Seedstars and SANAD Partners to Empower Women Entrepreneurs in Africa and the Middle East

Seedstars and SANAD partners to empower women entrepreneurs in Africa and the Middle East. They have teamed up with a clear mission: to give women-led startups the boost they need to thrive in some of the world’s toughest markets. Seedstars, a Swiss organisation, is all about making a real difference in emerging markets by supporting entrepreneurship.

They’re active in over 90 countries, offering training, mentorship, and funding to thousands of startups globally. Meanwhile, the SANAD Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) focuses on entrepreneurship and economic resilience in the Middle East and Africa, with a special eye on women and youth.

Women entrepreneurs in these regions face some major challenges. There’s a huge funding gap, about US$42 billion, that makes it tough for them to get their businesses off the ground or scale up. On top of that, many deal with climate-related shocks, difficulties accessing finance and markets, and the heavy load of household duties. This is where the SANAD Elevate Her Programme steps in, designed specifically to bridge that funding gap. It aims to equip female-led startups with the resources they need, like tools, networks, and capital, to push their businesses forward.

This programme plans to empower 40 promising female-led startups that are aligned with the 2X Challenge, which promotes gender lens investing. These startups will go through acceleration, receiving tailored support and activities to prepare them for investment. The focus is on creating jobs and building economic resilience, helping strengthen local entrepreneurial ecosystems across the participating countries.

The startups eligible for this programme come from a diverse list of countries: Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestinian Territories, Rwanda, Senegal, Tunisia, Uganda, and Yemen. The initiative gives priority to sectors like sustainability, agrifinance, and fintech, fields that are crucial for regional development and promoting women’s economic participation.

Seedstars and SANAD partners to empower women entrepreneurs in Africa

Seedstars and SANAD partners to empower women entrepreneurs by addressing some deep-rooted challenges and working directly to provide support where it’s needed most. By combining their strengths, Seedstars and SANAD partners to empower women are helping create more opportunities for female entrepreneurs to succeed and make a lasting impact in Africa and the Middle East.

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