BongoHiveWe work with great minds building viable solutions that change the world by providing a range of startup and innovation programmes all focused on making Zambia Africa’s next hotbed of innovation.
Current Programmes
AICCRA I2G
Accelerating the Impact of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) Supports in-country capacity through the engagement of graduates and young professionals in the development of innovations within the agriculture industry that service Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) and Climate Information Services (CIS) needs.
ZANACO Innovation Challenge
The ZANACO Internal Innovation Challenge seeks to attract new ideas that address current challenges in ZANACO’s ability to deliver superior value to their customers.
DIGILOGIC
The vision of DIGILOGIC is to boost the cooperation and strategic partnership between European and African Digital Innovation Hubs (DIHs)
paving the way for startups, SMEs and innovators to jointly develop smart logistic solutions, in close cooperation with industries and ventures,
securing sustainability and success.
SC Women In Tech Incubator
The Standard Chartered Women in Technology Incubator (WiT) Zambia, is Africa’s leading incubator programme for female-run and founded businesses.
Stanbic Project Innov8 2.0
The Innov8 project, is targeted at Stanbic Bank Zambia staff countrywide who submit their ideas to solve some of the most pressing challenges in delivering financial services today; and preparing for future challenges and the inevitable disruptions caused by ever evolving technologies.
GIZ Tech Talks
Between June and December 2022, BongoHive and GIZ will co-host meetings called “Tech Insaka”. The purpose of these meetings is to gain a better understanding of how to strengthen and support the technology and startup sectors through collaboration between state and non-state actors.
Make-IT in Africa Open Innovation Programme
The Open Innovation Program (OIP) aims to bridge the gap between private and public sector
innovation needs (problem statements) and innovators/start-ups providing customised tech
solutions relevant to the local/regional market conditions;
Zimbabwe Private Sector and MSME Development Advisory Project
A World Bank-funded project focused on Business Development Service Provision and Promoting Digital Platforms for MSMEs in Zimbabwe
Improving the Capacity of Zambian Agricultural SMEs to Use
Digital Technology
Improving the capacity of up to 225 Zambian agricultural SMEs to
use digital technologies to increase sales, reduce expenses and improve access to information,
finance, inputs and services. (ACDI/VOCA)
Past Programmes
Boost with Facebook Zambia
Boost with Facebook is a series of free webinars where you can learn how to use Facebook, Whatsapp, and Instagram tools to take your business online, build resilience, stay connected with customers and adapt in real-time.
Total Startupper
The Startupper of the year Challenge by TotalEnergies is running its 3rd edition in 32 African countries. Its goal is to support young African entrepreneurs between the ages of 18 and 35. BongoHive is providing support to the winners with six months of business coaching. The coaching is provided to the winners to help them develop their projects or startups.
PPAZ Innovation Challenge
This innovation challenge seeks to drive increased education on Sexual Reproductive Health Rights among Zambian youth.
AGS Level-Up
The Accelerated Growth for SMEs in Zambia Programme (AGS) aims to strengthen the Zambian private sector to promote job creation and productivity, in line with the Finnish Country Strategy for Development Cooperation with Zambia.
SC Women In Tech Incubator
The Standard Chartered Women in Technology Incubator (WiT) Zambia, is Africa’s leading incubator programme for female-run and founded businesses.
UNDP BDS
UNDP Climate Change and Energy Experimentation Programme supports eight innovators and startups (SUs) that participated in the National Innovation Fair.
The aim of the programme was to support innovators and startups implement their ideas from prototypes to Minimum Viable Products (MVPs).
Fintech4U Accelerator
The programme was designed for entrepreneurs who started a fintech or digital financial services business that shown the potential to grow throughout Zambia and the regional market.
Boost Up
BOOST UP was a three-part startup support programme organised by the Connected Hubs network and the Southern Africa Innovation Support Programme (SAIS 2) in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia.
Demola AGS Future Challenges Co-creation initiative
The Demola AGS Future Challenges Co-creation initiative was a six-week student-led innovation challenge that invited both Zambian and Finnish companies to collaborate with students in order to source solutions for challenges faced by their industries in the future.
DITCh Plastic
“Digital Innovations for Transitioning to a Circular Plastic Economy (DITCh Plastic) aims to characterise, cluster, synergise and optimise digital innovations that would support/accelerate the transition to a circular plastic economy in Africa.
