edtech - Afrikan Heroes

Moroccan Edtech Startup KoolSkools Raises Over $400,000 To Move Schools Online

July 15, 2020

Dounia Boumehdi, Managing Director of MITC Capital

Aware of the fact that the global lockdown has altered the continued physical operations of most schools, Morocco’s B2B edtech startup KoolSkools has raised over $416,000 (MAD 4 million) to enable it move schools in Morocco and elsewhere online.

Here Is What You Need To Know

The funding came from MITC Capital’s Maroc Numeric Fund II, with participation from an angel investor.
About $310,000 (MAD 3 million) of the capital came from Maroc Numeric Fund II and the rest from the undisclosed angel investor.
This is the second investment by Maroc Numeric Fund II in less than a week. The fund had announced their $400,000-investment in Moroccan fintech OnePay on Wednesday.
The funds raised will be fully invested in Morocco. They will enable the company to acquire technical, marketing and commercial resources to serve a large network of schools and students.

Why The Investor Invested

Maroc Numeric Fund is since 2010, the reference investment fund in technology startups in Morocco. The expertise accumulated by its management team has led to the emergence of several Moroccan success stories. More than a simple financial leverage, Maroc Numeric Fund is a real accelerator for high-potential start-ups. It acts as an active shareholder by providing its portfolio companies, in addition to investment, with advisory and support for their managers, while holding a seat on their boards.

This is the 2nd investment of the new fund Maroc Numeric Fund II and the 19th investment of its management team, taking into account the investments made by the fund Maroc Numeric Fund I, which is now in a divestment phase.

“The fund management team is proud to support Kool Skools project, which is intended to be a complete technological platform for schools, and whose positioning has been fully confirmed during the Covid-19 crisis,” Dounia Boumehdi, Managing Director of MITC Capital, the management company of Maroc Numeric Fund II, declares.

A Look At What The Startup Does

Founded in 2020 by Nouredine Amrani, who also doubles as the director general of Almamed, an independent investment company based in Casablanca Morocco, KoolSkools is an online learning platform that enables schools to digitalize their courses and exercises, create a content bank, and deliver live courses. The platform also enables schools to manage their operations including student records, attendance, report cards, communication with parents, and payments.

The startup claims to have more than 30 major schools corresponding to nearly 20,000 students and more than 700 teachers across the various cities of Morocco (Ouarzazate, Agadir, Marrakech, El Jadida, Casablanca, Rabat, Fez, Meknes …).

As part of its long term plan, Koolskools aims to cover all regions of Morocco and accompany the digitalization of the largest number of schools and reach at least 100,000 students in two to three years.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

After Years In Search Of Funding, South Africa’s Ed-tech Startup Syafunda Raises $140k Funding To Scale

May 22, 2020

At a time when the coronavirus virus pandemic has disrupted school systems across Africa, South African ed-tech startup Syafunda has raised ZAR2.5 million (US$140,000) in new funding to enable it scale and respond faster to increasing demand.

“I wanted to…provide digital access for high school and post-high school students. Syafunda is positioned to reach pupils in under-serviced communities throughout South Africa,” Founder Zakheni Ngubo said.

Here Is What You Need To Know

The funding came from the South Africa-based fund manager Edge Growth.
Armed with the new fund, Syafunda looks to meet the increasing demand it has witnessed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Why The Investor Invested

Launched in 2017 and with offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town, Edge Growth efficiently channels funds into high-potential SMEs to support growth and ensure sustainability. The company’s dealmaker Vuyiswa Nzimande said the partnership with Syafunda would over the next five years make an impact that goes far beyond job creation.

“The strength of the operations and development teams shows in the quality of the innovation in the free-to-access Syafunda Digital Library. Ultimately, we believe that learners will improve the likelihood of entry into higher learning institutions and training/tertiary institutions,” she said.

Startups interested in applying to any of the company’s funds can do so by clicking here: https://edgegrowth.com/funds/apply-for-funding/

A Look At What Startup Syafunda Does

Launched in 2013, the Durban-based Syafunda partners with local content developers and publishers to establish digital libraries in areas where connectivity is limited or non-existent. These digital libraries come with five terabytes of pre-loaded content and double up as Wi-Fi hotspots so individuals in the vicinity with a mobile device can access the material.

Light At The End Of The Tunnel For Syafunda’s Founder Zakheni Ngubo?

For Ngubo, this a dream come true after close to six years on the startup which saw no funding at all in the first few years of its growth.

