NSIA awards $275,000 to Nigerian startups in innovation prize
- The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority has committed $275,000 in prize money to startups in manufacturing, food security and healthcare.
- Come Again Foods won the top prize of $100,000, with Protein Kapital and Instant Rad taking second and third.
- Winners may also access up to $1.5 million in growth capital, subject to eligibility.
The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) has put $275,000 in prize funding behind Nigerian startups working in manufacturing, food security and healthcare, saying small businesses are central to job creation.
The awards came under the fourth edition of the NSIA Prize for Innovation, themed Building for Impact. Twelve finalists were picked from about 6,000 applications, according to the authority.
Come Again Foods, which makes packaged snacks from locally sourced farm produce, emerged overall winner with a combined prize worth $100,000. Protein Kapital, which turns insect farming and organic waste into protein and biofertilisers, came second with $70,000. Instant Rad, an artificial intelligence-powered teleradiology platform linking hospitals and diagnostic centres with radiologists across Africa, placed third with $50,000.
The prize pool was made up of $220,000 from NSIA, $45,000 from Cascador and $10,000 from Wema Bank.
Why it matters
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) employ a large share of Nigerian workers, and the NSIA says backing them is part of its push to strengthen local production and create jobs.
"Without SMEs, you have no job creation. Without SMEs, you are unable to actually grow economically," NSIA Managing Director and Chief Executive Aminu Umar-Sadiq said at the Demo Day in Abuja.
He said the prize is meant to give entrepreneurs not just money but also training, mentorship and market access. The top 200 entrants went through an accelerator programme before the field narrowed to the final 12.
Winners who qualify can also seek up to $1.5 million in growth capital through the Pula Xcelerator, the authority said. The programme offers about $350,000 in equity funding in all.
The three sectors chosen this year were picked to find innovations that can create jobs and scale widely, Umar-Sadiq said, though the prize remains open to ideas from other fields.
What happens next
The real test will be whether the startups use the money to expand production and services, earn steady revenue and attract more investors. Access to the additional growth capital depends on eligibility.
