- Madica, an Africa-focused pre-seed investment program, has unveiled investments in three African startups: Kola Market, GoBEBA and NewForm Foods.
- The move comes as funding for African startups increased from $2 billion in 2019 to $6.5 billion in 2022, before falling to $3.5 billion in 2023. .
- Each selected startup will receive up to $200,000 and participate in Madica’s investment program, which provides 18 months of company formation support tailored to each startup’s needs.
Madika head Emmanuel Adegboye acknowledged the disparity in venture funding in Africa, but said the program was aimed at supporting founders who are often overlooked by investors.
“Both of these startups represent the untapped potential of African founders, who are too often perceived as risky by global investors and therefore lack desperately needed support. “Our goal this year is to support more founders and integrate them into the global startup ecosystem,” he said.
Founded in 2022 and backed by US-based venture capital firm Flourish Ventures, Madica provides funding, technical assistance and mentorship to underrepresented founders across the continent.
The program provides the systemic support needed to resolve critical issues such as limited access to capital, lack of investors, lack of guidance, and foster innovation, entrepreneurship and wealth creation across Africa. It addresses the challenges faced by startups in Africa, such as the lack of
Kola Market is a Ghana-based B2B platform founded by Marie-Reine Seshie to help small and medium-sized businesses strengthen sales, optimize inventory, and secure financing.
Seshie revealed that the funding will help the platform test new ideas and scale its operations in ways that make a difference for customers.
GoBEBA, co-founded by Lesley Mbogo and Peter Ndiang’ui, is Kenya’s direct-to-customer e-commerce platform that streamlines the purchase and delivery of bulky essentials and ensures safe, fast, and reliable doorstep service in urban areas. To do.
Also among the selected startups is Newform Foods, a South African company founded by Brett Thompson and Tasneem Karodia that helps food producers and retailers significantly improve industry standards. We are enabling cultured meat products to be rapidly developed and scaled at a cost below .