“I had little to no funding in the first few years after founding Syafunda,’’ Ngubo told Red Bull in 2018. “During the first two years, the bulk of the funding was really just my personal savings and a whole lot of loans. It was difficult, but I still had to find ways to make the business a success. In fact, I got most of my early business infrastructure by offering my skills in return for resources. For example, I didn’t have money to develop my website so I asked a guy if I could do some consultations for his business and he paid me back by developing my website. That’s how Syafunda was developed. The early years were mostly about looking at what people needed and seeing how I could use that to grow the company.”

He also shares some advice for founders sending in pitches for fund raising.

“Don’t be in too much of a rush to get funding,” he said. “Granted, it’s hard to run a business without it, but you should build your business first. There’s nothing worse than letting people in too early. Basically, don’t go out looking for business partners before you have a business.”

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

MasterCard Names 12 African EdTech Firms for Innovative Learning in ICT

February 24, 2020

Peter Materu, Chief Program Officer at the Mastercard Foundation

Efforts to improve the teaching and learning of information communications technology to young people in Africa has received a boost with the naming of firms from 10 countries for the EdTech project launched by MasterCard Foundation. The Foundation’s Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning in Information, Communications, and Technology (ICT) said the named 12 will benefit from the Centre’s support to expand operations and improve teaching and learning of ICT in secondary schools across the continent. The Fellows were selected after an Africa-wide Request for Proposals late last year.

Innovators were invited to submit proposals that either: enhance and increase accessibility and affordability of professional development for in-service teachers, which also minimizes their out-of-classroom time; or create and deliver enriched learning content that improves quality, relevance, and accessibility to both in-school and out-of-school secondary school learners.

Peter Materu, Chief Program Officer at the Mastercard Foundation says, “The announcement of these first Fellows at the Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning is a milestone moment in the work we are carrying out in Africa. Bringing together these talented entrepreneurs and supporting them as they innovate to drive excellence in teaching and learning offers new opportunities with great potential to raise the bar in African education and benefit tens of millions of students.”

The Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning is a five-year initiative. It was launched in 2018 as part of the Foundation’s Young Arica Works strategy to enable 30 million young people, especially young women, to find dignified and fulfilling work by 2030. The Centre aims to spark innovation and promote promising practices in the use of information and communications technologies for teaching and learning, and to catalyze significant improvements in education across the continent.

The edutech companies will receive a comprehensive package over the next year that includes customized mentorship, financial support, the opportunity to test, validate and scale their business, and a USD40, 000 grant to aid in the development of their solutions.

Those selected are O’Genius Priority, Rwanda. O’Genius Panda is an educational platform where students use computers to perform laboratory experiments equipping them with experiential and practical science knowledge. Others are HITCH Nigeria which is an educational video platform that provides underserved African schools with curated, high quality educational content. AkooBooks Audio, Ghana which is a platform and experience provider that transforms African books into engaging audiobooks that are accessible on mobile phones and Eneza Education Ghana provides learning and revision materials via SMS/USSD on basic feature phones.

Others are iCog Labs, Ethiopia which provides coding and soft skills training to young people in 15 Ethiopian cities, and M-Shule, Kenya which is the first personalized, mobile learning platform in Africa to connect learners with tailored tutoring, training, assessments, and data through SMS. Also named as part of the scheme is Siyavula Education, South Africa, which is a customized online learning platform that uses the latest research on motivation, sequencing, and cognitive science to optimize student study habits and improve test scores.

There is also the Dr. C.L. Smith Foundation from South Africa which hosts the platform Zibuza.net and aims to improve teacher capacity by providing a common platform for teachers that allows them to connect with their peers and other education stakeholders. It is an online professional learning community that gives teachers access to high-quality teaching resources like lesson plans, classroom activities, past exam papers and memos, courseware, tools, and files.

Another winner is Kytabu from Kenya which developed technology that enables students to access short and engaging curriculum content in text, audio, and video formats through a mobile application. Litemore also of Kenya has developed a mobile-first data management platform that allows students’ access to Kenya’s best instructors anywhere, at any time.

Instill Education from South Africa is a mobile teacher-training platform that provides educators with bite-sized and practical content using an approach that reinforces learning and deepens retention, while Chalkboard Education of Ghana offers low tech software and services for institutions to create and track training programs on mobile, without the internet.

