Digital Africa: From Opportunity to Action | Founder Lounge

Montréal NewTech and Africa Digital are proud to present a special edition of Founder Lounge, “Digital Africa: From Opportunity to Action” in partnership with the Desjardins Lab on April 5, 2018.

The event will take place in two parts: first a Founder Lounge with a successful African entrepreneur, before moving to an expert panel to explore the opportunities, challenges, and actions to take to develop relationships with Africa and understand the opportunities on both sides of the Atlantique!

Event patron:

Mariam Sy Diawara is the Founding President of the Maison of Africa Montréal, Maison of Africa New York and of Mandingo to Abidjan. Promoter of the Africa Web festival to Abidjan. A citizen of the world, she settled in Québec where she founded the Maison of Africa Montréal (MdAM) in 2004 and the structure Passerelle Africa Canada Transactions and Exchanges (PACTE).
Keen to promote a positive image « of Africas » she initiated the award Afrikenous of the better image of Africa, presented for the first time to the FESPACO in 2013.
Inspired by young people, she launched in 2014 to Abidjan, the Africa Web Festival (AWF), that with milliers of participants is today the most important event of promotion of the economy digital in Africa francophone. On the surnomme the Ambassador of Africa 3.0.

Programming:

17h Doors open at Desjardins Lab
17h-17h50 Networking
17h50- 18h Introduction with Ilias Benjelloun and Cindy Mbayen

18h-18h30 Founder Lounge with Destiny Tchéhouali, Consultant in digital policy and strategy & Internet governance, President, ISOC Québec. moderated by Karelle Lépine and Ilias Benjelloun
Duration: 30 minutes – Breakdown: 20min + 10 minutes in the period of questions

• Destiny Tchéhouali, Consultant in digital policy and strategy & Internet governance, President, ISOCQuébec

Destiny Tchéhouali is International consultant in digital policy and strategy, with a dozen years of experience and several expert consulting assignments in the field of information and communication technologies (TIC) in support of economic and human development. He a worked on behalf of several governments (in Africa, in Europe and in Canada) and in of the institutions such as the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF), the UNESCO and the European Commission. Holder of a doctorate in geography of the information society, it a produced a thesis on the international cooperation policies in field fighting the digital divide in Africa. Currently Director of the Observatoire of the Networks and Interconnexions of the Societý digital (ORISON) and Associate researcher to the Centre of studies on the integration and the mondialisation (CEIM) of the Université of Québec à Montréal (UQAM), it conducts research on the impact of the innovation and the digital economy on the transformation of societies and of the cultures. Destiny Tchéhouali is also since January 2017 the President of the board of directors of the Internet Society Quebec (ISOC Québec), a international NGO that a worked since a twenty years to the development of the access and of the use of the Internet in Québec and in the world.

18H30-19H30 Panel discussion | Africa / Canada: How to create alignment between the two digital ecosystems. moderated by Honorine Kabi
Why create a bridge between these two ecosystems?
We have as much to learn from each other, what is the benefit of an both sides of bringing value to both ecosystems.
How to build productive and enriching links on both sides?

Panelists:

• Mariam Sy Diawarais the Founding President of the Maison of Africa Montréal, Maison of Africa New York and of Mandingo to Abidjan. Promoter of the Africa Web festival to Abidjan. A citizen of the world, she settled in Québec where she founded the Maison of Africa Montréal (MdAM) in 2004 and the structure Passerelle Africa Canada Transactions and Exchanges (PACTE).
  Keen to promote a positive image « of Africas » she initiated the award Afrikenous of the better image of Africa, presented for the first time to the FESPACO in 2013.
  Inspired by young people, she launched in 2014 to Abidjan, the Africa Web Festival (AWF), that with milliers of participants is today the most important event of promotion of the economy digital in Africa francophone. On the surnomme the Ambassador of Africa 3.0.

• Pamela Alfred, founder AskPam

Originally from Paris, visionary and passionate entrepreneur, Pamela a worked in the industry of the concierge services and of the luxury since nearly a decade. Co-founder of Ask PAM, a platform of conciergerie that connects local experts with travellers from around the world, Pamela evolves since these 3 recent years in the world of the new technologies, where she actively contributes to Montréal’s startup ecosystem.

Her passion for innovation and entrepreneurship a led her to work with many inspiring entrepreneurs and innovative companies, including Lighthouse Labs and Tech and Color, which helps people from diverse backgrounds start careers as developers.

She is also recognized for her involvement with of many startups in Africa. Pamela firmly believes that Africa a an huge wealth that only needs to be valued and recognized in the world. it is this conviction that the a motivated to launch EI4A: Entrepreneuriat and investment in Africa, to create a bridge between the Canadand Africa while helping and encouraging the people of the diaspora to invest in the startups the most innovative of Africa.

• Clément Ganemtore, founder of the Voices of the Juriste

Clément GANEMTORE, graduate of the Université Ouaga II in public law (master’s degree), made its career in the consulting and the social entrepreneurship. In law degree, he launched a specialized journal on the legal issues to the Unité of Training and of Recherche in Legal and Political Sciences, the ancestor of the Voices of the Juriste.

The Voices of the Juriste is a legal tech (Mention special of the concours AfricaInnovation organized by Canal France International) specialized in the information and the online legal services, whose he is founder and director.

Socially engaged, it a taught the international humanitarian law in two institutions of the city of Ouagadougou, as part of its activities of volunteer to the Burkinabè Red Cross during two ans.

Passionate about ICT, He is trying to the programming web. Today, in addition to the Voices of the Juriste, it collabore on other projects and is in charge of innovation and technology in a project to Montréal.

• Noah Redler,founder of Arche Innovation

Noah Redler is the founder of Arche Innovation and former campus director at Maison Notman to Montréal. Noah is involved in the startup community for years, in tant that volunteer to title of manager of the community Montréal in StartUp Canada, as founder of the event the Mashup Entrepreneurial MTL, it is cofounder of The Entrepreneurs’ Tour and he was a member of the board of the Regroupement youth chambers of commerce of Québec.

In 2015, it a been appointed the a of the “25 leaders who will move Québec forward” by The Business. Noah often gives talks on the open innovation and the creation of the entrepreneurial ecosystems, it a already been guest as speaker to StartUp Canada Day on the Hill, PROCOLUMBIA conference, TIC Technocentre Colloque to Gaspé, the Entretien Jacques Cartier 2015 to Lyon, the Africa Web Festival to Abidjan, the Forum on the economy digitale to the Cameroun and a of the hosts of the podcast The Dérangeants.

Duration: 45 minutes – Breakdown: 30min + 15 minutes in the period of questions

19h30 – 19h45 Summary AWF 2017 and presentation of theme AWF 2018 that will take place the 20/30 November and 1 December to Abidjan by Caroline Chantrel Stagiaire Lojiq to the edition 2017 of Africa Web festival to Abidjan.

Duration: 15 minutes

Conclusion: Mme Mariam Sy Diawarand Karelle Lépine

19h45 – 20h30 Evening networking to explore on the speaking subject.