Our story
Afritech Business Summit was created to help Sub-Saharan francophone Africa become a major player in cloud-native, AI-first, and innovation-driven economies. The idea began in New York City, where our founder Noel K. Tshiani saw the immense potential of African entrepreneurs, innovators creating solutions to solve local challenges, yet often without access to the networks, capital, and partnerships needed to scale.
The vision was shaped through more than a decade of experience in New York City, the world’s leading financial center and the second-largest startup ecosystem globally, home to nearly 25,000 startups across diverse sectors. Observing how cities like New York and San Francisco built thriving startup ecosystems where startup founders benefit from smart public policy, strong collaboration with major companies, and deep access to institutional investors, he recognized that these best practices could be adapted for Sub-Saharan francophone Africa.
But he also observed a major gap: while African startups were innovating, they lacked the ecosystems that turn good ideas into global successes. Afritech Business Summit brings together innovators, investors, and policymakers to build the networks and resources needed for startups to scale and compete worldwide.
The upcoming edition will be held in Dakar on December 15–16, 2025, bringing together 2,500 participants, including entrepreneurs, thought leaders, corporations, and public institutions from Africa and beyond. The summit will focus on five high-impact sectors—fintech, edtech, medtech, agritech, and insurtech—while spotlighting six fast-growing innovation ecosystems: Dakar, Abidjan, Douala, Kinshasa, Lomé, and Cotonou. Together, these cities represent the epicenter of Sub-Saharan francophone Africa’s digital transformation, and Afritech Business Summit will provide them with the global stage they deserve.