[kictanet] Digital solutions for Social Good

Thu Jun 6 21:39:37 EAT 2019

Patrick. I work for Blockchain Global, a consulting firm and we had an
extensive chat with BGV on this.

Your comments are loaded and maybe there is something i dont understand.
That said BGV has invested over £65M in various start -ups and has African
/ EU / US / Asia investors who understand different landscapes.

I will leave it as it is.

Thanks

On Thu, 6 Jun 2019, 18:36 Patrick A. M. Maina, <pmaina2000 at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Eric, Not sure if you had noticed but your original message made it appear
> like *you* were the investor. This is more clear.
>
> How you fit in as an intermediary is still not clear however. So how
> exactly do you tailor these pitches to improve the applicant chances
> (what's your specific value proposition)? Can you give some examples?
>
> Are you offering a free service or do you charge? What is your fee?
>
> What are your T&Cs so that those who go thru you know exactly what the
> relationship between you, them and the accelerator entails?
>
> I'm still puzzled as to why the UK visa has been dangled because according
> to the website, it is not even assured.
>
> The BGV website clearly says that you qualify if "You have the right to
> work in the UK
> (Unfortunately, you cannot take part in our programme on a tourist visa)"
>
> Do you have a confirmation letter from the UK consulate that indicates
> that it is now not "near impossible" for participants of this initiative to
> get a visa (provided they are not on a bad-guys watchlist of course)?
>
> Also not clear from the website... who pays for Visa, return Airfare &
> accommodation?
>
> The accelerator is charging GBP £20,000 as "training" fees??? They also
> get a 6% stake. So the "lucky startup" gets no cash (1-1=0) but gives up
> equity??? Or they get the cash, which is spent where (in kenya or UK?) and
> come back with £20K debt + still give up 6% equity? This deal is full of
> red flags IMO.
>
> How can they purport to train a Kenyan company to succeed in Kenya yet
> they don't have any experience or a presence in Kenya? Or do they? Don't
> they have better odds of offering better value and success if they first
> come to Kenya, learn about the local business landscape and set up a local
> chapter here? It doesn't make sense.
>
> Even more puzzling, they are asking for already proven business models?
> How do they advise a company to scale in a market that they barely know (if
> at all)? What's really going on there? Can you expound on how that works?
>
> If the investors saw promising startups at the Nairobi Innovation Week,
> have they engaged and onboarded them? Doesn't make sense to start from zero
> when they have already made progress.
>
> I know there are those who will ignore these red flags and trust blidly in
> hope. Good luck to them. I wish them success and I sincerely wish that my
> instincts are completely wrong about this.
>
> Thanks and good evening.
>
> Patrick.
>
> Patrick A. M. Maina
> [Cross-domain Innovator | Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations]
>
>
> On Thursday, June 6, 2019, 9:51:48 AM GMT+3, Erick Mwangi <
> erick.mwangi at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> Listers / Patrick
>
> A bit of background.
>
> The organisation in question is BGV (Bethnal Green Ventures). The premise
> was from investors asking to look beyond EEA.
>
> I advised the partners on E Africa and even attended the Nairobi
> Innovation week. They were impressed and we identified a number of start
> ups we could work with, to get Visas was near impossible. From then we have
> worked tirelessly to lobby UK government and now this is now a reality.
>
> Secondly from the initial fillers, our comms are different hence why I was
> asking interested parties to come through me and we can curate stories
> better for the partners. However feel free to engage directly.
>
> The website is comprehensive and answers the bulk of your questions.
>
> But I will not go as far as saying the want to steal IP from us - that's a
> stretch of imagination.
>
> Eric
> E Njoroge Mwangi
> Technology| FINTECH | Big Data
>
> Cell +44 7539372742
> Skype: Erick.mwangi
>
>
> On Tue, Jun 4, 2019 at 4:35 PM Patrick A. M. Maina <pmaina2000 at yahoo.com>
> wrote:
>
> Hi Erick,
>
> Which organization is doing this?
>
> Is there a website that people can visit for more details?
>
> How does the UK visa come into play? Is there a bootcamp in UK or
> something like that? Where are the details + past bootcamps?
>
> How many startups are you looking to invest in? What is the range of
> investment amount? What kind of deal (debt, equity or convertible notes?)
>
> Do you have a portfolio of startups that founders can contact to get
> independent info about the program?
>
> Can you share your list of succesful investments, exits and big wins,
> including the duration under your portfolio?
>
> What are the T&Cs and do they contain robust features (like
> non-disclosure, non-circumvent & non-compete provisions) to protect our
> hopeful enterpreneurs / youth from the risk of losing trade secrets and
> intellectual property that would be critical to their competitiveness and
> long-term survival?
>
> I'm asking the above on behalf of inexperienced founders because there
> have been numerous cases in the past (in other platforms/fora) where
> "investors" call for pitches but in reality they are exploiting our policy
> vacuum to mine for ideas from our hopeful - but sometimes gullible -
> founders, which they ultimately pass on / sell to other startups (or to
> "partner" corporations) to avoid R&D costs.
>
> GENERAL REMARKS (FROM A POLICY-GAP PERSPECTIVE)
>
> Dear Listers,
>
> While a "bounty" approach is often pitched to corporations / investors as
