A start-up accelerator programme has been launched in Kigali, Rwanda, to boost local solutions that address food security in East Africa.

Among the IGNITE Food Systems Challenge’s aims are to improve food security by creating resilience to shocks and stress; to increase access to safe and nutritious food; to enhance supply chains; and to empower smallholder farmers.

The programme is an initiative between the UN World Food Programme and Impact Hub Kigali, a social enterprise that supports innovation and entrepreneurship through incubation programmes and bootcamps.

Start-ups, co-operatives and SMEs can apply online to take part in the programme, and selected participants will receive up to US$50 000 in grant funding as well as six months of mentorship, networking and other acceleration support.

The initiative will run simultaneously in Rwanda, South Sudan and Uganda, with US$2 million in financial support from the US Agency for International Development.

18 January 2022
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