Johnni Kjelsgaard is the Founder and CEO of GrowthAfrica. Since starting GrowthAfrica, Johnni and his team have helped to accelerate 152 startups with $42 Million in total venture capital being raised by startups going through their accelerator.
 He has spent most of his professional life in Africa, and has been directly involved in over 20 start-ups and joint ventures. Johnni represents various organisations and investors on a board level, advising on a policy and strategy level.
 On this episode you'll learn:
 -What opportunities does Johnni see in secondary cities in East Africa?
 -What are the biggest differences between great seed investors in Africa and great Series A investors?
 -What skills does Johnni see as most lacking in native entrepreneurs across Africa?

Accelerating Africa's High Potential Entrepreneurs

We deliver independent emerging market focused technology, digital and innovation insights and analysis.

Every quarter we produce a community activation mini-series diving deep into the most pertinent issues, headlines, and conversations in the global startup movement.

We produce podcasts, virtual activations, live events, and bespoke market insight content with a deep understanding of the complex dynamics of the stakeholders within the global tech and innovation landscape.

The show is executive produced by presented by entrepreneur, Andrew Berkowitz.

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Ecosystem Arabia - Episode 6 of 6 - In the sixth and final episode of our 6 week community activation, host Andrew Berkowitz dives into how ecosystem builders in the region can better engage their diaspora and incentivize talented expats to move to the region to start and invest in startups.
This community activation is an interactive digital gathering of the Middle East and North African startup ecosystems it consists of a 6 episode podcast mini-series and a 6 week live-streamed startup pitch competition, which will both culminate in an interactive virtual summit on February 16th.
Register for the virtual summit at https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit (https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit)
Interact with the podcast and pitch competition by registering your email https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv/ (https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv)
A special thanks to our presenting partner https://www.exim.gov/mena (The Export-Import Bank of the United States). As the global middle class grows and technology makes the world smaller, opportunities have never been greater for American businesses to reach customers beyond U.S. border. EXIM provides federal resources to access capital and mitigate foreign risk. And no business is too small. Let EXIM help you export fearlessly to the MENA region and beyond. Visit exim.gov/mena to learn more.

Reversing the MENA brain drain

Ecosystem Arabia - Episode 5 of 6 - In the fifth episode of our 6 week community activation, host Andrew Berkowitz dives into the different types of capital available to entrepreneurs in the MENA region.
This community activation is an interactive digital gathering of the Middle East and North African startup ecosystems it consists of a 6 episode podcast mini-series and a 6 week live-streamed startup pitch competition, which will both culminate in an interactive virtual summit on February 16th.
Register for the virtual summit at https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit (https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit)
Interact with the podcast and pitch competition by registering your email https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv/ (https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv)
A special thanks to our presenting partner https://www.exim.gov/mena (The Export-Import Bank of the United States). As the global middle class grows and technology makes the world smaller, opportunities have never been greater for American businesses to reach customers beyond U.S. border. EXIM provides federal resources to access capital and mitigate foreign risk. And no business is too small. Let EXIM help you export fearlessly to the MENA region and beyond. Visit exim.gov/mena to learn more.

Increasing access to capital for MENA startups

Ecosystem Arabia - Episode 4 of 6 - In the fourth episode of our 6 week community activation, host Andrew Berkowitz dives into the Israel and UAE economic normalization, what it means for the country's startup ecosystems, and how tech can be a force for connection between Israelis, Palestinians, Arabs, and Jews.
This community activation is an interactive digital gathering of the Middle East and North African startup ecosystems it consists of a 6 episode podcast mini-series and a 6 week live-streamed startup pitch competition, which will both culminate in an interactive virtual summit on February 16th.
Register for the virtual summit at https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit (https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit)
Interact with the podcast and pitch competition by registering your email https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv (https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv)
A special thanks to our presenting partner https://www.exim.gov/mena (The Export-Import Bank of the United States). As the global middle class grows and technology makes the world smaller, opportunities have never been greater for American businesses to reach customers beyond U.S. border. EXIM provides federal resources to access capital and mitigate foreign risk. And no business is too small. Let EXIM help you export fearlessly to the MENA region and beyond. Visit exim.gov/mena to learn more.

Startups as a force for Israeli economic normalization

Ecosystem Arabia - Episode 3 of 6 - In the third episode of our 6 week community activation, host Andrew Berkowitz hands the mic over to Joy Ajlouny, the Cofounder of Fetchr in Dubai and Viola Llewelyn, the Cofounder of Ovamba Solutions in Cameroon for a candid discussion on what it's like being a woman leader building a tech scaleup in the Gulf region and in Africa.
This community activation is an interactive digital gathering of the Middle East and North African startup ecosystems it consists of a 6 episode podcast mini-series and a 6 week live-streamed startup pitch competition, which will both culminate in an interactive virtual summit on February 16th.
Register for the virtual summit at https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit (https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit)
Interact with the podcast and pitch competition by registering your email https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv (https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv)
A special thanks to our presenting partner https://www.exim.gov/mena (The Export-Import Bank of the United States). As the global middle class grows and technology makes the world smaller, opportunities have never been greater for American businesses to reach customers beyond U.S. border. EXIM provides federal resources to access capital and mitigate foreign risk. And no business is too small. Let EXIM help you export fearlessly to the MENA region and beyond. Visit exim.gov/mena to learn more.

Female leadership in the Middle Eastern and African tech industries

Ecosystem Arabia - Episode 2 of 6 - In the second episode of our 6 week community activation, we tell the inside stories of the entrepreneurs laying down the foundation for the payments, logistics, and artificial intelligence industries in the region.
This community activation is an interactive digital gathering of the Middle East and North African startup ecosystems it consists of a 6 episode podcast mini-series and a 6 week live-streamed startup pitch competition, which will both culminate in an interactive virtual summit on February 16th.
Register for the virtual summit at https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit (https://hopin.com/events/ecosystem-arabia-virtual-summit)
Interact with the podcast and pitch competition by registering your email https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv (https://www.ecosystemarabia.tv)
A special thanks to our presenting partner https://www.exim.gov/mena (The Export-Import Bank of the United States). As the global middle class grows and technology makes the world smaller, opportunities have never been greater for American businesses to reach customers beyond U.S. border. EXIM provides federal resources to access capital and mitigate foreign risk. And no business is too small. Let EXIM help you export fearlessly to the MENA region and beyond. Visit exim.gov/mena to learn more.

Accelerating Africa's High Potential Entrepreneurs

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