The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, NSIA, has announced the winners of the third edition of the NSIA Prize for Innovation.
Joyce Onyegbula, NSIA’s Head of Corporate Communications, in a statement disclosed that the winners emerged following an intense pitch session at the NPI 3.0 Demo Day.
It said that this year’s edition awarded the top three finalists with a combined prize value of 220,000 dollars through a mix of equity investment and grant.
According to the statement, the event, held in Abuja, featured 10 finalists who emerged from over 5,000 applicants across the health, agriculture, and education sectors.
It said that the 10 finalists pitched their transformative solutions to a panel of independent judges drawn from Nigeria’s business and technology ecosystem.
The statement said that the NPI initiative supports early-stage Nigerian innovators, and start-up founders to catalyse impactful solutions that address real-world challenges with global relevance.
It said that the programme was a reflection of NSIA’s firm commitment to bolster the Nigerian technology ecosystem.
“The programme seeks to identify, build, and scale early-stage businesses that can stimulate economic growth, create jobs and yield measurable social impact.
“It also connects founders with potential investors and relevant government agencies to provide an enabling environment for them to thrive.
“To expand its impact, the NSIA, in this year’s edition, partnered with the Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain and Cascador.
“This was to award additional prizes and scale the initiative’s impact.
“Three of the 10 finalists received the 15,000 dollars Cascador Impact Prize.
“Three others received the 5,000 dollars PVAC Healthcare Innovation Prize, while all 10 finalists will attend a five-week all-expense paid training programme at Draper University, Silicon Valley,” it said.
The statement said that D-Olivette, which builds and deploys biodigesters that convert food waste into clean energy, emerged as the overall winner.
It said that the innovation by D-Olivette would enable individuals and companies to generate cooking gas and organic fertiliser from food waste using artificial intelligence and automation.
According to the statement, the company was awarded 100,000 dollars from the NSIA and 15,000 dollars from Cascador, bringing its total prize winnings to 115,000 dollars.
It said that Promise Point, a cassava processor that works with over 2,000 smallholder farmers to create nutritious food products, emerged as the first runner-up.
“Promise Point received 70,000 dollars from NSIA and 15,000 dollars from Cascador, totalling 85,000 dollars in winnings.
“GeroCare emerged as the second runner-up with a 50,000 dollar cash prize from NSIA and 5,000 dollars from PVAC, totalling 55,000 dollars,” it said.
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The statement said that Mediverse, a Nigerian-built Laboratory Information Management System and workflow automation platform, received the 5,000 dollars PVAC Healthcare Innovation Prize.
“Sosocare, a low-cost health insurtech company that provides health insurance for the underprivileged using recyclable waste as a financial resource, also received 5,000 dollars from PVAC.
“FriendsnPal, an artificial intelligence-powered mental health technology platform that provides access to real-time mental health therapy, emerged as a recipient of the 15,000 dollars Cascador Impact Prize,” it said.
The statement said that the Managing Director of NSIA, Mr Aminu Umar-Sadiq, said that the event was a testament to NSIA’s steadfast dedication to fostering innovation and supporting home-grown solutions.
Umar-Sadiq said that the event exemplified the untapped potential of Nigerian innovators in addressing pressing challenges with creativity and resilience.
The statement said that Dr Abdu Mukhtar, National Coordinator of PVAC, said that the initiative underscored the importance of supporting healthcare innovation in Nigeria.
Mukhtar said that the partnership between PVAC and NSIA would help to spotlight and scale high-potential innovations in healthcare.
It said that Amanda Etuk, Programme Director of Cascador, said that Cascador awarded 45,000 dollars to early-stage entrepreneurs whose impactful ideas addressed key areas such as education, mental health and nutrition.
Etuk said that the aim was to drive entrepreneurship, promote job creation, and ultimately foster sustainable development.
“Representatives from the Japanese and U.S. embassies reiterated the importance of international collaboration in fostering innovation.
“Japan is investing 10 million dollars in Nigeria’s startup ecosystem, working with the Nigerian government to support early-stage businesses and stimulate economic growth,” the statement said.
