South African startups Agrilogiq and Locstat have been officially onboarded as vendors for NEC XON, marking a major milestone from the first JICA NINJA Accelerator programme held in South Africa.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) had announced the expansion of its NINJA Accelerator to South Africa last year, aiming to foster strategic collaboration between local startups and Japanese corporations. The programme, designed to explore commercial partnerships, allowed selected startups to test their potential for collaboration with NEC XON, the pan-African subsidiary of Japan’s NEC Corporation.
After completing a three-month accelerator programme, Agrilogiq and Locstat successfully developed proof-of-concepts (PoCs) with NEC XON and were selected as vendors. As part of the initiative, both startups traveled to Tokyofrom January 19-25 to engage with NEC Corporation executives and other Japanese investors and corporate leaders.
For Agrilogiq, the PoC demonstrated strong alignment with NEC’s agricultural projects, particularly in addressing food security challenges in Africa. The collaboration paves the way for potential scaling and integration into NEC’s agricultural initiatives across the continent.
Meanwhile, Locstat’s PoC showcased how its platform enhances NEC’s smart infrastructure systems by providing seamless data flow, advanced analytics, and improved monitoring capabilities for urban development projects. Further testing is expected to explore scalability and integration into larger data-driven platforms.
Yannick Gayama, Managing Director and Head of Programmes at Double Feather Partners, the Japan-based Africa-focused VC and consulting firm leading the project on behalf of JICA, highlighted the significance of the achievement.
“The fact that this project resulted in tangible outcomes, such as letters of intent and onboarding as official vendors, demonstrates the need for more support to validate strategic fit and take corporate-startup collaboration beyond mere introductions. This is just the first step towards unlocking the true potential of strategic value and returns for both corporates and startups. I am hopeful that similar programmes will emerge within the ecosystem,” he stated.
This development marks an important step in strengthening ties between African startups and Japanese companies, with JICA’s accelerator programme serving as a catalyst for innovation-driven partnerships.