Speaking on the development, the Head of the Mastercard Foundation Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning in ICT Mr. Joseph Nsengimana says that MasterCard is very proud and excited “to have this first group of leading African innovators in EdTech with us,” adding that “these companies are working to expand the use of ICT to address some of the most pressing issues facing education in Africa today. We will give them access to the customized mentoring and financial support they need over the next year so that they can test, refine, and validate their products. With that, they can grow their businesses and help to improve learning outcomes throughout Africa.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Egyptian Edtech Startup ‘Knowledge Officer’ Wins $500,000 New Grant In The UK

September 23, 2019

The wave of investment in Egyptian startups this year has been quite remarkable. Knowledge Officer, a London-based edtech startup founded by two Egyptians; Ahmed El-Sharkasy and Ahmed Eshra is the latest to join the train, winning $500,000 (over £400,000) in grant from Innovate UK, United Kingdom’s innovation agency.

Here Is The Deal

The grant called ‘Smart’ according to Innovate UK’s website is for ‘best game-changing or disruptive ideas (from any area of technology) with a view to commercialization.’

Ahmed El-Sharkasy, co-founder and CEO of Knowledge Officer, commenting on the occasion, said:

“The grant will help us scale our ML team in London and support our ambition to help millions of job seekers find the right and proven path to pursue their dream career goals at an affordable price. It’s a huge under-served market and we are here to serve the unserved”

This is a significant amount of money, especially considering the fact that Knowledge Officer’s seed round that it raised in March last year was ~$750,000 (£600,000).
Knowledge Officer in a statement said that they will receive the money after presenting their research and results later this year, to take their platform to the next level.

Why Knowledge Officer Won The Grant

Although Innovate UK says the grant is for the ‘best game-changing or disruptive ideas (from any area of technology) with a view to commercialization,’ Knowledge Officer in a statement noted the grant was awarded based on the significance of the problem Knowledge Officer is working to solve — building the best path-to-employment platform and promoting data-driven learning at scale.

‘‘The Smart grant is awarded to game-changing ideas from business with strong evidence of impact. Knowledge Officer was one of just a few startups selected for the fund from 500 applications,” Knowledge Officer noted in the statement.

It also went ahead to state that winning the grant was further validation of both the problem the startup was looking to solve as well as the approach that it is relying on to execute the problem.

What Knowledge Officer Does

Knowledge Officer which also has an office in Alexandria (Egypt), helps users transition into new careers by analyzing their current skills against their dream career and creating a customized learning path to help them learn the skills needed for the new career of their choice. The six areas that it currently covers include founder, product manager, growth manager, machine learning engineer, marketing specialist, and customer success.

Users are offered curated learning material from around the web that comes with challenges and the option to track one’s progress. The users are required to answer different questions at every stage to advance to the next one and can even compete with their friends on Knowledge Officer.

The platform at different points throughout a user’s learning journey also notifies them when their recently acquired skills match with the relevant jobs on different recruitment platforms.

“In our journey to create the shortest and most efficient path to employment, think [of Knowledge Officer as] Google Maps for learning. We wanted to change the way people perceive learning and transform the overall experience to be based on data and ML. Imagine the impact of a concrete route to take you from your current skill set (Point A) and a transformed, aspirational state (Point B), where you are being offered your dream job.”

Knowledge Officer, according to the statement, has more than 100,000 users now with a few thousand active users on a weekly basis. The startup that offers a premium subscription with extra learning tools to both individuals and businesses aims to reach a stable MRR by the end of 2019 from both B2C and B2B revenue streams.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world

South African Startup Digemy raises R1m In New Funding Round Now Valued at R40m

September 14, 2019

This year, African edutech startups have seen much of investment, compared to their counterparts in fintech, logistics or transport. Cape Town-based edtech startup Digemy seems to be the latest on the scene. The startup has now raised R 1 million in new investment, bringing its total valuation to R40-million.

Here Is The Deal

This is the second round of funding and it came from Greenwold Capital.
The latest investment follows a R2-million investment previously made by Greenwold Capital in the startup in 2017.
However, this would be the end of the road for Digemy’s co-founder Carl Wallace, who Digemy CEO and co-founder Kobus Louw said had been replaced on the startup’s board by an investment representative after Wallace was diagnosed with lupus and Crohn’s disease.
With the recent investment Greenwold Capital now holds a slightly smaller stake, of 24.4%, while Digemy CEO holds a 48.9% stake and Vigo, which allows users to create their own websites, holds the remaining 26.7%.
Wallace’s stake in Digemy was formerly represented by Vigo (which has two tech subsidiary companies — Digital Drawing Room and Wapp).
However effective from 1 September, Wallace was replaced on Digemy’s board by Stocks & Strauss director and co-founder Wayne Stocks, who has previously helped SA tech startup JUMO to expand in East Africa.
Louw said the funding from this second round will be used to expand the Digemy team, launch the besmarta financial literacy platform, and to pursue entrepreneurial development.

