Launches Fundraising Guidebook to Help First-Time African Founders in Elevating Pre-Seed Capital
Madica, a structured funding program targeted on pre-seed African startups, has introduced new investments in three technology-driven corporations: Kilimo Recent, Hakimu, and Biovana. These additions replicate Madica’s ongoing dedication to backing founders and ventures which are usually ignored by conventional enterprise capital.
Every startup will obtain funding of as much as $200,000 and take part in Madica’s 18-month assist program. This system features a personalized curriculum, hands-on mentorship, govt teaching, and two absolutely funded immersion journeys to key tech ecosystems each inside Africa and internationally. Founders can even achieve entry to Madica’s world community of traders to assist their long-term development.
By supporting underrepresented founders, startups from underserved areas, and companies working in less-funded sectors, Madica goals to deal with the imbalance in Africa’s enterprise funding panorama, which is commonly concentrated in just a few markets and amongst well-connected entrepreneurs. This system seeks to foster extra inclusive and distributed development throughout the continent.
Based in 2022, Madica is a sector-agnostic initiative designed to sort out structural challenges inside Africa’s startup ecosystem. It addresses limitations comparable to restricted entry to capital, a scarcity of lively traders, and inadequate mentorship alternatives. Via structured assist, this system helps early-stage startups overcome key hurdles and drive innovation, entrepreneurship, and financial development.
The chosen startups, drawn from candidates throughout Africa, provide technology-based options in fast-growing sectors:
Kilimo Recent (Tanzania), co-founded by Baraka Chijenga and Justice Mangu, connects smallholder farmers to city markets by aggregating, processing, and distributing recent produce by way of a technology-enabled provide chain, serving to to cut back meals waste.
Hakimu (Kenya), co-founded by Rawan Dareer, Ahmed Ahmed, and Ahmed Elbashir, is growing a pan-African authorized infrastructure powered by synthetic intelligence.
Biovana (Nigeria), co-founded by Estelle Dogbo and Dr. Jumi Popoola, is a knowledge harmonization and certification platform designed to unlock African well being datasets for world pharmaceutical, AI, and scientific analysis use.
Commenting on the brand new portfolio corporations, Emmanuel Adegboye, Head of Madica, mentioned, “Every new funding brings us nearer to the portfolio we got down to construct, one which displays the total breadth and variety of African entrepreneurship. These three startups be part of a rising neighborhood of founders we’re backing with the sources, relationships, and runway they should succeed at this early stage. The chance throughout the continent is gigantic, and we’re dedicated to being an important and constant associate in realising it.”
“Becoming a member of the Madica portfolio is a big second for Hakimu. We’re revolutionising entry to justice throughout Africa, and having a associate that understands the precise challenges and alternatives of scaling in Africa makes an actual distinction,” mentioned Rawan Dareer, co-founder and CEO of Hakimu. “We’re grateful for the belief, wanting ahead to the hands-on assist, and clear-eyed in regards to the work forward.”
As a part of its mission to advertise extra equitable development, Madica has additionally launched the primary version of its fundraising guidebook sequence, Zero to Funded: A Founder’s Information to Pre-Seed Fundraising in Africa. This 75-page useful resource is designed to assist early-stage African founders navigate their first fundraising course of, notably these with out entry to robust networks, accelerators, or prior expertise.
The information addresses frequent misconceptions that may hinder early investor conversations, explains how you can consider whether or not elevating enterprise capital is the suitable path, and descriptions how you can stability native market realities with world investor expectations. It additionally consists of sensible instruments, templates, and checklists to assist founders all through their fundraising journey.
Madica has moreover appointed Tauriq Brown as a mentor. A seasoned enterprise builder and former CEO of TooMuchWiFi—certainly one of Africa’s fastest-growing web infrastructure corporations—he brings intensive expertise from roles at Rocket Web and Mountain Companions. He’ll present founders with sensible, execution-focused steerage to assist scaling efforts.
According to its pan-African mandate, Madica continues to hunt new funding alternatives throughout the continent. Startups involved in making use of can go to the Madica web site. Eligible corporations will need to have a minimal viable product (MVP), early traction with paying clients, full-time founders, minimal or no institutional funding, and be headquartered in Africa.
The Madica group and its portfolio corporations will convene in Morocco from April 6 to 13 for an immersion journey held alongside Gitex Africa. This system will embody expert-led periods, hands-on workshops on funding readiness, organizational improvement, and group constructing, in addition to alternatives to attach with traders, clients, and ecosystem companions.
About Madica
Established in 2022, Madica is an Africa-focused pre-seed funding program supporting underrepresented, mission-driven founders. The platform is sector-agnostic and affiliated with Flourish Ventures, with a mission to empower entrepreneurs by way of funding and improved entry to world-class company-building assist.
Supply: Madica.
Photograph credit score: Madica.
