Applications call for Acumen and IKEA Social Entrepreneurship East Africa Accelerator 2021. You will have access to case studies from Acumen social enterprises and curriculum materials that package IKEA’s business knowledge. In addition to that, you will complete your own assignments to apply lessons directly to your business and then join biweekly interactive Learning Labs to give and receive feedback from your peers. And you will also receive biweekly individualized coaching from IKEA coaches.

Participants should expect to spend at least 8 hours per week working on your project. Most of this work can be done on your own schedule. Furthermore, you will need 1-2 Lead Participants from the leadership team of your social enterprise to show up to the Learning Labs every other week and can have up to 10 people from your social enterprise access all of the curriculum materials.

Moreover, the program will culminate with a virtual Final Summit where you will attend final workshops and have a chance to network, pitch your venture, receive feedback from industry leaders, and be considered for up to $25k in seed funding.

Outcomes and Benefits

Acumen and IKEA Social Entrepreneurship East Africa Accelerator has the following outcomes and benefits to the participants

• 6 Peer Learning Labs
• At least 6 sessions with an IKEA coach
• Video tutorials
• Case studies from East African social enterprises
• Interviews that package IKEA’s business knowledge
• Eligibility to compete for $25k per startup in seed funding

Eligibility

Social Entrepreneurs in East Africa who:

• Run a social enterprise (nonprofit or for-profit) based in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, or Ethiopia.
• Have proven customer demand and demonstrate increasing annual revenue.
• Have a team equivalent to 3 full-time staff.
• Focus on promoting livelihoods, equality and inclusion.

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