Fostering ecosystems and entrepreneurship in the Pacific – the Australian Government, GSMA Ecosystem Accelerator and Seedstars

Kenya, Indonesia, Tanzania, India, Jordan, Colombia, Vietnam, Brazil, Ethiopia – over 90 local Seedstars start-ups competitions, now Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Samoa!

Our mission is to build synergies between start-ups and mobile operators, with the aim of scaling innovative and sustainable digital services in emerging markets. One of the regions where we operate is the Pacific and thanks to the Australian Government, we’re now partnering with Seedstars to bring mentoring, support and pitch competitions to Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Samoa.

Register to attend

Starting on 16 July (lasting three days up to and including 18 July) in Papua New Guinea, Seedstars will host a two-day bootcamp, followed by a full day pitching competition in front of a panel of international investment experts. The winners of the competition will get the opportunity to participate in the upcoming regional (Asia) and global (Switzerland) Seedstars events.

Previous edition of the Regional Summit in the Asian and Pacific region

The second event will begin on 13 August in Fiji and the third on 24 September in Samoa. Both will provide the same great mentoring and competition experience, across three days, ending on 15 August and 26 September respectively. We are all really pleased to be able to visit these developing ecosystems, bringing to the fore their potential and inspiring more local entrepreneurs by supporting a few local start-ups. Along with the invited regional mentors and Seedstars’ Investment Team, Ecosystem Accelerator Innovation Fund portfolio start-ups and mobile network operators in each country are also expected to provide mentoring and coaching to the attendees.

These events will dedicate the first two days to the founders of the participating start-ups, exploring the challenges that start-ups initially face, such as how to find the right product, how to explain their unique selling point (USP) and ways to effectively market themselves and their solution.

The founders will also be taking part in a three-hour pitch training session and have the opportunity to discuss their specific challenges with the Seedstars team and local mentors during mentoring sessions. All of this will prepare them for the public event on the third day. The winning start-up will receive an all-expenses paid trip to the three-day Seedstars Asia Summit and the week-long Seedstars Global Summit in Switzerland. At these Summits they will participate in bootcamp sessions, one to one mentoring, curated investor meetings, as well as raise awareness and forge international connections.

The GSMA Ecosystem Accelerator Innovation Fund is already supporting two start-ups in these developing ecosystems – Pacific Ads Group in Papua New Guinea and SkyEye in Samoa. We’re hopeful that they are just the first of many and we are really looking forward to bringing these events to the Pacific.

“One of the most rewarding parts of our work is highlighting the talents and ecosystems that are not known for innovation, but that are brimming with potential and entrepreneurial spirit. I can’t wait to see what we find in the Pacific Islands!” says Rosie Keller, Regional Manager for Seedstars Asia.

Seedstars Team Members at a previous edition of the Regional Summit for Asia and the Pacific

“The Pacific Islands are paving their own way towards digital and financial inclusion, realising and employing the potential of digital technology to improve the lives of their citizens and their economies. We’re really pleased to be able to bring these bootcamps and pitching competitions to Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Samoa and look forward to seeing the results!”, Max Cuvellier, GSMA Head of Mobile for Development Utilities and Ecosystem Accelerator

Thanks to the Australian Government, we’re able to partner with Seedstars to bring these world-class events to Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Samoa.

Interested in applying?

The Ecosystem Accelerator programme is supported by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), the Australian Government, the GSMA and its members.

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