2018 Africa Energy Ideas Competition for Young professionals (Pitch at NEF2018 and win up to $3,000)

Deadline: February 20, 2018

The 2018 Africa Energy Innovation Competition is now open. The competition is set to accelerate the development of early-stage energy firms across Africa. This competition challenges early-stage energy entrepreneurs from Africa to collaborate with local research institutions or industries to develop a prototype model of a key device/equipment for a social energy enterprise or energy management system using local resources.

The competition is organized by the Nigeria Energy Forum (NEF). The 2018 Nigeria Energy Forum (NEF 2018) is a training and development programme for researchers, industry experts and innovators to engage with key stakeholders in the energy sector, initiate new research collaborations, promote innovative technologies and disseminate high quality research outcomes for sustainable energy development in Nigeria and Africa. NEF 2018 offers a unique opportunity for you to showcase your research or clean energy project to the national and international energy community

Have you developed a solution for a social energy enterprise or energy management system using local resources? Enter the 2018 Africa Energy Ideas Competition.

Prizes

The finalists and winners will be selected by a panel of academics and experienced development professionals from public and private sector institutions. Winners of the competition get the opportunity to:

• ⇒  Pitch their proposed prototype model at the 2018 Nigeria Energy Forum, in Lagos, Nigeria, using a poster and short video.
• ⇒   Benefit from unique networking opportunities with other young leaders as well as some of the most senior decision-makers in government, international development, academia and the private sector.
• ⇒ Attend a range of business development workshops, receive support from a dedicated start-up incubator and a cash prize of up to $3,000 to demonstrate the proposed solution.

Eligibility

• Young professionals between the ages of 18 and 35 years from Africa are invited to participate in the competition and nominate a relevant local research institution or organization.
• Applications may be submitted by a team of up to three people.
• At least 1 member of the team must be from the local research institution or industry.
• Teams may be formed across different schools, institutions, companies, countries etc.
• Individuals or teams may submit multiple applications.

Evaluation Criteria

The first round of submissions will be evaluated using the following attributes:

• Local Content: utilize local resources, demonstrate the use of local expertise, alternative energy services or efficient solutions for powering agriculture, education, healthcare, industries etc.; and be significant enough to impact large numbers of people, households and/or businesses.
• Originality and creativity: present solutions that are original, creative in areas that are either underdeveloped or severely underdeveloped in research and literature.
• Commercial Viability: proposed prototype model should be realistic, practical rather than just theory, cost-efficient and outline commercial arrangements that address obvious roadblocks, using a specific prototype model.
• Clarity: ideas should be presented in a clear and concise manner with realistic completion timeline.

Guidelines

Application

Submissions must be in Microsoft Word or PDF format by email to [email protected].

The subject line of the email should follow the format: [Country] Title of the Project.

Submissions that exceed the word count may be disqualified. Shortlisted submissions would be invited to participate in the final round by submitting a 1-page poster to summarize their design, with a detailed budget, 2-page Design Brief, and a Short 2-minute video to describe a prototype model of the proposed solution.

For more information, visit Africa Energy Ideas Competition.