Following the recent launch of the US$255,000 Innovation Prize which will be awarded as a combination of cash and equity investment in the winners’ core business, the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) is set to open its application portal to the public.
Designed as a business-boosting initiative to support early and scalable solutions through education, mentorship and financing, application for the Innovation Award Program will open in March 2023 while the program will run and close in the second quarter of 2023.
In December 2022, NSIA, the directors of the Nigerian Sovereign Wealth Fund, launched the NSIA Innovation Award (“NPI” or “Award”), a capacity building initiative aimed at promoting innovation within Nigeria’s digital ecosystem. The authority is now set to open the application portal for competition for innovators, tech entrepreneurs, and startups.
NPI is a multi-year commitment by NSIA to empower early-stage Nigerian innovators. The program is designed to encourage and support innovation within the digital ecosystem and to fund early-stage technology-driven solutions that can lead to cost-effective, scalable and transferable economic impact.
LR: Bisi Makoju, ED Corporate Services & Operations, NSIA, Obi Emetarom, Co-Founder/CEO, Zone, Odunayo Eweniyi, Co-Founder and COO, Piggy Vest, Amal Hassan, Founder and CEO, Outsource Global, Ralph Oluwole, Co – Founder and Chair, Private Sector Growth, Helium Health, Tunbosun Alake, Special Technology Adviser to the Governor of Lagos State, Ikemefuna Louis Isiekwena, Non-Executive Director and Chairman of the Investments Committee, NSIA, Aminu Umar-Sadiq, Managing Director and CEO, NSIA and Kola Owodunni, ED & CIO, NSIA at the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority Innovation (NPI) Award Launch Ceremony.
In this version of the Program, NPI will adopt a three-stage competition at the end of which ten (10) finalists will appear. The top three will win various prizes that include equity investment in the underlying business as well as cash prizes. The last 7 contestants will win consolation prizes.
Emerging tech entrepreneurs who intend to participate in the program will be evaluated and shortlisted in line with the specified eligibility criteria. Selected candidates will participate in an acceleration program to advance their digital capabilities and solutions. The top 10 entries will participate in a presentation session on the day of the presentation from which the winner will emerge. The program will last for 16 weeks.
The Innovation Award is expected to:
Identifying, building and financing innovative solutions in the early stages to stimulate economic growth, enhance the country’s productive capacity and create job opportunities.
Provide an enabling platform to showcase innovative early-stage solutions with transformative potential.
Creating an avenue for Nigerian innovators to raise capital and connect with a world of established investors and technology experts.
Fostering capital formation for viable digital solutions originating in Nigeria.
Inspire ingenuity, creativity, innovation and breakthrough ideas in Nigeria’s digital ecosystem through cycles of award competitions.
Commenting on the planned opening of the NPI application portal, Aminu Umar Sadiq, Managing Director/CEO of NSIA said, “NPI is an initiative of NSIA that aims to achieve two goals for our country. First, it ensures that those great solutions developed by the Nigerian founders, will find capital A patient local; mentorship and value added to help businesses succeed and scale. Second, mobilize strategic partners and other financiers in the Nigerian digital ecosystem for the benefit of our entrepreneurs.”
As the Medical Director said: “Driving innovation and technology is at the heart of the business strategy for the next phase of NSIA’s evolution. We believe that the digital economy will become a mainstay of our economy. We hope our engagement will lead to measurable transformation across the digital value chain as we have done in other focus sectors over the years.” the years.”
NSIA has opened the application portal for its first innovation award of $255,000
