Forum on Digital and Student Entrepreneurship (FENES) 2019

The challenges facing new generations of students in the workplace are pushing them to be more competitive and creative. Entrepreneurship is increasingly available to these young graduates or those about to graduate, as a way to contribute to job creation. Digital entrepreneurship, despite its apparent ease, is still poorly understood and its multitude of potential remains untapped. FENES is a meeting place for various stakeholders in the digital, entrepreneurship, and digital entrepreneurship sectors, along with students.

The selection process for the PYSI competition began with over 250 registered candidates. This was followed by the presentation phase of the candidates to the public for the collection of votes. Afterwards, there was an informative and formative meeting on the competition process on May 10th, followed by the semi-final on May 17th.

The event will be held on May 31st at the Palais des Congrès in Lomé from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., featuring exhibitions, talks by leaders in the field, and the final of the aforementioned competition, which will reward technological and entrepreneurial innovation. The program includes:

Female candidates are particularly encouraged to apply. We have also considered a special award for female entrepreneurship. Social entrepreneurship is also recognized to encourage this approach among these future entrepreneurs.

After the semi-final, 20 projects were selected for the final phase. So on May 31,

1st prize: ^- paid trip to Paris to participate in Vivatech 2020

2nd prize: 300,000 FCFA

3rd prize: 200,000 FCFA + an all-expenses-paid trip to Paris to participate in Vivatech

The good news is that all 20 finalist projects will be integrated into the incubators for support.

With the importance of professional networking no longer in doubt, young people registered for the forum have a real opportunity to connect with influential players in the digital and entrepreneurial fields. They will be in a position to create mentoring and partnership relationships—in short, to build professional relationships that will be beneficial to achieving their goals.

Specifically, young participants in the innovative ideas pitch competition will finally have the opportunity to receive support that begins with the promotion of their ideas by presenting them to a jury (an informed public) who will reward them according to their relevance and certain specific characteristics (social impact, originality).

FENES is also open to people with disabilities who are entrepreneurs or work in the digital ecosystem. During the forum, they will benefit from the expertise of leaders invited for the occasion.

Enginnova (initiator) which has placed digital entrepreneurship in the student environment at the heart of its activities and which invites the public to discover, share and promote entrepreneurship.

" FENES aims to be a key event for students on the subject of digital entrepreneurship. For this inaugural edition, more than 1,000 exhibitors and visitors are expected, and around 130 applications have been received from 20 public and private university schools and faculties as part of the Pitch Your Start-up Idea competition. Building on the keen interest shown by young people in the event, the forum has so far received more than 1,000 participation confirmations. Our goal is to promote, but also encourage and inform this rising elite about digital entrepreneurship, " said Joel Agboglo, President of Enginnova.

The editorial staff