Winners of Johnson & Johnson Africa Innovation Challenge Announced

TL;DR

Johnson & Johnson announces the winners of the Africa Innovation Challenge 2.0, providing $300,000 in funding and support to six outstanding innovators in Africa.

Transcript

before hello everyone and welcome to the World Economic Forum on Africa 2019 this is a press conference and also an award and we're looking at innovators in Africa so it's part of the Johnson and Johnson Champions of science Africa Innovation Challenge and I'm delighted to be joined by Seema Kumar who's the vice president of innovation for innovati... Read More

Key Insights

• 🌍 Johnson & Johnson has been in Africa for 90 years and has a legacy of supporting innovation on the continent.
• 🌍 The Africa Innovation Challenge aims to support rising entrepreneurship and innovation in Africa, focusing on solving specific challenges in local communities.
• 🇨🇫 Intellectual property protection and registration is crucial for African innovators, and South Africa has implemented legislation and financial assistance to support this.
• 👨‍💼 The winners of the Africa Innovation Challenge 2.0 will have the opportunity to scale up their innovations and create sustainable businesses with the support of Johnson & Johnson's resources.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the Africa Innovation Challenge, and what are its objectives?

The Africa Innovation Challenge, launched by Johnson & Johnson, aims to support African innovators in solving specific challenges in their communities and create sustainable businesses through innovation.

Q: How many submissions were received for the Africa Innovation Challenge 2.0?

The challenge received 900 submissions from 39 different countries across Africa.

Q: What are some of the categories of innovation that were awarded?

The winners of the Africa Innovation Challenge 2.0 were awarded for innovative solutions in healthcare, blood delivery, healthcare worker burnout, hearing loss, neonatal jaundice, and malaria prevention.

Q: What support do the winners receive, apart from the funding?

In addition to the $50,000 funding, the winners receive mentorship, coaching, and access to the resources and expertise of Johnson & Johnson's ecosystem.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Johnson & Johnson launched the Africa Innovation Challenge three years ago to support entrepreneurship and innovation in Africa, resulting in the selection of three winners from Liberia, Burundi, and Uganda.

• This year, the challenge received 900 submissions from 39 different countries, and six winning innovators from four countries are awarded $50,000 each to support their innovative solutions in healthcare, blood delivery, healthcare worker burnout, hearing loss, neonatal jaundice, and malaria prevention.

• The award includes mentorship, coaching, and access to Johnson & Johnson's resources to help these innovators scale up their ideas and create sustainable businesses.