Greetings, fellow startup enthusiasts!
After a brief hiatus, we’re excited to bring you the latest updates from Ghana’s vibrant startup ecosystem. This edition is packed with funding news, policy developments, and inspiring stories of growth and expansion. Let’s dive in!
- 10 agriventures secure $100,000 as finalists of the Tullow AgriVentures Programme.
- ManoCap Energy secures $20 million to expand its commercial & industrial solar business in West Africa.
- Farmio secures funding to scale its climate-smart farming technology and reach more farmers.
- The National Insurance Commission admits 5 startups for the first cohort of its regulatory sandbox.
- Two female Emerging Fund Managers, Kristin Wilson and Barbara Ghansah selected for the Obuntu Launchpad Fellowship.
- Cowtribe expands to Kenya through a partnership with the Kisumu County government.
Funding
The Tullow AgriVentures Programme has awarded ten promising small and growing agribusinesses $10,000 each to expand their businesses. The 10 companies – Tropical Snacks, Vicca Juice, Fafas Breakfast, Entofarms, H.A Farms, Madolf Ventures, Wami Agro, Vokia Farms, Defarmacist Group Limited, and Minana Services will receive technical and market access support to their growth strategy.
The Ghana—and Sierra Leone-based renewable energy investment company ManoCap Energy has secured $20 million in long-term debt financing from the Mirova Gigaton Fund to offer businesses renewable energy solutions to businesses. It specializes in replacing diesel generators through the installation of solar and battery storage hybrid energy systems for commercial and industrial clients.
Farmio, the agritech that provides mobile greenhouse kits to farmers has secured funding from Standard Chartered Bank’s Women in Tech Financing Facility. Founded in 2019, Farmio will use the funds to expand their demonstration farm and scale their technology to reach more farmers. The team anticipates expanding its farmer network from over 200 farmers to 5,000 farmers in the next few years as they continue to leverage technology to expand reach through their app.
Policy
Ghana’s insurance industry regulator, the National Insurance Commission, has accepted five insurtech startups. Moovon Insure, ETAP, RedPear, Trade Guarantee Limited and FigTech Insure into the regulator sandbox. During the 12-month period, the solutions will undergo a rigorous testing phase within the sandbox environment, allowing for experimentation and exploration of new business models, technologies, and customer-centric solutions.
Talent
Two Female Emerging Fund Managers, Kristin Wilson (Managing Partner at Innovate Africa Fund) and Barbara Ghansah (CEO at Zinari Capital) have been selected for the Obuntu Launchpad Fellowship. The Obuntu Launchpad Fellowship aims to address the unique challenges faced by local Emerging Fund Managers in Africa.
Expansion
Cowtribe, the Ghana-based agtech specializing in animal healthcare and vaccine manufacturing has expanded to Kenya through a collaboration with the Kisumu County government in Kenya. As part of the collaboration Cowtribe will utilize Zipeline medical drone network to distribute animals vaccines to farmers and veterinary services.
