By providing valuable resources and fostering a supportive community, StartGate is helping to propel African startups onto the world stage.

StartGate is an innovation campus founded in 2020. Affiliated with the  Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, it offers world-class infrastructure and resources to support entrepreneurs as they launch and develop their startups.

Its services include mentoring, business development support, and access to finance. It provides entrepreneurs with technological equipment and modern, open workspaces to stimulate their creativity. 

The campus is home to several partner programs designed to help entrepreneurs at various stages of their journey. It includes Explorer, an innovation program offering entrepreneurial training, mentoring, and potential funding opportunities. Another program it offers is Entrepreneur Academy, which targets university and high school students, researchers, employees, and all types of aspiring African entrepreneurs, providing them with an introduction to and training in entrepreneurship.

There is also U-Founders, which deploys incubation, pre-incubation, and entrepreneurship awareness programs for students, researchers, and entrepreneurs belonging to the university's ecosystem.

Other notable programs include the African Youth Climate Hub, which provides resources and tools for young African climate entrepreneurs, and the Moroccan Retail Tech Builder, the first Venture Builder in Morocco –and Africa as a whole– dedicated to the digitization of the retail sector.

With Sarrah Chérif d'Ouezzan at the helm, StartGate has, since its creation, supported more than 624 entrepreneurs and start-ups from over 15 African countries. It has organized over 100 workshops and training sessions in 20 business sectors.

The campus hosts more than 10 support programs for the launch and development of startups. It has a network of 200 Moroccan and international mentors and experts and over 30 investors. 

Melchior Koba