EDHE Award 2023

Students from all 26 public universities participated in the EDHE Entrepreneurship Intervarsity 2023. The number of successful submissions in the competition has grown consistently over the years, from 1155 in 2019 to 1545 in 2020, 1468 in 2021, and 1682 in 2022, 1,266 in 2023. 577 of the 2023 successful submissions were from student women in business, which underlines the continued under-representation of student women in entrepreneurship. 823 of the 1266 successful entries in 2023 were accepted by the university Student Entrepreneurship Coordinators to participate in the internal rounds within their universities. A maximum of 10 contestants were allowed to represent each university at the regional rounds taking place from 18 September to 27 October 2023. 24 finalists from the 6 regions will compete to walk away with prize money to the value of R100 000 and the coveted title of national Studentpreneur of the Year 2023 at the national finals.

The breakdown of the successful submissions in the different categories is as follows:

• Category 1: New Business Ideas: This category received 704 submissions and is aimed at students who are still considering entrepreneurship but have a promising business idea.
• Category 2: Existing Business – Tech: This category received 79 submissions and is intended for those who are passionate about technology-based businesses.
• Category 3: Existing Business – Social Impact: This category received 101 submissions and caters for social entrepreneurs, offering an opportunity to pitch their startups that focus on social impact.
• Category 4: Existing Business – General: This category received 332 submissions and is available for any other type of business accepted according to the competition Terms and Conditions.
• Category 5: Research-Based Businesses: Finally, the competition organisers have recently introduced a category that is designed to encourage the commercialisation of research by both students and university staff. This new category received 50 submissions and seeks to foster innovation and support the development of research-based startups.

The EDHE Entrepreneurship Intervarsity 2023 is a platform designed to identify, recognise and showcase the top student entrepreneurs at South Africa’s 26 public universities. The primary objectives of the Intervarsity are:

• To identify the top student entrepreneurs at each university;
• To identify the top student businesses at each university; and
• To encourage universities to better support student businesses and entrepreneurs.