To democratise access to venture ecosystem, Young African Catalysts launched
Aiming to democratize access to the African startup ecosystem, Young African Catalysts was established to help young Africans gain new skills, find employment, and attract investment.
Young African Catalysts (YAC) was founded by Luke Morsert, head of investments at Future Africa, and Karl Nchite, a former investor and impact lead at Goodwell Investments, with the goal of igniting cooperation among influential young Africans working in the venture ecosystem.
In a little more than a year, its invite-only venture capital community expanded to include the lead investor, under the age of 35, from the 50 top venture capital funds in Africa, as well as internally sharing more than 250 startup funding deals.
With its Aspiring YAC Fellowships, which are aimed at young professionals looking to break into venture capital or operator roles, respectively, YAC seeks to disrupt the limited and exclusionary hiring landscape in the venture ecosystem after a 15-month pilot program. Its first cohort will work in the venture capital industry, and its eight-week, carefully curated program will be taught exclusively by current Young African Catalysts.
The Young African Catalysts Fund I, which is scheduled to debut in H2, will use the community and data of the YAC Ecosystem to invest between US $25,000 and US $100,000 in startups that support the creation of infrastructure and jobs for the next generation of Africans, including talent development, the digital economy, and green solutions.
“Given the nascent nature of the venture ecosystem in Africa, established, older stakeholders tend to hold a competitive advantage – at Young African Catalysts we are looking to empower first-time operators, first-time founders, and first-time venture capitalists with the infrastructure to ignite their journeys,” Mostert said.
Nchite claimed that YAC offered a unique experience that could be useful for up-and-coming talent interested in the African ecosystem.
“Through our vocational fellowships, aspiring fellows have the opportunity to learn from leading African VCs and work collaboratively with African startup founders currently raising capital. This is unique in the fellowship landscape as it allows aspiring talent to learn directly from the professionals that they aspire to emulate,” he said.
“This aligns with our philosophy – “for Young African Catalysts by Young African Catalysts”. Moreover, our curriculum is specifically designed to incorporate these two critical elements and culminates in the chance to showcase your talents and ideas to VCs in a capstone “Aspiring YAC Demo Day” to secure an internship with them.”
Young African Catalysts has so far relied solely on its own resources for funding, but the YAC Fund I is currently accepting contributions.
