23 Business Grants for African Entrepreneurs and Startups

 

These Business grants for African Entrepreneurs are offered to individuals, firms/company, business or corporations to enable them cover scale up or develop their business, pay worker’s salaries, and run ads. Among the 23 Business Grants for African Entrepreneurs and Startups are listed:

• SeedStars World
• Shared Interest
• Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Grant
• Lundin Foundation
• Root Capital
• The Anzisha Prize
• Schwab Foundation
• MEST Africa Challenge
• Savannah Fund
• She Leads Africa Accelerator Grants
• Tshikululu Social Investments
• Miss Africa Seed Grants for African Women in Tech Businesses
• YALI Regional Leadership
• Ashden International Awards for Entrepreneurs in Developing Countries
• African Entrepreneurship Award
• GroFin Grants
• African Women Development Fund
• Unilever Young Entrepreneurs Award
• Innovation Prize for Africa
• African Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship (AWIE)
• 500.co
• Funded.com
• TechCrunch

1. Seed-Stars World

Seed-Stars World is one of the business grants offered to entrepreneurs from Africa. Seed-Stars Africa is an organization active offering SME grants in over 53 countries in the world, especially regions like Africa, Asia, Middle East and South America.

To access business grants from Seed-Stars, you will need to apply for the annually offered Business grant competition, a competitive grants for young business owners and emerging markets.

These business grants for entrepreneurs from Africa help to identify promising business owners, organizations and companies in the very need of capital.

Target/Audience

Support Entrepreneurs who have a business in any African country.

To build and support online businesses in Africa.

To fund web and mobile tech startups in Africa.

2. Shared Interest

This business grants for Africans is lending support to basically young entrepreneurs in Africa. Shared Interest was established in 1990 with the aim of financing artisans, farmers and food producers in developing countries as lending society founded situated in England.

Shard Interest has a very large investment and satellite offices in major African countries like Ghana, Kenya, Costa Rica, Peru and some Eastern Africa countries. Having members investing about $1,000 from over 9,000 investors has help provide a shared capital to support entrepreneurs in Africa with grants.

Target/Audience

To support Entrepreneurs in Africa from developing countries.

Provided SME grants to make finance available to business owners such as food producers, farmers, artist.

Link:

https://www.shared-interest.com/

3. Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Program

The Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Grant is offered by the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) to provide 10,000 aspiring African Entrepreneurs an opportunity to benefit from $100 million grant to create 1,000,000 jobs and contribute $10 billion in annual revenues to Africa’s economy over the next 10 years

The Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship grants Programme (TEEP), a Pan-African entrepreneurship initiative of the Tony Elumelu Foundation founded by a Nigerian billionaire investor is a multi-year programme of training, funding, and mentoring, designed to empower the next generation of African entrepreneurs.

Target/Audience

Provide finance to aspiring African entrepreneurs

Offer $100 million grant to create 1,000,000 jobs and contribute $10 billion in annual revenues to Africa’s economy.

African entrepreneurs who are business owners or startups with achievable innovative ideas.

4. Tshikululu Social Investments

Tshikululu Social Investments provides wide range of social investment and business grants to Entrepreneurs residing in Africa. The provider is a South African Corporate Social Investment (CSI) manager responsible for dispensing SME Grants to Africans.

Tshikululu Social Investments over the years is managing CSI funds of different organizations like Rand Merchant Bank Fund, De Beers Fund, and many others.

Target/Audience

To support entrepreneurs in Africa with SME grants.

Provide Business grants to wide range of business owners, companies ranging from community support and growth, arts and culture, health, medical assistance, health care e.t.c

5. Lundin Foundation

The Lundin Foundation is one organization offering business grants. established by the Swedish family by name Lundin in the year 2005 to offer Entrepreneurs in African countries business grants.

Lundin Foundation has it’s headquarters situated in Canada, but operate branches in these African countries- Ghana and Kenya.

Several business owners and entrepreneurs across Africa has received this business grants offered by Lundin Foundation.

Target/Audience

Provide financial support to already established business, organizations around the world

Provide business grants, risk capital and mentorship to business owners, companies across Africa.

