100 women-led startups selected by IFC, Seedstars to receive growth support

In an effort to facilitate access to capital for women-led startups throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, the IFC has released the names of the 100 women-led startup owners who have been chosen to take part in the She Wins Africa program.

IFC, a part of the World Bank Group, is the biggest international development organization that concentrates on emerging markets’ private sector. As part of IFC’s larger mission to advance gender equality and empower women entrepreneurs in emerging markets, the She Wins Africa program was introduced at the Africa CEO Forum in Ivory Coast in 2023.

The program’s 100 selected women, chosen from a pool of nearly 3,000 applications, will engage in extensive interventions aimed at enhancing their companies’ investment readiness. These interventions will encompass guidance and mentoring, as well as matchmaking and pitching opportunities across Africa that will give them access to peers, industry leaders, and potential investors.

Apart from the investment-readiness program for the 100 chosen participants, She Wins Africa will launch additional programs, such as a bootcamp to assist 200 pre-seed women-led startups in moving into the acceleration phase and an initiative to provide acceleration support for an extra 200 women. A program to form a coalition of funds, venture capital firms, and gender-lens investors to improve access to finance for women and their businesses across Africa; and -led startups in areas where such support is not readily available.

“IFC’s She Wins Africa empowers women entrepreneurs through coaching, training, and financing, accelerating their growth and investment readiness throughout Sub-Saharan Africa,” said Nathalie Akon Gabala, director of gender and economic inclusion at IFC. “It’s time for investors to step up and fund women. A strong entrepreneurship ecosystem benefits us all.”