The Black Founders Fund, now in its third year, aims to help tackle systemic racial inequality in venture capital (VC) funding by providing equity-free grants and mentoring to early stage Black-led high-growth businesses across Europe and Africa. 

The selected cohort of 40 startups from Europe and Africa, includes 25 African startups that embody the diverse entrepreneurial spirit across the African continent.

Startups led or co-founded by women make up 72% of the group, highlighting the role women play in shaping Africa’s startup ecosystem. The funding will provide the businesses with the capital needed to take their ventures to the next level and expand to new markets, supercharging economic opportunities and job creation.

Early-stage investment is essential for the success of startups and the African startup ecosystem as a whole. This is crucial for Africa to become a global tech leader.

With the significant decrease in African tech investment in 2023, startups in Africa need funds to sustain their growth and develop innovative solutions for the continent.

From accessible healthcare to efficient logistics, to innovative fintech solutions, these startups are harnessing the power of technology to address some of Africa’s most pressing challenges. HealthDart is elevating healthcare by providing comprehensive services and insurance through its digital platform. Tushop is reimagining retail with a group-buying platform in Kenya that encourages cost-saving and community engagement. Herconomy is breaking new ground in the fintech sector with its goal to become Africa’s first women-focused bank. 

Each selected startup will receive up to $150,000 in non-dilutive cash awards, up to $200,000 in Google Cloud credits, Ad support, 1:1 mentoring by industry experts and invaluable connections within Google’s network. 

Folarin Aiyegbusi, Head of Startups Ecosystem, Africa at Google said “Startups play a major role in advancing Africa’s digital transformation. We look forward to working with this group of innovative founders who are using technology to solve some of the most pressing challenges in Africa. The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund is committed to addressing the stark inequality in VC funding by providing Black founders with the resources and support they need to succeed” 

Ifedayo Durosinmi-Etti, Founder of Herconomy, selected for the 2023 Fund comments, “At Herconomy, we are on a mission to reimagine the financial landscape for women in Africa. Being chosen for the prestigious 2023 Black Founders Fund will fuel our revolutionary vision and accelerate our progress. With the funding and support provided by the program, we will expedite the development of our innovative solutions, enhance support for our valued customers, and expand our presence on an international scale.

Cathy Chepkemboi, Founder of Tushop, selected for the 2023 Fund comments, “At Tushop, our passion lies in leveraging technology to empower Kenyan consumers and increase their buying power. Our ultimate ambition is to transform the way daily essentials and FMCG products are accessed, enabling individuals to save significantly. With the support of Google for Startups, we are one step closer to realising our goal of positively impacting the lives of millions of consumers in Kenya and beyond. 

Njabulo Skhosana, Founder of HealthDart, selected for the 2023 fund comments, “At HealthDart, we empower patients to access affordable and timely solutions for basic health problems through our technology-driven approach. By integrating pharmacy, telemedicine, and insurance with seamless payment options, we ensure affordable access to comprehensive primary healthcare. With the support of Google for Startups, we are poised to further enhance our platform, enabling more individuals to find the most cost-effective and efficient healthcare options.

Since its inception, the Black Founders Fund has facilitated over $205 million in investor conversations, representing a 12-fold increase.

This has sparked significant growth within the participating startups, with their combined monthly recurring revenue now exceeding $6.1 million, marking a 7% increase. 

List of Startups 

1. Akoma Health (Nigeria): Akoma Health operates a technology platform that delivers accessible and culturally conscious mental health services across Africa, addressing the pressing need for mental well-being support.

2. BezoMoney (Ghana): BezoMoney is a digital banking solution that aims to bridge the financial inclusion gap in Africa by providing mobile and web platforms for the underbanked population.

3. Chargel (Senegal): Chargel is a digital trucking platform that connects shippers and carriers in Francophone West Africa, streamlining logistics and enhancing efficiency in the transportation industry.

