What we do | Tech E.I.G.

WORKSHOPS – COACHING – FUNDING
A Helping Hand For Young African Innovators

We provide a platform and vehicle for African thinkers to step out of their comfort zones to become DOERS!

We provide a platform and vehicle for African thinkers, especially the Ghanaian thinkers, to become DOERS! We provide techniques and processes to help move great ideas into reality. We have identified the core reasons as to why our youth don’t have the drive to innovate and we seek to remove such known reasons to give our youth the best chances to succeed as Technology entrepreneurs. For example,

*   We make them aware of the processes and techniques involved, to at least give it a trial.
*   We put them in Tech E.I.G. teams of members with complementary skills to improve their chances and to reduce an individual getting overwhelmed.
*   We make sure there are publicized successful role models for them to look up to.   i.e. to emulate and learn from.
*   We also ensure our activities are well publicized as an institutional approach to drive the youth to think big.
*   Very importantly, we make them aware of how and when they can get funding through Tech E.I.G. as a way to assure them of financial support should they come up with great and marketable ideas.
*   We eliminate social inhibitions in society, which discourage the youth from going wild with their imaginations to the point of innovation.

* …etc.

We are not only providing the youth with the necessary tools and techniques but assure them of financial Support. The youth teams also, soon realize that they are not going to be handed money for useless efforts. They will have to prove themselves by financing their ideas up to a demonstrable level with a minimum viable product (MVP), in order to be considered for funding.

Standby financiers are ready to support marketable solutions from hardworking youth teams.
Tech E.I.G aims at making young African thinkers executives of profitable tech startup firms through their own initiatives; and by their activities help reduce unemployment as a whole in the focus population. We want to wake up sleeping innovators amongst the African youth.

WORKSHOPS
This project seeks to bring processes and techniques to the focus population to at least allow them to try this “Let’s do it” concept; and it will be brought to them by way of workshops, such as:

Team Formation and how to work in startup groups;
Tools and techniques to encourage idea generations;
Protection of the ideas, to ensure no one is exploited;
Creation of minimum viable products(MVP).

These workshops and coaching will be brought to the focus population wherever they are at no cost to them, at Internet cafés, conference halls, Tech E.I.G TV, online and/or on national TV depending on funding.

COACHING & MENTORSHIP
After the formation of Tech E.I.G teams, the participating registered youth teams will then have direct interaction with the tech E.I.G organization for guidance and coaching. In the process, the teams may be introduced to industry professionals and experts who will provide additional guidance through coaching and mentorship.

FUNDING

Once a participating youth team successfully identifies a real problem and comes up with marketable technological solution to the problem, by developing an MVP(minimum viable product), it is presented to Tech E.I.G. for evaluation and consideration for funding. At this point, the teams would have invested in the idea themselves by funding it up to the development of the MVP.
The funding options for consideration at this point will be as follows:

1. Standby Fund 1 (Conditionally Committed Reserve – Return on Investment is Expected)

The Tech E.I.G. youth teams will have to prove themselves by financing their ideas up to a demonstrable level with a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), in order to be considered for this type of fund. Once the submitted MVP meets Tech E.I.G. requirements, depending on the donor conditions the youth team may receive this fund. Most importantly, by committing to this fund, the donor from the onset is inspiring the youth team to work harder. As such, this fund is an assurance to the participating youth teams that when a great and marketable idea is generated, there will be financial support to see them through from the “idea” to the implementation stage. This is not a gift from the donor; there will be a return on investment in a successful venture. This type of fund is critical to “Tech E.I.G” since it is the core driver to get the youth to move forward great ideas, into reality.

2. Standby Fund 2 (Pre-qualification — Direct Youth Engagement)

This fund is set aside to support ideas and concepts with great potential but did not meet the Tech E.I.G. minimum requirement and/or conditions set by donors for Standby Fund 1. This Standby Fund 2 will be used to push those deficient but with great potential ideas, to a level where they can possibly meet funding requirements for Standby Fund 1. It must be noted that, at this point, the youth team would have invested in the idea themselves by funding it up to the development of the MVP and may have to go back to the drawing board with recommendations from “Tech E.I.G” and/or financiers.

3. Non-committed Funds

It is also possible that the Tech E.I.G. organization strongly believes in your MVP but based on donors’ conditions on available resources, the youth team may not qualify for Standby Fund 1 and Standby Fund 2. Under such circumstances, the Tech E.I.G. organization will make the most effort with all its contacts to showcase the MVP and seek non-committed funds to support the startup idea.