> a smart "cost saving" measure, it is, in reality, an economically
> destructive, ruthless, and inhumane form of intellectual property transfer
> because it relies on trickery and false hope to achieve unpublished
> agendas. It demoralizes our youth and stifles innovation by unfairly
> misallocating opportunity/reward to the undeserving, whose only advantage
> is their connection to capital gatekeepers.
>
> Bounty programs pervert the idea of enterpreneurship, turning it into an
> unregulated GAMBLING affair, where for every one "jackpot winner" there are
> thousands of "losers" who discover that they handed over their IP to future
> competitors for FREE, and who are not protected from unfair future
> sale/exploitation of their mined IP.
>
> Such programs have led to the rise to serial pitchers, a type of gambler
> who plays for the bounty, instead of real enterpreneurs who truly want to
> solve real problems. This has resulted in the rise of "shiny object"
> enterpreneurship that focuses on impressing ponzi-style investors rather
> creating value to society. More so when they predate on poor countries,
> where REAL opportunities are scarce and desperately needed.
>
> It is unfortunate that ICT regulators have not yet recognized the real
> cost of such losses in terms of wealth transfer and destruction of jobs /
> opportunities. How do you create jobs without sources of sustainable
> advantage?
>
> In a recent media interview, I heard CISCO's CEO say something very
> powerful when discussing Huawei. He said that if the US didn't care about
> IP, it would be a "third world country", because third world countries only
> focus on raw materials instead of innovations. Intellectual property is
> highly valued in developed economies. Paradoxically, poor countries tend to
> adopt policies that sustain poverty.
>
> These general comments are not meant to cast shade on Erick's initiatives
> as I have no information to draw any objective conclusions, so I hope my
> motives will not be misunderstood. I have been consistent on highlighting
> IP mining risks in the past on this and other forums.
>
> Without clear policies and rules, there is no telling what/who is really
> genuine, and our enterpreneurs remain vulnerabe to predation from within
> and from without. Our "wild wild west", "every man for himself" business
> landscape makes it difficult even for the genuine investors to get high
> quality, diverse pitches because of low trust levels (everyone loses).
>
> It's sad to see our Universities and innovative MSMEs struggling to get
> funding yet they are sitting on billions of shillings in intellectual
> capital.
>
> Hoping the Competition Authority and the Trade, Labor, Education & ICT
> ministries can team up with stakeholders (not just corporate reps who have
> a conflict of interest because they fear innovation, but also academia,
> independent innovators, enterpreneurs and MSME reps) to solve this at
> policy level. If you need ideas or help in architecting this, feel free to
> onboard me.
>
> Economic prosperity doesn't just happen on its own, or with ad-hoc "spray
> and pray" policies. It has to deliberately planned for, designed and
> implemented.
>
> Good evening,
>
> Patrick.
>
> Patrick A. M. Maina
> [Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous
> Innovations]
>
>
>
> On Tuesday, June 4, 2019, 2:15:08 PM GMT+3, Erick Mwangi via kictanet <
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>
>
> Listers,
>
> I am looking for start-ups who fit the below criteria.
> *Investment focus*
>
> We invest broadly in tech for good, but we are particularly interested in
> startups that address the following challenges:
>
>    - Affordable, accessible health and social care
>    - Effective education and employability
>    - Climate change, resource efficiency and conservation of the
>    environment
>    - Civic participation, maintenance and advancement of democracy
>    - Empowering vulnerable young people, improving health and wellbeing
>    and giving them the tools to thrive
>    - Pro-worker innovation for the low-wage economy, solutions that
>    increase bargaining power, boost pay and curb work insecurity
>
> *Investment criteria*
>
> At the accelerator stage we select teams based on:
>
> *The team*
>
>    - A talented team (more than 1 person) of diverse founders with a
>    strong commitment to a shared vision and mission
>    - A strong understanding of the problem and the market they will be
>    operating in
>    - Technical experience within the team
>
> *The idea*
>
>    - An innovative idea with some evidence of its merits and how it would
>    solve the problem
>    - A clear hypothesis of how to produce, sell and distribute the
>    solution
>
> *The potential for impact*
>
>    - A strong ambition to scale and positively impact millions of lives.
>
> We will provide early stage seed funding as well as apply on your behalf a
> "start-up visa" to come to the UK for 3-6months.
>
> If thats you, please reach me directly with your pitch deck.
>
> Best Wishes,
>
> E Njoroge Mwangi
> Technology| FINTECH | Big Data
>
> Cell +44 7539372742
> Skype: Erick.mwangi
>
>
> On Sun, Jun 2, 2019 at 1:40 PM Lydia gachungi via kictanet <
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>
> Listers,
>
> Anyone with an idea of an individual / private sector in Eastern Africa
> using digital solutions to create impact in the culture industry/ Artistic
> Freedom  (film, music, events, broadcasting, webcasting, anything in that
> sector)?
>
> Please inbox me
>
> Lydia Gachungi
> UNESCO Liaison Office to AU and UNECA
>
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> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>
> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>
>
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