Niger Basin Nexus Acceleration Programme // Article Series No. 3: Winning startup completes immersion course
The winner of the final bootcamp of the WEF Nexus acceleration programme, Zakari Idrissa Abdou, promoter of the Green Business and Consulting company, has started an immersion course at the Entrepreneurship and Incubation Centre (CEI) of the 2iE Institute.
© GIZ/Robert Kranefeld
Green Business and Consulting in a continuous improvement process
Happy winner of the first prize of the final Bootcamp of the WEF NEXUS Startup Acceleration Programme in NBA member countries, Zakari IDRISSA ABDOU, promoter of the Green Business and Consulting company, leaves with a seed fund worth 25,000,000 CFA francs. This funding from GIZ with the financial support of the European Union and the German Ministry for International Cooperation and Development, aims to support and accompany the young startup in its scaling up process.
Based in Niger, Green Business and Consulting is an eco-innovative startup that produces and markets biochar and fertiliser from harmful and invasive plants collected along the Niger River.
The achievements of the startup's immersion course at the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Incubation (CEI) of the 2iE Institute
Since October 10, 2022, Zakari IDRISSA has started a 3-week immersion course at the Entrepreneurship and Incubation Centre (CEI) of the 2iE Institute. The objective of this immersion course is to optimise its current production (semi-artisanal), maximise its positive social and environmental impacts and optimise the use of the seed money obtained.
To this end, Zakari IDRISSA benefited during his stay from coaching sessions and personalised training with the team of experts from the 2iE Institute. The exchanges have helped to improve the organizational structure within Green Business and Consulting, to refine the specifications for the acquisition of new equipment including an industrial pyrolyser for the production of green coal and organic fertilizers. The coaching also reviewed the monitoring and evaluation indicators of occupational health and safety risks and environmental impacts related to the startup's activities. The acquisition of the new pyrolyser will allow the startup to mechanise its production lines and increase its current biochar production from a capacity of 2 tons/month to a capacity of 20 tons/month by March 2023 and then 50 tons/month by 2024 and thus meet the growing demand.
Green Business and Consulting will now be able to cover the monthly charcoal needs of more than 800 households in the city of Niamey and thus actively contribute to the fight against deforestation in Niger.
Looking ahead
In the coming weeks, the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Laboratory (LabEREE) and the CEI of the 2iE Institute will begin work with Green Business and Consulting on characterising its products (green coal and fertilisers) and optimising its raw material collection and stock management strategy. The objective is to reduce costs and optimise production yields with products that are available on the market all year round and that are more respectful of the environment and the health of users.
This article is also available in French.