Join a growing community of innovative African founders and take your startup to the next level.

The MEST Africa Challenge (MAC) 2025, led by MEST Africa and powered by Absa, is a premier Pan-African pitch competition for early-stage tech startups. It offers a platform to scale through equity funding, strategic networks, and global exposure.

Finalists will pitch live to a room full of leading investors, corporates, and ecosystem players. The winning startup stands to gain several benefits, including $50,000 in equity, entry into the prestigious MEST Portfolio, the opportunity to explore commercial pilots with Absa, and access to a range of exclusive partner opportunities.

Competition timelines
  • Applications open 4 August 2025
  • Applications close 26 September 2025
  • Top 20 participants announced on 10 October 2025
  • Virtual semi-finals in the week of 27 October 2025
  • In-person finals in Cape Town, South Africa in the week of 24 November 2025

Apply now

Sector focus

The sector focus is on Fintech and other value chains. Solutions may include: 

  • Smart credit and alternative-lending
  • Fraud and trust tech
  • Personalised money OS
  • Offline-friendly rails
  • Next-gen payments and wallets
  • Investment gateways
  • Agri-tech engines
  • Financial literacy re-imagined
  • Omnichannel CX and super-apps
  • Trade and cross-border boosters
  • Product-landing platforms
  • Value-add service layers
  • Integration orchestrators
  • Micro and on-demand insurtech

Apply now

Eligibility criteria

  • Early to growth-stage startups (less than 3 years in operation) 
  • Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) of at least US $5,000 with at least 6 months of recurring revenue
  • Cumulative funding raised must be US $1 million or less
  • Must be operating in at least one of the following key markets:
    -Botswana
    -Uganda
    -Mauritius
    -Seychelles
    -Kenya
    -Mozambique
    -Zambia
    -Ghana
  • Minimum of two co-founders or founding team members
  • Must be able to pitch in English
  • Registered as a Delaware C-corp or in a neutral jurisdiction 

Apply now

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Frequently asked questions

  • What are the thematic areas for MAC 2025?

    Smart credit and alt-lending
    • Instant credit decisions for BNPL, cards, micro-loans
    • Agri and startup loan engines using non-traditional data
    • MSME scoring built on telco, utility and POS signals
    • Plug-and-play credit-risk cover via insurtech APIs
    Fraud and trust tech
    • AI that spots deepfakes and synthetic IDs in real time
    • Biometric ID&V layers that slash digital fraud
    • Always-on monitoring that learns and adapts
    Personalised money OS
    • Hyper-tailored offers driven by first-party analytics
    • Multi-bank personal finance managers that ‘just work’
    • Open-banking checkout APIs and curated API hubs
    Offline-friendly rails
    • Auto reconciliation and payouts for cash-heavy billers (gov, utilities)
    • WhatsApp-first banking for youth and gig workers
    • “Ecosystem banking” playbooks for schools, mines, markets
    Next-gen payments and wallets
    • Embedded checkout for e-commerce and gig platforms
    • Proxy-Pay P2P, shared wallets, easy app plugins
    • Social gifting, group pots and susu via bank-linked wallets
    Investment gateways
    • Marketplaces for both traditional and alternative assets
    • Diaspora-powered SME crowdfunding and remittances
    • Digital group saving/investment clubs (SACCO 2.0)
    Agri-tech engines
    • IoT-guided smart farming with sensors and drones
    • Farmer networks for learning, inputs, secondments
    • Robust profiling tools that plug farmers into finance and markets
    Financial literacy re-imagined
    • Gamified money lessons for women and youth
    • USSD/mobile micro-courses co-built with ed-tech partners
    Omnichannel CX & super apps
    • One front door to multiple banks and fintechs
    • Fintech aggregation inside super apps
    • “One-tap onboard” journeys that feel uber-easy
    Trade and cross-border boosters
    • End-to-end SME trade portals—forex, customs, finance
    • Pan-African payment and logistics bridges for commerce
    Product-landing platforms
    • White-label or modular marketplaces that let Absa (and partners) launch new products to internal and external users in weeks, not months
    • Built-in compliance, KYC/AML, and analytics dashboards
    • Being able to host Absa’s offers out-of-the-box is a clear edge
    Value-add service layers
    • Third-party solutions—insurance add-ons, telco bundles, loyalty perks—delivered through open APIs
    • “Drop-in” integrations that enrich Absa’s existing channels and unlock fresh fee lines
    • Services independent of core banking rails yet tightly linked to customer value
    Integration orchestrators
    • Middleware or iPaaS players that stitch multiple partner services into a single API for Absa apps
    • Pre-built connectors to telcos, utilities, gov platforms, and fintech data sources
    • One-touch onboarding for new partners, slashing time-to-market for features
    Micro and on-demand insurtech
    • Pay-as-you-use cover; usage-based pricing; instant AI-driven claims

