According to a UN report, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) estimates that 346 million people in Africa are severely food insecure, which equates to one-fourth of the continent’s population not having enough to eat. Conflict and extreme weather conditions have contributed significantly to food insecurity in African nations, endangering the lives of millions with widespread hunger and poverty.
In a recent report, the World Food Programme (WFP) verified that floods that have killed hundreds, uprooted tens of thousands from their homes, and devastated more than one million hectares of agricultural land have harmed 5 million people in 19 West and Central African countries. On the other side, malnutrition has increased as a result of drought and certain nations’ failure to receive rain for four seasons in a row.
Water scarcity or flooding will likely be the main phenomenon that shows the effects of climate change in many African nations, as these conditions can have a direct impact on agricultural, productivity, and health.
All of these economic and environmental conditions, along with other elements like the COVID-19 pandemic’s side effects and the Russian-Ukrainian war, will increase Africa’s need for innovations in climate and food technology, which have emerged as many startups’ top priorities. In order to comprehend Africa’s need for these technologies, it is crucial to understand what these technologies entail and the role that startups play in developing and realising them.
Benefits of Climate and Food Technology
The technology related to climate change is focused on lowering carbon and gases emissions, adjusting to its consequences, or improving our knowledge of the climate through data and information. On the other hand, food technology is concerned with the application of food science and the provision of food from the farm to the table. An increasing number of startups are interested in technologies to find sustainable solutions for the economy and the environment, and it is increasingly common for all investments in Africa to focus on the problems the continent is facing.
Egypt as an African country has been able to draw attention to its initiatives in the area of ecosystem-supported climate, food technology, accelerators, and business incubators as a host of the International Climate Change Summit COP27. This has been clearly stated by its support for startups and young entrepreneurs as they establish entrepreneurial and technological ventures that benefit Africa. Egypt has emphasized on advancing the implementation stage of pledges so that rich countries can honour their commitments to aid African nations harmed by climatic changes.
The Egyptian government, World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), joined forces to launch the first-ever Clima Tech Run 2022 global competition, which aimed to support technology and sustainability entrepreneurs and showcase their innovative work at COP27, and among the competing companies is LiquidGold, whose founder, Orion Herman, says has found a solution to the lack of sanitation and composting, according to a CNN video report with LiquidGold’s founder.
Startups Execution
Orion Herman, CEO and founder of LiquidGold Africa, participated in COP27 to promote the company that specializes in making sewage waterless and getting a chance to win $100,000 during its mission to combat climate change.
“Now we’re part of the solution to fixing climate change, our company is high-impact and focused on providing safe sanitation and recovering valuable nutrients from human waste, and how we work is our ability to deploy safe sanitation in schools, giving us the ability to convert urine from its source into useful fertilizer that is then sold in emerging markets. Finally it’s time to act and be part of the ecosystem as entrepreneurs.” Orion Herman said.
According to Bernhard Kowatsch, the judge of Clima Tech and the director of WFP’s Innovation Accelerator Program, LiquidGold Africa was one of 15 startups that reached the finals to compete at Clima Tech.
“The Clima tech competition was organized to find new innovative solutions that can help us take a step towards change, to address the climate challenge. I think this is where we can really find more solutions, as the competition focuses on the resolving that can help mitigate climate change, and startups can come up with new ideas. Sometimes it takes creative ideas, energy and passion to make things happen.” Bernhard added in the video report.
Although LiquidGold startups did not win the big prize, they placed second and were one of the five winning startups with $ 25,000 apiece. This will help them to grow and attract more investors and partners.
Another example of a data analytics-based artificial intelligence solution to uncover food and climate problems like water leakage is the Egyptian startup Wai Technologies, which specialises in fixing water network holes.
Shamsina is a third instance of a climate technology firm in Egypt that creates and produces affordable solar solutions for communities with low access to electricity. Shamsina makes use of local expertise in these technologies and relieves customers of monthly expenses.
According to estimates from Magnitt paltform, the startup industry in Egypt has grown over the previous several years, with venture capital funding hitting $ 491 million in 2021 and startups raising $ 392 million through 120 agreements in the first nine months of 2022. It should be noted that many of these companies are not focused only on the Egyptian market, but also consider their expansion in the Arab and Gulf region in addition to African countries.
In conclusion, ensuring the future of these startups and their expansion and support guarantees us new horizons in the field of climate and food technology and the development of our endeavors in finding sustainable solutions for renewable energy sources, clean industry, crop protection, water and food recycling, and nature conservation not only in Africa but also around the world.
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Last Updated on December 11, 2022 by Safiya K
