In all six Ghanaian start-ups and small and medium sized companies will today showcase their innovations to global investors for possible funding at the maiden edition of BlueInvest Africa conference in Seychelles.
The companies include DD Vision Trade, a registered financial broker; Deltee Limited Company, a company specialised in fisheries and aquaculture and Ecofashion Ghana, an eco-friendly company that is creating a circular economy for plastic waste.
The remaining are the Fisheries Commission, an implementing agency of the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MoFAD); Kuueza, a B2B Ecommerce marketplace, mobile and web Technology and NshoNam, a technology-enabled marketing solution for fresh seafood.
This was contained in a statement issued by the European Union Delegation to Ghana and copied to the Ghanaian Times in Accra yesterday.
The two-day event being organised by the European Union in collaboration with the Republic of Seychelles would provide an opportunity to put forward the African know-how and local skills, business projects, and initiatives.
It will bring together investors from Africa and Europe and African start-ups in order to generate business opportunities and promote the blue economy sector in Africa.
The statement said the EU was prioritising the creation of a business climate that benefitted small and medium-sized enterprises across the African continent.
It indicated that a total of 22 African countries would be represented in Seychelles by start-ups that have been selected.
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"They will present their innovative projects in the major sub-sectors of the blue economy, namely sustainable tourism, blue energy, robotic sciences and engineering in the service of marine resources, sustainable aquaculture, plastic waste recycling and the fight against marine pollution - to investors from Africa and Europe," it added.
The statement underscored that the programme would offer selected companies a unique opportunity to network with financial institutions including the European Investment Bank and the World Bankas well as private investors.
"In addition to project' pitching sessions, the BlueInvest Africa programme includes site visits of projects in Seychelles, B2B meetings, an exhibition of blue economy projects in Africa as well as exchange sessions between participants," it added.
The statement said that both Africa and Europe had identified the blue economy as a key sector to pursue their socio-economic objectives and achieve the various objectives of the 2030 Agenda.
Yet, it said access to finance continued to be a challenge for many blue economy small and medium enterprises for which reason the programme was underway.
