Anambra State Government Announces N100 Million 'Battle4Solutions' Competition for Nigerian Startups

The Anambra State Government has announced the opening of applications for a startup competition titled ‘Battle4Solutions’ through which it plans to award over N100 million in prizes to participating Nigerian startups.

Special Adviser to the Anambra State Governor on Innovation and Business Incubation, Chinwe Okoli, made this known on Tuesday during a press conference on the state’s upcoming Innovation Week.

According to her, the Anambra Innovation Week (AIW) will focus on growth through bold ideas, talent, technology and inventions, highlighted by the state’s flagship competition.

“Battle4Solutions is an innovation competition with a prize pool of over one hundred million naira in cash prizes.

“This competition invites Nigeria’s brightest startups to pitch solutions that address critical societal challenges across sectors such as digital healthcare, renewable energy, e-commerce, agritech, fintech, environment, education, etc.” she said.

Open to startups across Nigeria

Okoli stressed that the competition is not limited to startups in the state but across Nigeria:

“Innovators both in Anambra and across Nigeria are eligible to apply and participate in the Battle4Solutions.”

She added that ministries, agencies, academic institutions, startups and makers are all welcome to participate in their competition categories.

She noted that interested Nigerian startups can apply to participate in the competition through the AIW website.

Anambra Startup Law

Highlighting the efforts of the state government in supporting the startup ecosystem, Okoli said the state is now working towards domesticating the Nigeria Startup Act (NSA) through the Anambra Startup Law.

“Our mandate includes nurturing the ‘Anambra Digital Tribe’, supporting the startup ecosystem, incubating promising ventures, promoting research commercialization and helping companies leverage technology to scale, ” she said.

Okoli added that the state, through programs such as LevelUp Anambra and Code Anambra, has trained over 25,000 youths in various deep technology skills, preparing them for jobs in the global market.

She said the state’s SID Teen Digital Bootcamp also cultivates a new generation of talented teens ready for future global impact.

To support the ecosystem, Okoli said the government is also laying over 2,000 km of fiber optic cable across the state for the last mile of internet connectivity.

What you need to know

Between October 2022, when the Nigeria Startup Act (NSA) was signed into law, and now, 12 of Nigeria’s 36 states have expressed their intention to adopt the NSA or have begun to do so.

The states include Nasarawa, Oyo, Rivers, Osun, Kaduna, Lagos, Kwara, Ekiti, Anambra, Imo, Niger and Zamfara.

The NSA, which encourages the creation of innovation hubs and incubators to support startups, was signed into law by former President Muhammadu Buhari in October 2022.
Like Anambra, the Lagos State government is in the process of drafting its own version of the NSA, called the Lagos Innovation Bill.