Techbytes: AUG10FORD, BongoHive launch 24-month programme to make Zambian start-ups investor-ready

Swiss-backed initiative, AUG10FORD Training and BongoHive have launched a 24-month programme aimed at moving Zambia’s youth-led start-ups from proof of concept to investor-ready status. The initiative, called “Move your Start-up to the Next Level,” will sponsor four Zambian founders per cohort for a fully funded two-year transformation programme. According to a statement issued in Lusaka on Tuesday, applications for the four-year programme opened on May 19, 2026, with the first cohort set to run from 2026 to 2030.

AUG10FORD Training said the programme provided technical, financial training, and operational support that founders typically lack to turn early-stage ventures into bankable, investable companies. Over the four-year period, the initiative would support three distinct cohorts of founders. Cohort 1 applications run from May 15 to June 20, 2026, with a Top 12 selection by July 5th and hybrid pitch-practice sessions in late July.

The final pitching event for Cohort 1 will take place in Lusaka on July 24, 2026, where an expert panel of local and international judges will select the final Top 4. The programme differs from conventional grant models by offering end-to-end support across financial management, human resources, corporate governance, compliance, and marketing. “Unlike conventional grant programmes, the 24-month sponsorship is structured as an end-to-end transformation.

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Selected start-ups receive hands-on support across financial management and modelling, human resources, corporate governance and compliance, and marketing, the back-office systems that most often determine whether a young business survives its growth phase,” the statement said. Eligible applicants are Zambian youth-led businesses with founders aged 25 to 35 that are operational, registered, piloting, or generating revenue and ready to formalise and scale. Exceptional early-stage founders aged 18 to 25 may also apply if they can demonstrate a highly innovative, data-backed idea with a clear execution plan. Selection will be based on seven weighted criteria, including problem and solution fit, business model sustainability, market potential and traction, team capacity, social and economic impact, strategic and financial understanding, and pitch quality.

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