Financial Management for Small Businesses in Zambia
A World Bank-funded project to improve the Financial Management in Zambia’s Small Manufacturing firms supported by Market Connect programme under the Zambia Agribusiness and Trade Project, implemented by the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry (MCTI).
MTN MoMo Hackathon
MTN Zambia in collaboration with Comviva and BongoHive, invited developers and entrepreneurs in Zambia to participate in the MoMo Hackathon giving entrepreneurs based in Zambia the opportunity to create innovative financial and transactional applications using the MTN MoMo API platform.
Future Traders
Absa Bank Zambia PLC and BongoHive’s Future Traders programme provides the opportunity for interested candidates to build a career in Financial Markets.
Creative Enterprise Programme
A unique two-phased support programme focused on hubs that support creative enterprises in Mozambique, Malawi, & Zambia. A Hub Accelerator to co-create an inclusive toolkit to support creative enterprises and in-country sessions where hubs deliver the training to their communities.
i4Policy
i4Policy supports the emergence of relevant entrepreneurship-focused policy reforms driven by local communities of “policy users” (the people affected by public policy).
Mentor Driven Capital Program
Implementing partners of the VC4A mentorship programme where local mentors with various industry experts are recruited, trained and matched with startups who can benefit from their individual skills.
Drone Hackathon Zambia
Drone Hackathon Zambia seeks to nurture creativity and hone entrepreneurial skills amongst Zambia-based early-stage technology youth entrepreneurs. During this 5-Day Virtual Bootcamp, participants will have the opportunity to learn from experienced drone professionals.
Mobile Innovation Roadshow
infoDev and the SAIS Program convened multiple stakeholders to magnify opportunities in mobile innovation and encourage goal-oriented collaborations for mobile development and entrepreneurship in Zambia, Mozambique, Namibia, and Botswana
Boost Up
Set up, Stand Up and Scale Up events included coaching, pitch competitions and incubation of 5 startups representing each country taking part in Slush 2019 in Helsinki.
Academy for Women Entrepreneurs
A programme aimed at connecting women business builders in Zambia with the tools needed to bring their bright entrepreneurial ideas to life.
DataHack4FI
DataHack for Financial Inclusion brought together data enthusiasts and emerging tech companies to promote data-driven solutions for financial and economic inclusion.
Boost with Facebook Zambia Roadshows
Boost with Facebook roadshows in Solwezi, Kitwe, Chipata, and Lusaka to train small and medium-sized businesses on how to use Facebook to drive business growth.
Zambia Agribusiness Bootcamp
A competitive mentoring and training program designed to help growth-oriented SMEs who operate in value-added agribusiness to derive concrete and feasible expansion plans.
Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
The Entrepreneurship Bootcamp helped assist entrepreneurs to work together and start businesses in 6 thematic areas.
Agribusiness Accelerator Initiative
A partnership of public and private organisations, led by Musika, focusing resources on building the capacity of the small rural businesses that are critical to the deepening and broadening of the agricultural sector.
Spark 4 Kids
A fun 2-day project-based programme hosted during school holidays to introduce kids (9-12yrs) to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) and computer programming.
EdTech Bootcamp
A 3-day workshop & intense one-on-one consultations with experts to accelerate the growth of EdTech startups.
Thrive Investor Readiness Programme
An Investor Readiness Programme in partnership with Prospero and Village Capital to accelerate the growth of socially responsible enterprises.
SADC Innovation Challenge
Supporting early stage innovations that are relevant to financial inclusion in SMME Financing, Digital Financial Identity, Women and Savings, and Access to Basic Services
BongoHive Fintech Challenge
Bongohive partnered with FSD Zambia to promote the development of new ideas that address financial inclusion gaps in Lusaka and Copperbelt provinces of Zambia.
UNICEF Zambia Innovation Lab
The Zambia Innovation Lab allowed UNICEF and the UN in Zambia to convene dynamic, new partners around specific issues that affect children and women and foster the creation of solutions that are designed to go to global scale.
The Finance Bootcamp for Startups
Six American experts worked with Zambia’s most promising startups to help them grow. Startups learned how to get their businesses ready to take on debt and investment and ultimately learn how to grow.