100 female-led startups join high-impact acceleration programme

Women Entrepreneurship for Africa (WE4A) has chosen 100 female-led startups to participate in its high-impact accelerator, which focuses on company growth for job creation.

The WE4A program intends to improve the business capacities of female-led businesses, as well as their access to capital, market opportunities, knowledge enhancement, and technical training.

It is an initiative of the European Union (EU), the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), with implementation from the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

The Swiss Association for Entrepreneurship in Emerging Markets (SAFEEM), a Seedstars Group member, is in charge of the WE4A acceleration and program components. Participants will get a grant of EUR10,000 (US$11,400) and three months of technical help through a virtual acceleration program.

The 100 startups — the entire list is available here – will have access to over 30 workshops, expert talks, and networking opportunities. Startups will also be assigned a dedicated mentor for one-on-one meetings and will receive EiR help in small groups.

After completing the accelerator, the businesses will pitch their solutions in front of worldwide investors at a virtual demo day. The 15 firms with the highest growth potential will subsequently receive follow-on funding of up to EUR50,000 (US$57,000) as well as an additional three months of growth program training.

WE4A is expected to contribute to the creation of approximately 1,800 new jobs for women entrepreneurs in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“The European Union is pleased to support the Women Entrepreneurship for Africa initiative.” Empowering women and youth unleashes enormous creativity and potential for growth. It eliminates inequality and promotes good jobs throughout our neighboring continent. “The EU is committed to assisting small enterprises, particularly those run by women and young people, which are the backbone of Africa’s economy and long-term growth,” said Jutta Urpilainen, European Commissioner for International Partnerships.