University of Rwanda
giih@ur.ac.rw Kigali, Rwanda
7-day boot camp

Innovation Bootcamps

Intensive 7-day innovation boot camp at ACE-ESD for UR students, alumni, and innovators. Submit your business idea, pass pre-selection, and receive coaching, mentorship, and expert (...)

About the boot camp

The Grid Innovation and Incubation Hub (GIIH), hosted at the African Centre of Excellence in Energy for Sustainable Development (ACE-ESD), runs intensive innovation boot camps for University of Rwanda students, alumni, and other innovators with promising business ideas.

Each boot camp is a focused, hands-on entry point: applicants submit concepts, go through pre-selection, and selected teams receive business coaching, mentorship, and expert guidance during a 7-day program at the ACE-ESD Incubation Center.

Who can apply

  • University of Rwanda students and interested alumni
  • Individual innovators or teams with a business concept
  • Teams willing to develop concepts through the UR practice venture process

Selection criteria

Business concepts should:

  • Be developed by a team or by individual students sharing their vision and passion
  • Align with Rwanda’s National Strategy for Transformation (NST1) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
  • Demonstrate profitability, financial viability, and local relevance
  • Respond to community problems with a clear, sustainable business model
  • Present a unique value proposition and defined market segment (B2B, B2C, or both)
  • Identify the industry sector and explain why funding is needed

What to submit

Proposals should briefly cover:

  • Title of the business concept and industry or sector
  • Description of the concept (up to 500 words)
  • Team members and their roles
  • Problem statement and proposed solution (up to 250 words)
  • Market segment or niche
  • Background of founder(s) (up to 300 words)
  • Why the concept is feasible, and gender dimension (up to 250 words)

Boot camp pathway

1. Pre-selection

Applications are reviewed at GIIH/ACE-ESD, Nyarugenge Campus. Applicants receive feedback on strengths and areas for improvement.

2. Startup boot camp (7 days)

Selected business concepts attend a 7-day boot camp at the ACE-ESD Incubation Center. Participants receive business coaching, mentorship, and guidance, with access to field experts and industry practitioners who share success stories and practical insights.

After the boot camp

The strongest concepts from each boot camp may be invited to apply for the separate Startup Incubation program — a 12-month track at GIIH with structured mentoring, technical training, UniPod access, and seed funding.

How to apply

Submit your proposal or contact GIIH for guidance:

Only preselected applicants are notified for the next stages of the process.