4. Charis UAS (Rwanda): Charis UAS utilizes cutting-edge drone technology to provide 3D geospatial data, empowering industries such as agriculture, construction, and urban planning with precise mapping and analytics.

5. Evolve Credit (Nigeria): Evolve Credit offers a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution that digitizes and manages banking services, enabling financial institutions to enhance their operations and serve customers more efficiently.

6. Excel At Uni (South Africa): Excel At Uni provides digital services to support student funders, aiding them in managing their finances, scholarships, and educational resources.

7. EzyAgric (Uganda): EzyAgric employs AI-powered mobile technology to revolutionize Africa’s farming sector, empowering farmers with essential tools and information to optimize agricultural practices.

8. Fez Delivery (Nigeria): Fez Delivery operates a last-mile logistics platform catering to various industries, ensuring swift and reliable delivery services to meet the demands of businesses and consumers alike.

9. Fleetsimplify (Kenya): Fleetsimplify connects gig drivers with vehicle owners through its monetization platform, enabling seamless coordination and efficient utilization of transportation resources.

10. HealthDart (South Africa): HealthDart is a digital health maintenance organization (HMO) that offers end-to-end health services, including insurance, leveraging technology to enhance healthcare accessibility and affordability.

11. Herconomy (Nigeria): Herconomy is a female-focused fintech company with the ambition of becoming Africa’s first women’s bank, empowering women entrepreneurs and providing them with tailored financial solutions to support their businesses and economic empowerment.

12. Jumba (Kenya): Jumba is dedicated to improving Kenya’s construction sector supply chain through its innovative business-to-business (B2B) platform, streamlining procurement processes and fostering collaboration among industry stakeholders.

13. MDaaS Global (Nigeria): MDaaS Global operates tech-powered diagnostic centers, making affordable healthcare accessible to underserved communities across Nigeria by leveraging advanced medical technology.

14. My Pocket Counsel (Nigeria): My Pocket Counsel is a legal tech platform that simplifies contract generation and management, empowering businesses and individuals to navigate legal processes efficiently and cost-effectively.

15. Orda (Nigeria): Orda is a pan-African neobank specifically designed for restaurants, offering cloud-based software solutions to streamline operations, enhance customer experiences, and drive growth in the food service industry.

16. Periculum (Nigeria): Periculum is a data company that plays a vital role in aiding credit assessment and mitigating fraud and churn risks, providing businesses with valuable insights to make informed decisions.

17. Raenest (Nigeria): Raenest is a fintech company that offers global financial services to freelancers and startups in Africa, facilitating cross-border transactions and supporting the growth of the digital economy.

18. Ridelink (Uganda): Ridelink is an e-logistics platform that provides shipping services and real-time tracking, optimizing supply chain management and enhancing transparency and efficiency in the logistics industry.

19. Susu (Côte d’Ivoire): Susu is a health platform that offers healthcare services and insurance funded by the African diaspora, promoting health and well-being across the continent by leveraging the support of the global African community.

20. Talamus Health (Ghana): Talamus Health develops tech solutions to target healthcare inefficiencies in Africa, leveraging advanced technology to improve healthcare delivery, accessibility, and patient outcomes.

21. TruQ (Nigeria): TruQ streamlines mid-mile logistics across Africa by connecting businesses with third-party vehicle connectivity solutions, optimizing transportation operations and reducing costs.

22. Tushop (Kenya): Tushop operates a tech platform that enables group buying of daily essentials in Kenya, empowering communities to access essential products at discounted prices while fostering a sense of collective economic strength.

23. Uzapoint (Kenya): Uzapoint provides mobile and web point-of-sale (POS) solutions to digitize bookkeeping in Africa’s informal sector, enabling small businesses to efficiently manage their finances and improve their operations.

24. Zinacare (South Africa): Zinacare is an online platform that offers accessible and affordable healthcare services, leveraging technology to connect patients with healthcare providers, facilitating remote consultations, and expanding access to quality healthcare.

25. Zydii (Kenya): Zydii provides localized digital training solutions for African SMEs (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises), equipping entrepreneurs and business owners with the necessary skills and knowledge to succeed in the digital era.

