Funding for African Businesses (with GFA) June 20
Nigerian health start-up Mobihealth, Four Others Win Sanofi AfricaTech Challenge 2020
Mobihealth, a telehealth platform has emerged as one of the five winners of Sanofi’s AfricaTech healthcare challenge. Other winners are EYEONE (a Senegalese healthcare start-up), MamaPrime (a Kenyan organization that enables mothers and their families to pre-pay for their natal, delivery & postnatal in flexible installments), Tehecca (a Ugandan platform that connects expectant mothers to nurses for in-home postnatal care), University Agency Innovation (a Cameroon-based healthcare start-up). French pharmaceutical firm, Sanofi wants to enhance the use of telemedicine across the continent, hence the organization of the challenge. Read more.
IFC Invests $100 Million in Zenith Bank to Support SMEs amid COVID-19
The International Financial Cooperation has invested $100 million to support SMEs affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Selected SMEs across health, pharmaceuticals, food and trading sectors will be supported by this initiative. Read more.
Orange Plans Entry into Nigerian and South African Telecoms Markets
France’s biggest telecom operator, Orange is preparing to enter Nigerian and South African markets to expand its network of operations. Read more.
Nigerian E-health Startup, First Medtrade, Launches Online Medical Market
First Medtrade is a telemedicine platform that connects patients/healthcare seekers to medical practitioners. It just launched its marketplace where medical consumables will be supplied to hospitals. Read more.
The AUDA MSME Academy to Support 100,000 MSMEs by 2021
An initiative to support Macro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Africa has been launched by the Africa Union Development Agency (AUDA) and Ecobank Group. Both institutions have agreed to commit resources to the growth of 100,000 MSMEs. The pillars of the programme are AUDA MSME Academy, MSME Financing Support Program, MSME Marketplace, MSME Micro-health Insurance Scheme and MSME digital platform. Read more.
South African Start-up LifeCheq Raises Funding from Venture Capital Firm Futuregrowth
LifeCheq, an SA-based financial consultancy firm, has secured investment from Futuregrowth Asset Management through Futuregrowth Development Equity Fund. Read more.
Kenyan Solar Start-up, d.light, Secures $65million Debt Funding from Solar Frontier Capital
A financing facility, Bright Light Kenya (BLK) has been set up by Solar Frontier Capital (SFC) to benefit d. light, the frontier global innovator in solar energy products. The $65m financing vehicle will help in acquiring pay-as-you-go receivables from d.light Kenyan subsidiary to provide the company with flexible capital to finance its growth. Read more.
Ghanaian Government Approves $9m to Support Nearly 50,000 Start-Ups
5,000- 50,000 cedis will be provided for nearly 5,000 start-ups at an interest rate of 10%. The financing is a part of the 3rd phase of the government’s program to support about 26,000 businesses in the country. Selected businesses will also benefit from technical assistance in the form of advisory, mentoring and coaching. Read more.
ABC Fund to Finance the Expansion of Agribusiness, Dragon Farming, in Ghana
ABC (Agric-business Capital) fund will provide €800,000 and technical assistance to the Dragon Farming limited which markets finished Soya bean processing products to animal care and nutrition. Read more.
Chefaa Secures Pre-Series A Investment
500 Start-ups(US Venture Capital), Saudi Arabian fund Vision Ventures, Womena and a number of other investors have given Chefaa, an Egyptian-on demand medicine delivery platform a pre-series A investment. Read more.
Planet42 Secures $2.4m Funding
South African based fintech, Planet42 has raised $2.4m from a number of Estonian investors. It partners car dealerships in South Africa to help people who are unable to secure car loans have access to personal cars. Read more.
Kenyan Government Invests $450mln in Agriculture in FY2020-2021
The Kenyan government has announced an investment of $450mln in the agricultural sector, a sum which represents an 11 percent decrease in the amount spent on the sector the preceding year. Read more.