6. Root Capital

The Root Capital offer Business grants to empower entrepreneurs, businesses in Africa. Root Capital is a non-profit investment fund established in 1991 to positively provide funds and impact businesses, families in rural communities and bridge social interaction with business owners.

Over 450 businesses have receive grants worth $million dollars within the years of business grants offered. However, the policies has it a 100% payback for the Root Capital investors.

Target/Audience

Bridge business grant gap and promote rural development with business capital

Provide business training and sourcing funds options to strengthen small and medium sized businesses.

Connect to agricultural business and deliver financial training including funds to strengthen and grow businesses in Africa.

7. Anzisha Prize

The African Leadership Academy’s Anzisha Prize provide young innovative African entrepreneurs with business grants if you are a founder of an established business venture.

Not only will you get business grants but leadership and entrepreneurial training for young Africans between age of 15 to 22 years.

This is a perfect business grants for young innovative entrepreneurs in Africa be it any venture, business, and project.

Target/Audience

To provide business grants to young innovative African entrepreneurs

Business mentorship for business owners of age 15 to 22 years.

8. Schwab Foundation

In order to advance social entrepreneurs in across the globe, Schwab Foundation continually seek for business owners who are social entrepreneurs in different areas such as agribusiness, tech, health, education.

 The Schwab Foundation was established in 1998 as a social entrepreneurship firm situated in Geneva, Switzerland to provide business grants across Africa region with rigorous selection stages which upon selection you will receive the business grant.

Target/Audience

Provide grants to social entrepreneurs in areas such as education, agribusiness, health, technology e.t.c

Basically, fund social entrepreneurs after intensive screening with the business grants.

9. MEST Africa Challenge

Are you a young tech entrepreneur emerging in the tech industries? MEST Africa Challenge offers annual Africa wide-pitch competition with business fund of $50,000 in equity investment for startups.

MEST Africa Challenge is a great business grants for entrepreneurs who are in tech business based in any of the country: Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sénégal, South Africa and Tanzania. The challenge is a unique search for African tech entrepreneurs and focus on giving them coaching, business capital, wide networking with other entrepreneurs, startup.

Target/Audience

To support African entrepreneurs with business investment capital.

Provide business grants to young emerging technology entrepreneurs in Africa.

10. Savannah Fund

The Savannah fund is also another fantastic option, as it provides startups, business grants to African entrepreneurs. Savanah fund have over time generated a revenue more than $8million as it focuses on nursery stage high growing technology entrepreneurs and startups in Africa.

Since it has been assisting entrepreneurs with business grants. It has records of support to African entrepreneurs from Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and other neighborhood countries.

Target/Audience

 To strongly bridge the business funding gap between ventures capital investments and early startups and entrepreneurs in Africa.

11. She Leads Africa Accelerator Grants

This business grants is offered annually to female entrepreneurs between the age of 18-35 and have already business that need funding in Nigeria.

The She Leads Africa Accelerator prize will raise your profile, have access to Nigeria funding, best business minds in the country and an opportunity for investment in your business.

The program duration is 6 months with a N2Million in investment capital to entrepreneurs who are females.

Target/Audience

To provide investment capital of N2million

To give female entrepreneurs between age of 18 to 35 with existing business based in Nigeria, business fund, media coverage to boost profile.

12. Miss Africa Seed Grants for African Women in Tech Businesses

A US$5 000 business grant as prize for winner while $1 000 grand prize for finalists. Miss Africa Seed funding supports tech business owned by African entrepreneurs who are women/girls.

The Business grants for African entrepreneurs is an initiative organized by DCA Academy offering funding as support to females in science related fields.

If you are current resident of any African country with demonstrated leadership potential as company representative or social enterprise situated in Africa. Then consider this grants are it’s support STEM fields and related subjects.

Target/Audience

To provide grants to support women and girls who demonstrate leadership qualities.

Females in STEM fields and related subjects with US$5 000 business grant as prize for winner while $1 000 grand prize for finalists.

13. YALI Regional Leadership

The Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) was launched to support African entrepreneurs and invest in the future generation businesses in Africa.

