Place-Based Innovation
Introduction to Place-Based Innovation
Place-Based Innovation (PBI) leverages UK and pan-African expertise, networks and resources in order to build capacity for local innovation ecosystem players to drive forwards stronger, more sustainable and more inclusive local ecosystems.
Our own research reinforces that there is a strong demand for the shortening of supply chains, promotion of circular design and better links with the informal sector on a regional scale.
This video gives an overview of the Place-Based Innovation Intervention within the Global Alliance Africa project.
Activities such as Local Innovation Audits, Local Innovation Action Plans, Knowledge exchange and transfer activities, Capacity strengthening activities, Local Innovation Network convening events, Testing of collaboration approaches and models, and Continuous learning and Documented Case Studies will result in a stronger, more sustainable and more inclusive local innovation ecosystem that facilitates the development of locally-driven innovation solutions in response to locally identified challenges.
Advisory Groups
Advisory Groups have been formed consisting of representatives from across the innovation ecosystem, including research institution, investment, NGO, innovation support organisations and government representatives. Advisory Group members have been crucial to define challenge / focus areas and in some instances lead activities locally.
Current Activities
More than a Woman
The #MoreThanAWoman initiative brought together an initial cohort of eight women innovators for capacity building and networking support with a final four finalists receiving additional pitch training and the development of a professional video showcasing their stories as innovators.
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Young Innovators
The youth-led innovation dialogue is meant to bring solutions for the youth and provide platforms that allow them to accelerate. Global Alliance Africa recently partnered with The Convergence to host the largest youth gathering in Ekiti State. Finalists are currently undergoing pitch training before being given the opportunity to showcase their unique ideas to a global platform of innovation investors, advocates and enablers.
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Agri-innovation Pilots
UK-Eldoret partnerships are exploring collaboration to address specific, locally defined, challenges in value addition processes and market access in the agriculture sector. The collaborations are looking at the transfer and local adaptability of specific UK technology and innovations to solve for the challenges identified. These partnerships are hoping to test, pilot and iterate solutions with the intention to scale the technology and impact in Eldoret and beyond.
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Related News
12/07/2024
Call for stories: woman innovators from South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya
Building on the success of the Innovate UK Global Alliance Africa #MoreThanAWoman pilot, Phase 2 of the initiative will support the development of a docuseries intended to spotlight grassroot women innovators and promote their entrepreneurial stories. Through storytelling, this docuseries will elevate the voices of successful women innovators, especially those with previously untold stories, and showcase their innovations’ potential for further investment, growth and scalability.
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24/04/2024
Innovation Champions: Global Alliance Africa announces winners of the Sebenzisa Tembisa Waste Challenge!
Tembisa, South Africa, is catalysing innovation in working towards a future without waste. Four new pilot projects will soon be launched in the township, helping to create sustainable, circular economies for waste management in one of the country’s largest urban areas. This follows the successful close of the Sebenzisa Tembisa Challenge, an initiative of Innovate UK’s Global Alliance Africa project, that aims to bridge the gap between research, innovation and real-world impact.
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13/07/2023
New Online Innovation Ecosystem Mapping Platform for Ekiti State, Nigeria
The Global Alliance Africa team and the Ekiti Innovation Advisory Group invite you to join us on Innovate Ekiti – an innovation ecosystem map that has been created by EcoMap.
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21/03/2023
Global Alliance Africa hosts the first Global Aquaculture Knowledge Exchange and Showcase event in Ekiti State, Nigeria
Regarded as one of Nigeria’s agricultural hubs, Ekiti State is well-known for the vast plantations of cocoa, cassava, maize, and palm oil that grow across the country’s South-Western regions. But while crop and plantation-based agriculture has always been a cornerstone of the state’s economy, in recent decades an important player has emerged: aquaculture.
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23/03/2023
Global Alliance Africa host More than a Woman Showcase to celebrate International Women’s Day in Gauteng, South Africa
On 8 March 2023, over 100 people attended the More than a Woman Showcase to highlight their amazing achievements, incredible talent and network with a diverse audience that comprised of like-minded innovators and entrepreneurs as well as enabler and investors in order to share stories and create new collaborations. Global Alliance Africa are delighted to be in partnership with mLab, Women-in-Tech, SEED South Capital and MentHer. The #MoreThanAWoman initiative is a programme that aims to upskill and support the scalability of grassroots women innovators in South Africa.