Morocco Launches Exceptional Support Program for Authors, Artists
To support authors and artists during the coronavirus pandemic, the Moroccan government has decided to come to the aid of creatives in the world of arts and music. The BMDA (the Moroccan Copyright office) will distribute MAD 35.4 million ($3.65 million) in favor of “adhering authors and creators in particular, the 2019 collections of copyright and remuneration for private copying for the three categories: Lyric, dramatic, and literary in accordance with the recommendations of authors and composers (CISAC) and UNESCO ResiliArt P program.” The program also includes the launch of a call for artistic projects for MAD 39 million ($4.02 million) in five main areas including theater and national tours (MAD 20 million or $2.06 million); music, song, performing arts, and choreographic arts (MAD 12 million or $1.24 million); and plastic arts exhibitions or visuals carried by galleries (MAD 2 million or $206,323). Read more.
Disrupt COVID-19: Digital Hackathon
Startupbootcamp AfriTech together with UK-SouthAfrica Tech hub has launched an initiative called the Disruptive COVID-19 Digital, a 3-day hackathon designed to bring together start-ups, entrepreneurs and innovators with a view to finding lasting solutions to further advance economic inclusion and build resilience. Interested companies can apply here. Read more.
Africa-Focused Fintech Chipper Cash Nets $13.8m Series-A Round
Chipper Cash, the first platform that allows instant cross-border money transfers has secured Series A funding led by Deciens Capital, a San Fransisco based venture the supports businesses with angel and seed investments. The investment will enable Chipper to execute its expansion plans, part of which involves the recruitment of thirty new workers worldwide. Read more.
TransferGo Raises $10M Additional Funding, Launches in 11 New Markets
TransferGo, an international money transfer service based in London has secured another $10m funding. The round of funding was led by Seventure (a French venture capital that invests in businesses in the field of information and communication technology) and Vostok Emerging Finance, a company that invests in fintech companies in emerging economies) with follow-on funding from other companies. Read more.
South Africa: Zeder Investments Sells Its Stake in Quantum Foods
Zeder, a company that acquires stakes in businesses operating within the agriculture and food processing sector has sold its 32.1% shares in Quantum food (a company that specializes in animal feed, poultry farming and related businesses) to Country Bird Holdings which operates in the same business sphere as Quantum. Read more.
Zedny, an Egyptian Edtech Startup, Bags $1.2m Pre-seed Funding
Zedny, a company that facilitates academic literature in Arabic, has secured pre-seed funding from angel investors. It provides year-long online learning and development at a fraction of the cost of one offline training course for an employee. Additionally, the platform can act as an external employee performance evaluator through its Artificial Intelligence integrations. It integrates gamification into the HR development cycle to encourage individuals to develop their skills and business acumen. Read more.
Suguba Investment Readiness Programme for Digital Francophone West African Startups
Suguba, a company that encourages integration and regional trade in Francophone West Africa, is partnering with Mercy Corps (a humanitarian group) and the French Development Agency is organizing its six months investment readiness programme in French-speaking West African countries with a view to supporting eight most promising start-ups in the digital sector. Eligibility is based on evidence of generation of a minimum of 75% of turnover by applying start-ups in one of the following companies: Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso, Guinea Conakry, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Niger, and Senegal. Interested companies should apply online at www.Suguba.org, no later than 19 June 2020. Read more.
How Tanzanian Agri-Tech Startup, East Africa Fruits, Plans to Scale after $3.1m Series A Round
East Africa fruits, an agri-tech firm that buys food produce from small scale farmers and sells to customers through a business-to-business e-commerce platform, has secured a $3.1 million Series A funding to expand its business by targeting more than 10,000 farmers and 15,000 businesses. Read more.
Africa Netpreneur Prize Teams Up with Ashesi, Dalberg, Janngo, RiseUp, ALU for 2020 Pitch
Africa’s Business Heroes price competition (ABH) has been organized by Jack Ma Foundation’s Africa Netpreneur Prize Initiative (ANPI), African Leadership Group, Ashesi, Dalberg, Janngo and Rise up to enhance entrepreneurship across Africa. Application is open to all regardless of your nationality, age, gender, or industry. Application will end by June 22, 2020. Read more.
