Girls account for 17% of enterprise founders in Africa, but they obtain a fraction of accessible capital. In 2021, African startups raised over $5 billion in funding throughout numerous sectors, with simply 20% going to startups co-founded by ladies and just one% of funding going to women-led startups. That is although ladies make up half of the inhabitants and are more and more dominant within the entrepreneurship house, with 58% of companies in Africa being owned by ladies.
One instance of a profitable and revolutionary women-led startup in Africa is Pezesha, a micro lending platform based by Hilda Moraa in Kenya. Pezesha leverages credit score analytics and massive knowledge to supply customers entry to loans securely utilizing cell cash, serving to to digitize small companies and deal with poverty and unemployment. The platform additionally improves monetary literacy and will increase enterprise earnings, driving financial development and enhancing livelihoods.
By growing the illustration of ladies within the startup ecosystem, we will help bridge the hole between the variety of women-led startups and the quantity and high quality of help they obtain, in the end resulting in extra variety and innovation.
That is why we’re excited to announce the launch of the Google for Startups Accelerator: Girls Founders Africa Program, which goals to help and empower ladies entrepreneurs in Africa by addressing these particular challenges.
This system will run for 12 weeks and can embody each on-line and in-person classes, beginning in March and ending in Could 2023. This program is a part of our broader efforts to enhance the illustration of ladies throughout totally different sections and to offer sources, mentorship and a community of help for feminine entrepreneurs.
We consider that by offering entry to funding, sources and mentorship, we will help to empower ladies founders to scale their companies, create jobs and make a constructive influence on their communities.
Functions for this system are open now by February twentieth, 2023. We encourage all ladies constructing nice tech startups in Africa or for Africa to apply to this system and make the most of this chance.
Posted by Folarin Aiyegbusi, Head of Startup Ecosystem, Africa, Google
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