a bridge between professionals and potential customers.
Waya collective builds a decentralized enterprise network to find a new balance in global manufacturing. The current practice of centralized production, combined with long and complex supply chains, is becoming increasingly important for all parties involved. The Waya Collective intends to give Africa-oriented producers decentralized access to credit, know-how and a network of reliable partners.
find out more
We’ll be following the progress of these projects as they go through the process, so keep an eye out for more news.
The Ariob incubator is open to all projects with a focus on Africa. So if you come up with an idea, the team would love to hear from you.
If you would like to get involved by suggesting a challenge, learn more about Project Catalyst, or reply to challenges posted by others, please subscribe to the Catalyst mailing list and join the Catalyst Telegram community.
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