US-based technology company IBM is hosting a Kickstart event on October 31 as part of its early stage SmartCamp programme, in Johannesburg, South Africa, marking the first time a SmartCamp event has been held on the African continent
Claudia Fan Munce, managing director of IBM’s Venture Capital Group, said: “By 2030 more than half of all Africans will live in cities, demanding more services, smarter systems and economic opportunities. The SmartCamp KickStart will bring together local entrepreneurs, government officials and members of the academic community to nurture the entrepreneurial innovation and help develop the skills that will be critical to meeting those needs.”
Fan Munce added: “IBM has had a presence in Africa for more than 60 years. The SmartCamp KickStart is one of a series of IBM initiatives designed to take that presence to the next level. Recently, we announced the opening of our first IBM Research lab on the African continent, located in Nairobi Kenya. The lab is focused on Next Generation Public Sector: including big data solutions, advanced analytics, cloud technologies and e-government capabilities to reduce the cost of social services, improve efficiency and productivity, deter fraud and abuse, improve citizen access to services, and enable digital interaction between citizens and the public sector.”
Participants in SmartCamp have now raised more than $60m in venture capital in total.