     

  • Where will the semi-final pitch competition be?

    The semi finals will be virtual. A link for this session will be shared in advance to all semi finalists.

  • What is the grand prize?

    $50,000 in equity investment, access to MEST portfolio resources and prizes from this year’s partners.

  • Where does my startup need to be located to participate in the challenge?

    You’re eligible to apply if your company operates in one or more of the target countries – Botswana, Uganda, Mauritius, Seychelles, Kenya, Mozambique, Zambia or Ghana.

  • How long are finalists expected to be in Cape Town for the final demo day?

    3-4 days. Plan to arrive in Cape Town 1-2 days before the final competition and depart the day after.

  • Will MEST organise pitch readiness sessions for applicants?

    Pitch readiness sessions will only be organised for finalists in preparation for the final demo day.

  • Who incurs the cost for travel for the final demo day in South Africa?

    Finalists will be fully sponsored with travel to and from Cape Town including, housing, and transport for the final pitch day in November 2025. Please plan to arrive in Cape Town a few days before.

  • In which city and country will the finale be held?

    Cape Town, South Africa.

  • Is the pitch competition physical?

    Hybrid. Semi finals will be virtual and the final demo day will be in person in Cape Town, South Africa.

  • When will the winners be announced?

    Semi finalists will be announced a few days after their pitch and the overall challenge winner will be announced at the end of the final demo day in November.

  • Which language should we pitch in?

    All pitches and Q&A will be made in English.

  • How long do we have for our pitch?

    Each pitch will last for 5 minutes with 5 minutes Q&A. Startups can include a live demo of their product during pitches. This should be within time.

  • What are the video pitch guidelines for the application?

    • The video duration should be a maximum of 3 minutes and can be taken with a mobile phone
    • The applicant must appear on camera for the pitch. This means that animated videos, videos with text and a voiceover, etc. cannot be used as the pitch
    • Applicants will not be scored on video quality, as the focus will be on the pitch itself, however, the applicant must ensure s/he is visible and audible
    • The pitch must be made in English

  • What are the eligibility criteria for MAC 2025?

    • Must be an early-stage technology startup
    • Must be a fintech, insuretech or operating in similar value chains
    • Must offer at least one of the following solutions – Digital payments, financial inclusion, insurance innovation and or value chain financing
    • Must be operating in at least one of the following key markets: Botswana, Uganda, Mauritius, Seychelles, Kenya, Mozambique, Zambia and Ghana
    • Monthly recurring revenue: A minimum of $5,000
    • Funding raised: Cumulative $1 million or less
    • Years in existence: 3 years and below
    • Traction: At least 6 months of recurring revenue
    • Founding team: At least 2 founding team members
    • Registered in Delaware (This is preferred)

  • What are the various stages of the competition?

    • Complete an online application including a 3-minutes video pitch
    • Selection of the top 20 applicants
    • Virtual semi-finals competition
    • Selection of top 10 startups
    • The top 10 compete at the grand finale and demo day in Cape Town, South Africa