By Yemi Olakitan
Pre-seed Venture Capitalists (VC), Catalyst Fund has chosen 10 African entrepreneurs to benefit from its $2 million investment in solutions to increase the resilience of climate-vulnerable communities in Africa. These startups are speeding Africa’s adaptation and resilience to climate change.
The news was made yesterday at the first cohort of Catalyst Fund’s new $30 million venture capital fund, which is supported by the organisation FSD Africa. The fund’s goal is to assist early-stage entrepreneurs in creating technology that can increase Africa’s resistance to the effects of climate change.
The firms chosen include Paddy Cover and Eight Medical from Nigeria, as well as Octavia Carbon and Farm to Feed from Kenya. Others include Uganda’s Agro Supply, Senegal’s Assuraf, Egypt’s VAIS and Bekia, Morocco’s Sand to Green, and Egypt’s VAIS and Bekia.
The 10 startups came from six different African nations. These businesses will be added to Catalyst Fund’s current portfolio of 61 startups in emerging markets, where they will receive funding, specialised and expert-led venture development support, and direct access to investors, corporate innovators, and talent networks that can help them scale.
The Managing Partner of Catalyst Fund, Maelis Carraro, expressed his delight in a statement about working with these entrepreneurs to address a problem endangering Africa’s continued existence and survival. “Our objective is to support mission-driven founders who share our vision of a future where every person has the chances and resources they need to flourish,” he says. These firms demonstrate financial, technology, and business model innovations that can help communities better adapt to climate effects and increase their resilience, he continued. They range from agtech to insurtech, waste management, disaster response, and carbon finance.
The portfolio firms of Catalyst Fund have so far raised over US$640 million in additional capital and today provide services to over 14 million people worldwide, including MSMEs.
These ten firms will receive $100K in equity investments and $100K in direct assistance with business development.