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Djembe Consultants (Djembe), the independently-owned pan-African and Middle Eastern communications consultancy, has announced the inaugural Cohort group of the Consultancy’s accelerator program, Accelerate with Djembe.

Designed as the world’s first communications-focused accelerator program for scaleups in the Middle East and Africa, the Program will support the selected scaleups' efforts to raise funds by providing access to the best-in-class communications insight and advisory services.

After a carefully designed selection process led by Djembe CEO Mitchell Prather, Accelerate with Djembe selected 10 scale-ups across various sectors, including education, energy, environmental services, healthcare, manufacturing, and transportation. This diverse selection reflects the inclusivity and representation of the most vital areas of the regional economies, demonstrating the rising influence and potential of leading national innovation ecosystems.

Announcing the cohort, Mitchell Prather, CEO of Djembe Consultants, said: “The Djembe Consultants team was impressed with the quality of scale-ups who applied during the two months-long application process. The MEA region has proven once again that it has the potential to lead the next global revolution through innovation, and we remain committed to playing a pivotal role in providing MEA innovators with much-needed support. Accelerate with Djembe is designed with storytelling at its core, and we are excitingly looking forward to further developing and promoting the stories of these amazing scale-ups to potential funders and investors.”

Ten scale-ups from Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Lebanon, Nigeria, and the United Arab Emirates have been selected to participate in the inaugural cohort group of the Accelerate with Djembe Program.

These scaleups will engage in Djembe’s intensive communications training focused on messaging, branding, digital marketing, investor relations, crisis communications, media relations, partnership building, and other critical communication disciplines.

Furthermore, additional outside industry experts will support the further development of the inaugural Cohort group, ensuring they are investment-ready with a powerful growth story.

The Selected Scale-ups:

• Baobab Circle Limited – United Kingdom/Kenya
• Bevis Africa – Kenya
• Cabax Farms – Nigeria
• DUS. Sustainability Research Centre – United Arab Emirates
• Lustre Plastics Limited – Nigeria
• Mzuri Organics – Kenya
• Saving System – Egypt
• SolarTaxi – Ghana
• Stemaide Africa – Ghana
• YY ReGen – Lebanon

As Head of Djembe Innovation, Gilles Ametepe added: “Accelerate with Djembe is tailored to train Cohort scaleups in key communication disciplines and provide them with a dedicated communication desk throughout the Program. We intend to transform their communications approach from the get-go and reshape their messaging to meet global standards while developing their overall stories. We are on a journey of innovation powered by storytelling, and we are glad to take the MEA ecosystem along with us on this journey.”

Accelerate with Djembe will kick off in August and run for three months until November.