SABII – Swiss Africa Business Innovation Initiative

SABII is a joint program to foster startup entrepreneurship and cooperation in Sub-Saharan Africa and Switzerland. In a competitive scheme science-based business founders are selected based on their prior experience (own company incorporation, MOOC certificates, course attendance certificates at Higher Education Institutions or proof of business coaching through agencies).

African startups are invited to attend the Advanced Workshop in Africa in the environment of the Afrilabs Annual Gathering. During the 3-days workshop, mentoring is provided by experienced Swiss and African entrepreneurs. At the end, the eight most promising and innovative pitches to a Swiss-African jury are selected and the business heads invited to Switzerland for a one-week stay with business peers. Insights into the local startup ecosystem and creation of linkages and synergies with local stakeholders are provided by our partner Venturelab.

Swiss Startups are invited to attend the Afrilabs Annual Gathering where a Swiss – African Business Corner allows to showcase own products and business ideas to peers of one’s own field. In a preparatory workshop roughly one month before departing to Africa major stakeholders of the Swiss and African markets provide an overview and introduce to market opportunities. Participants of the Innosuisse Coaching program are very much welcome to apply!


Online Courses, MOOCs and Webinars


Entrepreneurships in Nonprofits

to FutureLearn

Learn about economic tools to become a successful social entrepreneur.

Nonprofit organizations operate globally in many areas. They address societal issues in fields like health, culture and arts, environment, education and research. With their work, they make a significant contribution to sustainable social and ecological development. This course provides you with the economic tools and knowledge that are needed to become a successful social entrepreneur. It gives you an introduction to the topics that need to be addressed in order to make informed decisions in nonprofits, and it asks to look upon your own practice in order to critically reflect your learnings.

  • Length: 5 weeks
  • Effort: 4 hours per week
  • Price: Free; 64€ for unlimited access and certificate
  • Institution: University Basel
  • Level:  New or aspiring managers and experienced managers with few formal qualifications
  • Language: English

edx EPFL MOOC

Find the right markets for your innovation – A tool for entrepreneurs and innovators for choosing which markets to play in. Learn how to apply the Market Opportunity Navigator – a three-step tool for identifying, evaluating and strategizing market opportunities – to get the most value for your innovation.


FutureLearn Courses: Become an Entrepreneur

 to FutureLearn

Want to learn how to start your own business? Or bring new ideas and energy to your current organisation? Develop key entrepreneurial skills with short online entrepreneurship courses from top universities and business schools.


Some Inspiration

ICT Startup Entrepreneurs in Ghana, Rwanda and Kenya share their stories in this 42 min documentary report feature from Deutsche Welle.


Business Model Thinking

 to FutureLearn

Do you have a business idea? Can your idea make a difference?

This course will show you how to use business model thinking and other tools and techniques, to develop your ideas into business opportunities.

You’ll learn how to assess the viability of your business idea and the value it will add to your business.

You’ll understand how businesses of all sizes can add value in a global market, and have societal impacts and benefits.

You’ll find out about the importance of vision, mission and value proposition for your business.

  • Length: 2 weeks
  • Effort: 3 hours per week
  • Price: Free; 64€ for unlimited access and certificate
  • Institution: Coventry University
  • Level: People progressing into senior roles
  • Language: English

Innovation Strategy: Challenging the Usual Suspects

to FutureLearn

Gain innovation strategy insights and learn to apply them to advanced and emerging contexts in business.

Meeting today’s business and world challenges requires going beyond the thinking that created the challenges in the first place. This is where a good innovation strategy helps. On this course you will develop your knowledge of the challenges of open innovation, management innovation, platform innovation and emerging market innovation and learn how to meet them with a long-term approach. Using quizzes, the newest theoretical insights, cases on pioneering businesses, and thought-provoking debates with leading experts, you will solidify your knowledge of innovation.

  • Length: 4 weeks
  • Effort: 3 hours per week
  • Price: Free; 49€ for unlimited access and certificate
  • Institution: Université Libre de Bruxelles
  • Level: Graduates with strategic innovation experience and experienced professionals
  • Language: English

Management and Leadership: Growing as a Manager

to FutureLearn

This online course will provide an introduction to the foundation skills and knowledge you need when becoming a manager.

It has been developed by The Open University Business School – a pioneering institution that is triple accredited by AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB – and the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) – the leading authority on management and leadership in the UK.

As such, it will give you the opportunity to learn from both academic experts and experienced practitioners, who have achieved the CMI’s prestigious Chartered Manager status.

  • Length: 4 weeks
  • Effort: 3 hours per week
  • Price: Free; 74€ for unlimited access and certificate
  • Institution: The Open University
  • Level:  New or aspiring managers and experienced managers with few formal qualifications
  • Language: English

Teaching Entrepreneurial Thinking

to FutureLearn

Get an introduction to what entrepreneurial thinking is, and how and why we should teach it.

We live in an uncertain and complex world, where the big problems of today and tomorrow are yet to be identified.

Teaching young people the skills and resilience to live and thrive in such a world is the purpose of entrepreneurial thinking.

This course will introduce you to what entrepreneurial thinking is, and why it’s an important skill for young people to learn.

  • Length: 2 weeks
  • Effort: 1 hour per week
  • Price: Free; 49€ for unlimited access and certificate
  • Institution: Queensland University of Technology
  • Level: People progressing into senior roles
  • Language: English