PIVOT EAST 2019 FINALISTS ANNOUNCED.

PIVOT East is  geared towards nurturing the growing Startups and SMEs in East Africa. This year the competition opened for both hardware and software startups; this has influenced greatly the types of startups that we will see pitch during the conference this year. A number of startups in the manufacturing, agricultural value added products and health hardware startups just to mention a few. Most of them are leveraging  technology in sectors that conventionally were not considered tech savvy or embracing.

This year, we received 248 applications into the competition. 128 of them met the criteria and where submitted to a panel of 30 judges who to judge them and get the semifinalists shortlisted. This year also saw the first Semi finalist from Burundi and highest number of applicants we have had from Tanzania and Rwanda.  The finalists consist of 25 startups from across the region and 5 in the waiting list .

Here are the 2019 Finalists:

FINANCE CATEGORY:

TozzaPlus (Kenya)

TozzaPlus is a workforce management and payment system with mobile biometric Time Tracking, Payroll Management and automated salary payouts/payments to banks and mobile wallets. TozzaPlus plus also provides B2B salary financing to help enterprises pay their employees on time always.

SokoHela (Kenya)

SokoHela is an online short term working capital and financial literacy provider for micro and small enterprises in the urban agricultural value chain.

Engage & Prosper Africa (Kenya)

A Fintech startup that provides financial literacy to the bottom of the economic pyramid that is often left out by the conventional financial system.

A-Trader (Tanzania)

A-Trader is an AI-powered platform that enables users to access investment opportunities using any mobile device, and that also provides automated investment recommendations through a proprietary Robo-Advisor algorithm.

MOBISHULE(Kenya)

Mobishule is a Value Added Service proposition to parents of  partners’ schools that enables them to access small amounts of school fee cash advances using mobile.

Waiting;

Denkim Insurance (Kenya)

Denkim Insurance is a Kenyan insurance aggregator that interconnects all insurance players in the insurance value chain by helping customers select, buy insurance products and experience quick claim settlement processes.

SOCIAL IMPACT CATEGORY

Savanna Circuit Technologies Ltd (Kenya)

MaziwaPlus Pre-Chiller, pioneering portable Solar powered chilling on transit systems that can be mounted on motorbikes, trucks etc with a Milk collection app for efficiency, accountability and maximize profits to dairy producers and cooperatives by cutting Milk post harvest losses at the farm gate, enhancing product traceability and quality control.

Toolboksi (Tanzania)

Toolboksi is a platform that solves & unemployment and poverty by increasing the access to job opportunities to the skilled workers (Blue-collar workers, handymen, repairmen) operating in the informal sector by connecting them with customers using inclusive technologies (Web/SMS/Apps/Call/Short-code)

ECO MAKAA  (Kenya)

‘Eco Makaa’ is an e-commerce company that connects local fuel briquette producers to a client base. These fuel briquettes are smokeless eco-friendly alternatives to wood charcoal

Kilimofresh Foods Africa Limited(Tanzania)

Kilimo Fresh runs a B2B E-commerce produce distribution platform focused connecting farmers with customers on a B2B model. Kilimo aggregates, trades and market all types of foods, grains, fresh fruits, and vegetables significantly reducing post-harvest losses by cold storage.

AfyaKit (Kenya)

We are a social venture start-up, focused on improving health outcomes by providing actionable in-facility data to health sector players across Sub Saharan Africa. They have  analytics tool that enables decision making for health managers.

Waiting;

FreshBox Rwanda Ltd. (Rwanda)

FreshBox Rwanda is building modular, off-grid, solar powered, IoT equipped cold chain solutions to reduce post-harvest food loss in Rwanda and other developing nations. Our first product is an affordable cold room with a capacity of unto 5 Metric Ton. The cold room can extend the freshness of fruits and vegetables from 2 days to 21 days. It is designed and assembled in Rwanda.

