MTN Nigeria is giving Africa’s early-stage startups a boost through its 2025 Cloud Accelerator, combining enterprise infrastructure, technical mentorship, and investor access without taking equity from participating ventures. The Lagos-based Demo Day showcased 20 high-growth startups, offering founders cloud resources, mentorship, and opportunities to connect with investors and commercial partners.
The Demo Day marked the conclusion of a rigorous 12-week programme aimed at fast-tracking early-stage African startups. Opened for applications in July and closing mid-August, the initiative focused on innovations in fintech, health, agriculture, artificial intelligence, and e-commerce. Through the programme, founders received cloud credits, access to MTN Cloud, MoMo, and Chenosis APIs, business development support, and investor readiness training.
MTN executives said the accelerator is part of a long-term strategy to strengthen Africa’s innovation ecosystem by equipping entrepreneurs with the tools and infrastructure needed to scale sustainably. In his keynote, MTN Nigeria’s chief operating officer emphasized the company’s commitment to supporting solutions that are globally competitive yet locally relevant, noting that infrastructure access remains a critical barrier for African innovators.
Startups on stage included Regxta, which offers micro-loans and savings products to underserved communities with data-driven risk management keeping defaults below one percent. Pipeops simplifies cloud deployment for businesses with an AI-powered assistant, while Hadi Finance provides credit tools for small retailers. ProDev connects African tech talent to global employers. Other ventures in the cohort addressed challenges in finance, agriculture, logistics, and digital identity.
MTN stressed that the accelerator aims to dismantle structural obstacles that have historically slowed African startups, particularly gaps in enterprise technology, payment systems, and cloud infrastructure. Observers noted that non-equity support, combined with access to cloud platforms and APIs, provides a crucial runway for startups to move from prototype to market-ready solutions.
Support from MTN will continue beyond Demo Day, including pilot opportunities, commercial partnerships, follow-up programmes, and potential investment engagements. For many founders, the event offered a platform to showcase products, attract investor interest, and position their companies for growth in Nigeria’s competitive innovation landscape and across the broader African market.