What Digemy Does

Digemy was founded in 2016 by Wallace and Louw. The startup’s platform provides corporates with in-depth insights into the knowledge levels of employees, from course-level to the most granular level of every syllabus. Training material is delivered in bite-size chunks.

Despite the disruption around Wallace’s departure, Louw said the startup had signed four listed companies as clients, and had grown its valuation five times in the last 18 months. It has also just finished a proof of concept with one of the top banks in South Africa.
While he could not reveal who the bank was, he said the listed companies include pharmaceutical giant Cipla and Transaction Capital’s software firm Principa. The startup is currently working to conclude a deal with Deloitte too, he added.

Last year, Digemy placed in the top five for the Best Enterprise Solution at the AppsAfrica Awards, won an MTN Business App of the Year award for their besmarta financial literacy solution, and has now been named the second best tech start-up in Africa in 2019, according to Africa Tech Week.
The company has also partnered with Kevin Horsley, New York Times best-selling author and the World Record Holder for the matrix memorisation of 10 000 digits of Pi.
Through this partnership, the startup hopes to develop and launch an app that helps children memorise times tables.

Read Also: Orange Telecommunications Opens Digital Centres Across Africa

Digemy is currently partnering with corporates to roll out its besmarta platform in their organisations.
The platform provides learners with access to microlearning modules and quizzes on financial literacy that aim to decrease financial stress and help them gain financial independence.
The startup is also helping organisations to create their own online academies to assist in employee and consumer education solutions. They also create specialist courses and offer their platform as a SaaS solution.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Paradise Game opens the largest video game, e-learning and edtech center in West Africa

July 27, 2019

The center has the latest types of equipment and focuses on the promotion of esports in Africa.

Paradise Game Center officially opened its doors on Wednesday, July 24th, 2019. Located in the neighborhood with the largest population of the Ivorian capital, the first floor of the new shopping center Cosmos Yopougon, is now home of the largest video game venue of West Africa.

With 1200 sq. meters of space, the center has the latest pieces of equipment and focuses on the promotion of esports in Africa through tournaments and esports players training for international competitions. Video game fans can now enjoy the latest games while preparing for the upcoming FEJA, the largest esports event in Africa.

Starting in September 2019, a dedicated room of 80 m² will host middle school and high school students for training sessions on computers, robotics, and the development of video games.

In 2020, the game center will host the first « edtech & e-learning program » of Yopougon where startups, teachers, students, and entrepreneurs will work together on creating future educational tools for Africa.

These two initiatives are aimed at getting the youth to join the new technology wave and be abreast of robotics, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality.

Paradise Game provides entertainment for children and parents as well. Through various games and activities, they will learn how to build a stronger parent-children relationship.

For the opening of the game center, the entire month of August will be dedicated to celebration activities both inside and outside the Cosmos Yopougon shopping center. From video game crash courses to learning poems and playing board games, the community will be able to discover everything Paradise Game Center has to offer.

« We ambition to transform the entertainment industry in Africa by using games as a way to learn and by allowing young Africans to discover the video game field, robotics, and virtual reality », declared Sidick Bakayoko, founder of Paradise Game.

With more than 500 000 visitors expected per year, Paradise Game Center is positioning itself as a platform to entertain, educate and empower young Africans.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry.

Afrikan Heroes

Tag: edtech

Moroccan Edtech Startup KoolSkools Raises Over $400,000 To Move Schools Online

Here Is What You Need To Know

Why The Investor Invested

A Look At What The Startup Does

Charles Rapulu Udoh

After Years In Search Of Funding, South Africa’s Ed-tech Startup Syafunda Raises $140k Funding To Scale

Here Is What You Need To Know

Why The Investor Invested

A Look At What Startup Syafunda Does

Light At The End Of The Tunnel For Syafunda’s Founder Zakheni Ngubo?

Charles Rapulu Udoh

MasterCard Names 12 African EdTech Firms for Innovative Learning in ICT

Egyptian Edtech Startup ‘Knowledge Officer’ Wins $500,000 New Grant In The UK

Here Is The Deal

Why Knowledge Officer Won The Grant

What Knowledge Officer Does

Charles Rapulu Udoh

South African Startup Digemy raises R1m In New Funding Round Now Valued at R40m

Here Is The Deal

What Digemy Does

Read Also: Orange Telecommunications Opens Digital Centres Across Africa

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Paradise Game opens the largest video game, e-learning and edtech center in West Africa

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