The Grand Jury of the 2020 Agriculture Innovation Challenges organized by the World Bank and Draper University have selected the top solutions within the three categories to move forward with a virtual ‘shark-tank’ style pitching event.
[Washington D.C., 15 Apr.] Since the closure of the application period for the 2020 Agriculture Innovation Challenges designed to support agriculture and food security risk financing in Southern Africa, the Grand Jury has been working on the pre-selection of the top innovators to proceed with the virtual pitching event to anticipate the winners in each of the three categories: Alternative Methods for Measuring Weather Variables, Animal and Plant Pests and Diseases and Agriculture Data.
The Challenge received 116 proposals from innovators covering a wide geography of 33 countries, including India, South Africa, Russia, various African countries, and other regions. The Grand Jury, composed of experts and officials from Governments from the Southern Africa Region, private companies, investors, and international organizations, has selected the top solutions to proceed with a ‘shark-tank’ session. The representatives of the jury board will come from such organizations as The World Bank, Draper University, Weather Impact, WFP, Global Parametrics, Accenture, SHIFT, InnMind, AGNIi, IFAD, Pula, CIAT, SADC and others.
The selected applicants are invited to participate in the virtual set of events, starting on 21st April, that will span three days (each day for a different challenge) and feature a panel of global experts from the World Bank Group and partner institutions, discussing current challenges with the management of food security and agriculture risks in Southern Africa. The core of the event will involve a panel of global experts and investors that will be questioning the innovators and their solution in a “shark-tank” style format in 30-minute sessions.
The innovation pitching sessions will be streamed live on YouTube, so anyone who is willing to join can follow the event. The winners will be selected and announced after the event on the official website of the Agriculture Innovation Challenges.
If you would like more information about the Agriculture Innovation Challenges, email Kristina Louise Zittel at kzittel@worldbank.org
For more information, visit the Agriculture Innovation Challenge website.