Basically, civil leaders, entrepreneurs, and business owners receive grants including other benefits such as leadership training, creatitivity and innovation, effective communication as entrepreneur.

Target/Audience

To provide business grants

Support African entrepreneurs between age 18 to 35 years

14. Ashden International Awards for Entrepreneurs in Developing Countries

Ashden International Awards for Entrepreneurs is one of the world’s biggest green energy business awards which provide innovative enterprise with the contribution of creating sustainable energy systems.

The entrepreneurship grants is open to non-government organizations, social enterprise helping to build a low carbon society now for the future generations.

Business and social enterprise do receive $20, 000 and have to be based on United Nations list of eligible countries. African countries are on the list of eligible countries so this give you a one privilege to consider this grant.

15. African Entrepreneurship Award

The business grants is provided by BMCE bank of African with a focus to provide a platform for mentorship. SME grants to entrepreneurs in Africa for smart business ideas.

African Entrepreneurship awards is another funding grants offered to African Entrepreneurs whose business are applicable to the African environment with social impact.

You can consider this business grant for Africans if you are a citizen of any African country and of age 18 years and above whose business fall into the categories of innovation & sports entrepreneurship, and sports entrepreneurship.

You can choose this business grant as it offers $1million to selected African entrepreneurs.

16. GroFin Grants

Small and medium sized business in Africa that are into manufactring,agri-business, education, healthcare and basic key services such as energy, water, sanitation do receive business grants and supports such as financial loans.

GroFin Grants is a private financial institution with the aim of providing business and entreprises in Africa with medium term financial support. Ever since it was launched in 2004, it has provide business support to over 700 small and medium entreprise and helping to sustian jobs in some countries in Sub Saharan African and MENA regions.

Target/Audience

To provide financial support to business and entreprises in Africa

Offer financial loans to medium sized business in manufacturing, agribusiness, education, and healthcare.

17. African Women Development Fund

The business grants is provided to support organizations that are women led or tackling issues of female rights, security, and justice.

African Women development funding is a pan African female grants that support any organization that strives to support women right and participation for peace.

The business must have been in existence upto 3 years, registered and located in African country, led by a woman and have structured organization board for effective project implementation.

Target/Audience

Provide funds to business/organization registered and situated in an African country

Offers fund to business/enterprise that are led by women and tackling women rights, security and justice in their country/region.

18. Unilever Young Entrepreneurs Award

This business grants support innovative entrepreneurs tackling some world challenges, specifically the globe sustainability goals.

Unilever young entrepreneurs award can be the perfect grant for you if you a a social entrepreneur with impact and need supports as funds to scale your business, entrepises to a next level.

This business grants for African entrepreneurs have fund lots of businesses and reached a large number of young entrepeneurs through funding and support.

Target/Audience

To provide business grants to innovative young entrepreneurs

To support support social entrepreneurs with funds to scale business tacking world sustainability challenges.

19.Innovation Prize for Africa

Innovative prize is one of the grants for African entrepreneurs. The business grants is aimed to encourage an innovation driven solutions to the challenges in Africa.

Have an idea or solution to a critical challenge affecting Africa countries. Innovation prize for Africa is a platform to help you amplify your voice and innovative solution to the challenges faced.

So you need a funding, then apply for innovative prize for Africa, if you have a business idea or solution that is impactful to Africa.

Target/Audience

The award support an innovation driven ideas and business that solve challenges in Africa.

20. African Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship (AWIE)

This program seeks to provide business grants to accelerate entrepreneurship that are female led organization. AWIE is among the entrepreneurship grant platforms that support and provide funding to innovative , creative female entrepreneurs across the African region.

Each year AWIE recognizes and support females in private non-profit businesses in Africa doing tremendous change and impacting the economic growth of Africa.

Target/Audience

To support women led organizations registered in any African country.

Award nominated female entrepreneurs in some award categories.

Conclusion

As entrepreneurs and startup, you can get business grants and fundings to support and scale up your entreprises if your business is registered and located in any Africa country. The above business grants for Africans entrepreneurs are the top grants avialable to entrepreneurs in African region.

Take advantage of this wide range of business grants and apply for the latest ongoing and opend business grants