ENTERPRISE CATEGORY

FarmIT (Kenya)

FarmIT is an agricultural mobile based startup that uses crop mapping mobile technology to send real time and reliable agronomic, crop protection and husbandry practices to small scale horticultural farmers with an aim of improving

Kodisher Solutions (Kenya)

One stop solution for landlords and property managers for managing processes, transactions and data that improves efficiency and saves them money. Kodisher, manages billing, invoicing, payment processing and provides actionable reports.

Enfinite Solutions Limited (Kenya)

Through our portfolio of premium products – WakiliCMS and EliteSuite, we strive to make sure that law firms and legal departments are ran efficiently to minimize costs, increase profits and improve decision making criteria.

Mazimba Company Limited(Tanzania)

Using bananas to produce  wine as main product.

Vipimo (Kenya)

Vipimo is a ‘sensor as a service’ subscription service currently serving several large customers in the B2B space (large farms, freight forwarders).

Waiting;

Tetch Astro Systems (Kenya)

AVAS-360 is a cloud based fuel management system of hardware and software products that together enable access and remote control of fuel stores,whilst monitoring inventory, deliveries, staff performance and sales volumes.

ENTERTAINMENT CATEGORY

Cloud9xp (Kenya)

Cloud9xp is an online marketplace, booking service and distributor for leisure experiences. We offer a simple way to discover and book leisure experiences to do across Africa.

Klurdy Solutions (Kenya)

Klurdy is a design studio with an interactive online service for buying personalized african fashion.

UG Tickets (Uganda)

UG Tickets is a secure, online platform designed to facilitate the selling, marketing, and distribution of tickets for the convenience of event organizers/vendors and the consumers making it  possible for people to browse through a variety of events in music, football, festivals, conferences and talk-shows online; from any place, make the payments using mobile money and receive the tickets directly on their mobiles via Email and SMS.

Pingle (Kenya)

Pingle is a platform that is connecting users to activities that interest them within Nairobi’s malls. Users on the Pingle platform can discover, book, and pay for these activities on the app.

Smoke Advertising (Kenya)

Specializes in both above and below the line advertising.

Waiting List;

Be Afrika Media Ltd (Kenya)

A personalised African content and social network aggregated and curated platform. A platform that aims to be a  lead in the sustainability of and reinvention of African content.

UTILITIES CATEGORY

SHERIA KIGANJANI(Tanzania)

Sheria Kiganjani is the first online legal digital platform in Tanzania which enable users to access various legal services remotely from  their devices i.e. Mobile Phones, Tablets, Computers etc.

iCare (Tanzania)

iCare is a first Tanzanian online retail shop that allow individuals, organizations and corporations to buy basic requirements like food, school equipment and hygiene essentials for charity donations. Also iCare enable individuals to celebrate special moments in their lives such as birthdays, graduations, promotions, anniversaries etc.. by giving back as charity donation.

AT HAUSE Limited(Uganda)

The startup thus provides a solution that uses insect and rot resistant 3ply bags to store produce for longer periods and enable the produce earn better. The producers are pulled together disaggregated farms to a smart value chain linked to wholesalers financed to purchase farmer’s stock. The wholesalers are connected to marketplaces available with large-scale agro buyers in Africa, Dubai and the Gulf Cooperation Council region.

COINBOX KENYA (Kenya)

Coinbox allows its users to own Coinboxes in different and diverse listed brands and save for their due holidays by sending whatever amount they are comfortably able to their Coinbox until they reach the required amount.

Calm Wildness (Kenya/ Rwanda)

Calm Wildness is a jewelry business that designs, makes and sells beaded jewelry for conservation. It designs and makes unique jewelry that tells conservation stories through its make like elephants earrings for elephant conservation. It also aims to include women near environmentally protected areas in its production and also expand to other aspects of fashion.

Waiting;

WeDeliver (Ethiopia)

WeDeliver is an on-demand delivery company with the objective of creating a centralized on-demand delivery platform through a mobile application. The platform will empower local businesses; empower low income earning communities and provide time saving services to end users by putting local business at the tip of their fingertips.