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Eligibility

Startups operating and headquartered in Africa or having a legal presence on the continent are eligible to apply for the Black Founders Fund.

Other eligibility criteria for startups that wish to apply are that the business should be benefiting the black community or that early-stage startups have black founders or diverse founding teams.

The startups should be building for Africa and the global market, have the growth potential to raise more funding, create jobs and generally be making measurable impact.

Benefits

Upon selection, the startups will receive up to $150,000 equity-free cash awards and up to $200,000 per startup in Google Cloud credits, support in the form of training, and access to a network of mentors to assist in tackling the challenges unique to each startup. The applications for the third cohort will close on 26 March, 2023.

“Startups are a critical driver of innovation, economic growth and social progress especially in Africa and the support that the selected startups will receive will go a long way to unlock the potential and promote growth in the African tech ecosystem and the next generation of African tech entrepreneurs. We encourage all eligible startups to apply” says Folarin Aiyegbusi, Head of Startup Ecosystem, Google Sub Saharan Africa. 

Following the successful completion of two cohorts of the Black Founders Fund, the program has supported a total of 110 black-owned startups across Africa. 60 growth-stage startups were selected and supported through the program last year in Africa.

Africa has a growing population with 1 in 3 Africans estimated to be under 35 by 2050. The continent presents a huge opportunity for startups to provide innovative solutions for the growing market. It is also estimated that  by 2025, the African Internet economy will have the potential to add up to $180 billion to Africa’s GDP. 

By funding Black founders, Google is promoting job creation and wealth generation in the continent. The Black Founders Fund program for startups not only provides funding, but also hands-on support, connections and resources to help founders build solutions that are relevant for the African economy.

How to apply 

Applications for the 2023 Black Founders Fund for Startups are ongoing. Be a part of it.

The post Google Opens Applications for Third Cohort of Black Founders Fund for Startups in Africa, Europe appeared first on Tech | Business | Economy.

Kashifu Inuwa, the Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), stated this while delivering a Keynote Address at the Google Black Founders Fund in Africa 2022 Launch Event, which took place at Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.

Similarly, Inuwa said that as Nigeria moves to harness the potential of its digital economy through co-created regulations and provide enabling environment for growth, attraction and protection of investment in the sector, the recently passed Nigeria Startup Bill by National Assembly will help institutionalize legal frameworks that will enhance the growth of startups easily, quickly and conveniently in the country.

The DG noted that part of the challenge being faced by startups especially in Africa is legal backing.

According to him, starting and growing businesses in Africa used to be a big challenge, but with such Bill in place, it will be easier to start a business.

Speaking on the importance of the event, Inuwa said the gathering is an opportunity for startups to get funding and start a business. Also, it is coming with other incentives like the training Google offers which can be accessed via their Cloud.

While affirming government’s commitment to the growth of digital economy in Nigeria, Inuwa said “we believe our own responsibility is to come up with policies that can enable a level playing field, and the government has been doing a lot in this area, starting with expanding the mandate of our ministry to cover digital economy, and the ongoing implementation of National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a digital Nigeria, which outlined its strategic pillars that are key to the ecosystem.”

“We are currently working on a project called “Talent Gap Assessment”, because we believe talent is the people side of technology. In Africa, we cannot compete with the rest of the world in terms of hardware and any technology infrastructure, but when it comes to talent, we have a competitive edge over the rest of the world.

Advising the Startups to have it in mind that technology is making things easier, Inuwa noted that customers’ demand is changing rapidly, so they should envisage how human lives will be tomorrow and come up with innovative products that will be sellable in the future market.

“Don’t waste your time on what is happening today, the problem of today may be irrelevant tomorrow. Focus on Emerging Technologies and change the way we do things in this world. What helps you to succeed today may not help you succeed tomorrow.”

“Try and turn your products into services because the world is moving to a service platform markets. You will make more money in service than in products. It is easier to provide a service in Africa because of our challenging infrastructure. Let us explore that, that will help us to excel,” he added.

