Successful Conclusion of Phase One of our #2024 Food Systems Incubation Programme

Dear Oribi Community, 

After a successful three months, our Food Systems team has officially concluded Phase One of the incubation programme, also known as the “Mindsets, Ideation, and Introduction to Capacity Building Phase.”

In April, our team wrapped up the #BridgingtheGaps innovation challenge—a one-month pre-incubation challenge that brought together over 50 participants. The goal of this challenge was to introduce entrepreneurs to the fundamentals of business modeling, food systems, and impact entrepreneurship.

Ideation Phase: Trust Yourself

In Phase 1, over 20 of our entrepreneurs engaged with our trust-based model, with a strong emphasis on our first pillar – Trust Yourself. This phase was designed to help our incubatees build self-trust through resourceful activities and online sessions focused on self-awareness, cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset, and capacity building.

This initiative is currently led by our Food Systems team, with Lucas Tsatsi serving as Interim Programme Lead and Entrepreneurship Growth Lead, and Zamile Ncanana as Programme Officer. Both bring extensive programme management experience and are committed to ensuring a smooth, resourceful, and tailored incubation process. Wrapping Up Phase 1 - Showcasing and Pitching Session We concluded Phase One with a pitch evaluation session, where a judging panel from the Oribi team—comprising Nthakoana Maema (CEO), Dennis Molewa (Friend of Oribi and Communications Strategist), Munashe Dzikiti (Communications Lead), and Tasneem Jhetam (Programmes and Innovation Lead)—assessed the entrepreneurs' pitches. This evaluation was designed to help our entrepreneurs refine their pitches and prepare for Phase Two.

This event served as both a showcase and an online pitching session, allowing us to evaluate the current state of the entrepreneurs' businesses, assess their pitching skills, and identify any additional support they may need as they progress to the next phase of the program. Each entrepreneur was required to deliver an elevator pitch, which was tracked and assessed using a feedback sheet focused on their ability to articulate the problem-solution fit and the intended impact of their ventures. These evaluations were then incorporated into the program's Monitoring, Learning, and Evaluation process to gauge each entrepreneur's progress. We have now entered Phase Two, where our focus shifts to the second pillar of Oribi’s Trust model – Trust Your Solution. In this phase, our primary objective is to support entrepreneurs in going to market and achieving product-market fit. We aim to empower our incubatees to build confidence in their solutions, enabling them to skillfully and resourcefully penetrate their target markets.

Moving into Phase Two: GO-TO-MARKET/FINDING PRODUCT-MARKET FIT

This phase is rich with practical business modeling tools, market and impact-oriented learning resources, masterclasses, and tailored support to address the specific business development needs of each entrepreneur. As we transition into this new phase, we are thrilled to witness the continued growth and development of our entrepreneurs. We are also eager to engage our ecosystem to help make this program a lived reality for our Food System Heroes!

Stay tuned for more updates on our #FoodSystems programme and the incredible progress of our incubatees.