In 2017, Mexican entrepreneur Jennifer Reyna, cofounder and CEO of Gaszen, applied to compete in the WeXchange Pitch Competition. After being selected as one of the six finalists, she pitched her company and business plan to an independent jury at the WeXchange 2017 forum in Santiago de Chile. Reyna’s company creates an innovative solution to keep track of gas consumption in households. Reyna and her team have developed a device that can be installed in gas tanks and connected to a mobile app. Through the Internet of Things technology (IoT), users can keep track of their gas consumption and make orders at home-delivery, making the gas industry much more efficient and consumer oriented. Reyna was the winner of the Pitch Competition 2017 and had the opportunity to participate in an immersion program in Silicon Valley.
Even though the integration of women into the business world and innovation is making progress, there are still several obstacles to overcome. For instance, in the United States there are fewer women running big companies than men named “John”. Moreover, according to Forbes Magazine, only 15% of entrepreneurs in the Caribbean Latin America are women. Therefore, it is necessary to encourage entrepreneurship among women and to create networks between female entrepreneurs in the Caribbean and Latin America. To contribute to this objective, the Multilateral Investment Group (MIF) of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has launched the sixth edition of WeXchange, “Women STEMpreneurs in the digital era”. WeXchange is a platform which offers women entrepreneurs the opportunity to expand their networks and connect with mentors and investors to strengthen their businesses. In WeXchange, entrepreneurs can attend training and mentoring sessions guided by experienced entrepreneurs and they can potentially find new investors. Six finalists of the Pitch Competition, organized by the venture capital firm Angel Ventures, will be able to present a pitch of their company to an independent jury and win great prizes: the winner will participate in an innovation program in Israel sponsored by Innovation Experience, and access to different WeWork spaces throughout the region for 12 months. There will be prizes for the five finalists as well, including the trip to Lima to participate in WeXchange.
The sixth edition of WeXchange will take place November 6th and 7th at the headquarters of the Universidad del Pacifico (Lima, Peru), and will be focused in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Are you a woman entrepreneur in Latin America and the Caribbean? Do you have a company or startup in the areas of science, technology, engineering or mathematics? The MIF invites you to apply to the Pitch Competition and be one of the six finalists who will travel to Lima with all expenses covered. Click here to create a profile for your startup and complete the application with your information. Remember applications will close on July 30th!
Register now in the Pitch Competition of WexChange here.
For other questions related to the WeXchange program, please contact the MIF’s Laila Choe [email protected].
Leave a Reply