He assured that the government is ready to partner with people or organizations like Google and the ecosystem in general, especially five key critical stakeholders needed on board to build a strong ecosystem; Entrepreneurs, Higher Institution, Corporate Organisations, Multi-national and Government.

“Entrepreneurs brings ideas, higher institutions provide human capital development, corporate organisations absorb products, and government’s role is basically in the policy-making and intervenes in a situation whereby there is shortage in unserved and underserved areas. This is why the government came up the start-up bill which is also going to come up with a seed funding that can help with early-stage funding as well,” he noted.

Inuwa thanked Google for the opportunity provided to African startups through the Black Founders Fund and also encouraged other multi-nationals to look at how they can help the African startups ecosystem with funding, adding that it is going to be a win-win situation, the more startups in Africa, the more digital offerings, the more market they will create for the multi-nationals.

On his part, Mr Adewolu Adene, Government Affairs and Policy Manager, Google Nigeria, applauded the Nigerian Government for the support it provides on easy system, and contributing to their data in terms of physical incentives and the registration process of Corporate Affairs Commission.

He said, “We are really grateful for the support that we have been getting from policy-makers and all the forces behind. We have done a lot to get to this point and we hope that we can continue to do even more to take us further such that we are able to deliver to the respective mandate.”

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The startups joining the program will receive a total of $4million in funding and support to enable them to scale up their ongoing work. 

Each of the selected startups will receive support in the form of a 6 month training programme that includes access to a network of mentors to assist in tackling  challenges that are unique to them. 

They will also be part of tailored workshops, support networks  and community building sessions.

The 60 grantees will also get non-dilutive awards of  between $50,000 and $100,000 and up to $200,000 in Google Cloud credit. 

The grantees, made up of 50% women-led businesses, hail from Botswana,  Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda.

They specialise in sectors such as fintech, healthcare, e-commerce, logistics, agtech, education, hospitality and smart cities.

The top five countries with the most startups selected for the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund (BFF) for Africa program are;

• Nigeria (23)
• Kenya (12)
• Rwanda (6)
• South Africa (5)
• Uganda (4)
• Cameroon (3)
• Ghana (3)
• Ethiopia (2)
• Botswana and Senegal have one selected startup each.  

“Africa is a diverse continent with massive opportunity but the continent is faced with the challenge of limited diversity in venture capital funding flow. We hope that the Black Founders Fund program will be able to bridge the gap of disproportionate funding between expat startups over local and black-led companies.”, says Folarin Aiyegbusi, Head of Startup Ecosystem, SSA.

Launched in April 2012, the Google for Startups program has created over 4,600 jobs and raised more than $290M in funding.

The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund program will introduce  the grantees in Africa  to Google’s products, connections, and best practices which will help the founders to level the playing field as they build better products and services that add value to the Africa economy.

“Programs like the Black Founders Fund enhance the African ecosystem – where we currently have gaps in funding and infrastructure. Google getting involved and throwing its might behind thriving entrepreneurs in Africa is a beautiful thing, and I am very happy that Google has continued the Black Founders Fund in Africa initiative in 2022.” says Abimbola Adebakin , CEO, MyMedicines and alumni of the 2021 BFF program.

Funding for the Google for Startup Black Founders Fund will be  distributed through Google’s implementation partner,  CcHUB.

“The equity-free cash assistance to startups will enable them to take care of immediate needs such as paying staff, funding inventory, and maintaining software licences. This is to help the grantees buffer the  cost of taking on debt in the early stages of their business as many of them do not have steady revenue streams yet”, Aiyegbusi concludes.

Funding Black founders in Africa fuels generational and systemic change. The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund for Africa program reinforces Google’s commitment to empowering entrepreneurs and startups in the region as a vital prerequisite to driving employment and growth on the continent.

Click here for the list of the 60 startups  that were selected for the second cohort of the Black Founders Fund in Africa.

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