Five Senegalese startups take stage at Kokùtana tech show

Kokùtana celebrates Africa's entrepreneurial spirit

As a forum dedicated to digital innovation, Kokùtana brings together African talent to transform good ideas into successful businesses. Experts, entrepreneurs, decision-makers and incubators from across the continent come together to explore the latest technological trends and forge new collaborations.

Conferences, workshops, networking sessions and presentations of innovative projects encourage synergies between participants. Above all, Kokùtana is a springboard for students and start-ups seeking information, ideas or strategic partners. By showcasing success stories and inspiring career paths, Kokùtana encourages young people to believe in their projects and become agents of change in Africa

‘In Africa as elsewhere, unemployed young people are time-bombs waiting to explode. They need to be set in motion, preferably on the path they have chosen,’ said Abdoul Khadre Diallo, Manager of the Volkeno agency and organizer of the event. ‘This is what Kokùtana aims to do, by giving young people a central role in their own destiny and providing them with the tools they need. Beautiful stories and encounters are born here. It's not unusual to find an internship, a job, guidance, support or a partnership here.’

Since its creation in 2014, Kokùtana has gone from strength to strength: with over 700 participants and some 30 exhibitors, the forum draws the attention of media and investors every year. The event represents a real opportunity for African entrepreneurs to showcase their innovations and gain greater visibility.

Outalma wins new customers with Kokùtana

Selected and supported by the NTF V Senegal Tech project, five high-potential Senegalese start-ups experienced Kokùtana in September. This is the case of Outalma, which has been revolutionizing logistics transport between Africa and the rest of the world since 2018.

Breaking down the obstacles hindering African e-commerce, Outalma handles any international shipment to Senegal, Togo, Benin, Gabon or Côte d’Ivoire. Every month, more than 4,000 individual and business users use Outalma's delivery services. And this figure could well double by 2025!

The start-up recently expanded its warehousing facilities in Côte d'Ivoire. The company is currently raising funds and plans to expand into China and Turkey. For CEO Alioune Mbengue, the opportunity to take part in Kokùtana came at just the right time.

‘The conferences we attended at the forum provided us with specific information on the Ivorian market and the countries we are targeting. Since then, we have improved our outsourcing process,’ he said. ‘We also met a number of business leaders who shared their successes and difficulties with us. Feedback is always welcome, especially on subjects that are very important to us, such as employee recruitment and retention.’

In addition to the exhibition stand, where he showcased his solutions, Mbengue was invited to make a short presentation of his value proposition to an eager audience. Although challenging, the exercise represented a unique opportunity to reach out to potential customers, users or investors. Thanks to a convincing pitch, Outalma wasted no time in reaping the rewards.

‘Our application immediately won over new users,’ he said. ‘For us, there's no doubt we'll be back next year!’

The Netherlands Trust Fund V (NTF) programme (July 2021 – June 2025) is based on a partnership between the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the International Trade Centre. NTF V supports SMEs in the digital technology and agribusiness sectors in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali, Senegal and Uganda. Its ambition is to contribute to an inclusive and sustainable transformation of agri-food systems partly through digital solutions, to improve the international competitiveness of local tech start-ups and to support the implementation of the export strategy of IT&BPO companies.