Bolt has honoured Nigeria’s driver community’s top ten innovative ideas with a €25,000 seed fund and other benefits. The initiative was designed to empower drivers beyond ride-hailing services and cultivate entrepreneurial roles and economic growth prospects across Nigeria.
The program garnered an overwhelming response of 1,600 applications, underscoring the enthusiasm for sustainable transport solutions aligned with Bolt’s Africa City Vision. It must be noted that from this pool, 100 drivers advanced to the ideation phase, with the top 20 embarking on an intensive business development boot camp to prepare for pitch day.
Gracing the auspicious event and endorsing the initiative’s positive impact on Nigeria are distinguished personalities, including government representatives and industry leaders, the transportation sector and others.
However, during the pitch session, the top 20 drivers presented inventive business solutions to a panel of judges, with the ten most compelling ideas selected. The concepts showcased drivers’ ingenuity, encompassing converting petrol vehicles to compressed natural gas (CNG), developing mobile applications for on-the-go mechanics, and designing solar-powered equipment, among other innovative ventures.
While underscoring the significance of the initiative, Peter Ogedengbe, Co-founder of The Nest, a leading innovation hub in Nigeria, who also doubles as a partner, noted that “The Bolt Accelerator Program is a valuable endeavour that is empowering Nigerian drivers to become entrepreneurs, we are honoured to partner with Bolt on this program and foster the growth of the Nigerian startup ecosystem.”
Accordingly, at the grand awards ceremony, held on November 21st at Lagos’s Oriental Hotel, the top ten drivers were unveiled, each receiving a €2,000 seed fund and access to a six-week business mentorship program. Additionally, the top 20 drivers were recognized with participation certificates, while three drivers received laptops for categories such as best pitch, most scalable idea, and most innovative idea.
