About the Africa YES Program
The Africa Young Entrepreneur Support (YES) Program is a 4-month intensive entrepreneurship, leadership, and business training that provides young early-stage social entrepreneurs, with the resources they need to discover opportunities, unlock their potential and create impact in their local communities.
The program seeks to identify, inspire and empower 40 young social entrepreneurs to recognize opportunities, explore innovative approaches, mobilize resources, manage risks, and build viable social enterprises. As part of the program, you will access additional talent and venture support services to help scale your business.
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Who WE Look For
The Africa Young Entrepreneur Support (YES) Program is looking for self-starters, leaders, change makers who are building viable businesses and creating impact in their local communities and beyond. Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- The venture must be solving a clear problem in the community
- There must be a viable and tested solution already in place (not just an idea)
- The social venture should have a viable business model
- The venture should have at least some paying customers or making revenue in the past 6 months.
- There should be ambition by the founder of the venture to grow to achieve a large scale impact
- The applicant can commit to attending weekly sessions (both in-person and virtual) from September 2021 to December 2021
- The applicant can commit to doing weekly deliverables in relation to their venture
- The applicant must be working either full time or at least 30 hrs per week in their ventures
- The venture is legally registered in Kenya or in the process of registration
Why Join the YES Entrepreneurship Program
Leadership and Business Acumen Skills
Our hands-on training sessions delivered by experienced facilitators are tailored to help you become a great entrepreneurial leader equipped with skills that are vital in helping your venture grow
Build & Grow your Venture
Our practical, immersive, and real-world sessions by experienced facilitators mean you get to apply what you are learning each week to your venture while getting feedback to help you grow and your venture grow
Access Startup Talent
During the 4-months program and beyond, you will access startup talent to help you refine and build your venture and to achieve your venture goals during the program. Entrepreneurs will also be connected to other funding opportunities available.
Access Networks, Mentors & Opportunities
As part of the program, you will connect deeper with other social entrepreneurs, mentors and other entrepreneurship ecosystem players, including exclusive opportunities and workshops
Access 3 months Co-working space
Participants for the program will enjoy a 3-month membership that will give them full access to work from the YES co-working space so as to grow their ventures. Teams can enjoy this during the program.
Bespoke Startup Services
Entrepreneurs will have access to startup services such as accounting, legal, sales, talent at a subsidized rate as being part of the program. Teams to also receive follow up investment.
Applications for cohort 4 are now opened. Apply for the September-December 2021 Cohort 4 Program.
Program Timelines
Applications are open for the Africa YES 2021 cohort 4. Young social entrepreneurs and teams in Kenya can apply. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
Shortlisted applicants will participate in in-person/virtual interviews in Nairobi and site visits. Final selected participants to be notified by 3rd September, 2021.
We will Kick off the program with a 2-day immersive in-person Bootcamp in September 2021 for the selected Young Social Entrepreneurs in Nairobi
Workshop sessions by expert facilitators will be happening during weekends (both in-person and virtual), in Nairobi with business project work during the week.
On Demo Day, social entrepreneurs will pitch their ventures to a pool of judges comprising investors, entrepreneurs, and industry experts for funding and support
Post-program, top entrepreneurs will receive grant funding from partners, get access to co-working space membership, and continued access to venture support and talent