Hi everyone, and welcome back to This Week in StartupGhana! We’ve got an exciting edition for you, filled with news on funding wins. Dive into the key stories shaping Ghana’s startup ecosystem this week. Here are the top headlines:
Oyster Agribusiness lands $2m to help smallholder farmers to boost productivity.
Naa Sika selected for Luxembourg’s Catapult Inclusion Africa Programme.
Ashesi University’s Endowment Fund sets the pace with investment in Janngo Capital.
Tropo Farms nets $10 million from AgDevCo to scale its tilapia production.
Truecoco raises funding from Growth Investment Partners to double down on removing carbon from the air.
Tendo acquires Shopa to deepen its reach in the informal retail sector.
Oze and Nyla Bank named semifinalists in the 2024 Milken-Motsepe Fintech Prize.
Accelerator & Incubator
Naa Sika selected for Luxembourg’s Catapult Inclusion Africa programme.
Naa Sika, Ghana’s innovative e-Micro Bank, has been chosen for the prestigious Catapult Inclusion Africa Programme hosted by the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology. The one-week bootcamp offers startups a unique opportunity to connect with Europe’s financial inclusion ecosystem, with networking and mentorship sessions leading up to a final pitch event. Naa Sika, founded by Ralph Menz, leverages chatbots on popular messaging platforms to provide financial services for the youth and informal sector.
OGames Studio wins African Union Education Innovation Award.
OGames Studio, creators of SimuLab and Science Safari, won the top prize at the African Union Education Innovation Awards. This virtual lab platform allows students to conduct experiments in physics, chemistry, and biology from their phones, providing vital STEM education for students in under-resourced schools. Led by Onyx Terchie-Duku, the platform secured a $25,000 prize.
Oze and Nyla Bank named semifinalists in the 2024 Milken-Motsepe Fintech Prize.
Oze and Nyla Bank, have advanced to the semifinalist stage in the Milken-Motsepe Prize in Fintech. Each semifinalist team will receive $100,000 in funding to support developing and scaling their innovative financial solutions. The semifinalists will participate in an Innovation Showcase where the top three teams will be selected to move on to the final round of the prize.
Funding
Oyster Agribusiness secures $2 million to boost smallholder farmer productivity.
Oyster Agribusiness has closed a $2 million funding from Root Capital, RDF Ghana, and Sahel Capital Social Enterprise Fund. The agritech firm will use the funds to expand its operations, support climate-smart farming, and increase productivity for smallholder farmers. Under the leadership of Edmund Kombat, Oyster has supported over 4,500 farmers, cultivated more than 20,000 acres of land, and supplied 25,000 tons of produce to local and international markets.
Truecoco raises funding to scale carbon capture initiatives.
Truecoco, a leading aggregator and processor of agricultural commodities in Ghana, has raised funding from Growth Investment Partners to expand its carbon capture efforts through biochar. Leveraging discarded coconut husks to create biochar, Truecoco aims to remove 250,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by 2030. This funding will not only support climate goals but will also provide an additional income source for smallholder farmers across Ghana’s Western Region.
Ashesi University’s endowment fund investment in Janngo Capital.
In a groundbreaking move, Ashesi University’s Endowment Fund has invested in Janngo Capital, a pan-African venture capital firm focused on high-impact technology startups. As the first academic institution in Ghana to make an endowment-based investment in a venture capital fund, Ashesi sets a powerful example for academic institutions in Africa to diversify their portfolios. This investment reflects Ashesi’s commitment to entrepreneurship, innovation, and sustainable development across the continent.
Tropo Farms nets $10 Million from AgDevCo to ccale tilapia production.
Tropo Farms, the leading tilapia fish producer in West Africa, has secured $10 million in long-term financing from AgDevCo. The funds will support Tropo’s efforts to meet Ghana’s high demand for affordable fish, constructing a new processing facility and increasing production capacity to 30,000 tonnes over the next five years. AgDevCo’s investment will enhance Tropo’s sustainable practices and distribution networks, creating positive economic and nutritional impact in Ghana.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Tendo acquires Shopa to deepens its reach in the informal retail sector.
Tendo, a leading social commerce platform, has acquired Shopa, a B2B e-commerce platform, to expand its footprint in the informal retail sector. While the deal’s value remains undisclosed, Tendo shared that it’s structured as a mix of cash and stock.
Under this acquisition, Shopa will be rebranded as Tendo Retail and led by Shopa’s CEO and Co-Founder, Frank Addae. This new unit will continue to empower informal distributors across Africa with advanced technology solutions to scale their businesses effectively.
That’s it for this weekly roundup! Stay tuned for more exciting developments in the ever-evolving Ghanaian startup scene.
Until next time,
The GIJ Team
