Nairobi, Kenya — Village Capital has announced the selection of five standout Ecosystem Builders to continue in the next phase of its Empowering Sustainable Entrepreneurship in Africa program. Backed by Norway through Norad – The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, this initiative focuses on scaling the impact of climate-supporting Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESOs) across sub-Saharan Africa.
These Ecosystem Builders play a key role in supporting startups, fostering collaborative networks, and creating thriving entrepreneurial ecosystems across sub-Saharan Africa.
Building on the success of the first phase, which supported 14 Ecosystem Builders across five countries, the 2025 phase will empower them to run investment-readiness programs and channel direct capital to 30 climate-focused startups driving impactful solutions.
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“We are committed to reimagining capital deployment and building a more connected ecosystem where ESOs play a pivotal role in driving entrepreneurship and facilitating access to capital,” said Susan Nakami, Region Lead, Africa at Village Capital. “Each organization will receive up to USD 260K to support their work, including strengthening their team capacity, organizing workshops for climate-focused ventures, and providing regrants to startups in their local markets. We are proud to walk alongside these organizations every step of the way, co-designing tailored accelerator programs for startups in their markets and empowering them to deliver scalable solutions to climate challenges.”
The selected Ecosystem Builders are:
- Catalyst Fund (Nairobi, Kenya) runs a pre-seed fund and accelerator investing in tech startups that offer climate adaptation solutions to enhance the resilience of communities in Africa.
- Reach for Change Foundation (Accra, Ghana) is a social enterprise supporting local social entrepreneurs to drive sustainable green initiatives and innovate in edtech to benefit women, youth, and children.
- Ennovate Ventures (Dar es Salaam, Tanzania) is a venture factory supporting early-stage, innovative businesses that aim to enhance prosperity and job creation in Africa.
- Emerge Livelihoods (Mzuzu, Malawi), formerly known as Mzuzu E-Hub, fosters a thriving ecosystem in Malawi and beyond so that individuals and communities become self-reliant through an impact hub.
- IdeiaLab (Maputo, Mozambique) has a robust, evidence-based entrepreneurship development methodology and a 14-year track record of developing and enabling entrepreneurial potential.
This initiative tackles some of the most pressing challenges faced by startups in sub-Saharan Africa, such as limited access to capital, talent gaps, and fragmented support systems. By empowering these Ecosystem Builders to fund and support climate-focused entrepreneurs directly, Village Capital aims to create a sustainable pipeline of innovative solutions that can drive climate action and economic growth across the region.
For more information and media inquiries, contact Eva Waweru at Village Capital ([email protected]).
About Village Capital
Village Capital is reinventing the system to back the entrepreneurs of the future. Known for its groundbreaking approaches to supporting founders who are building solutions to emergent social, economic, and environmental challenges, VilCap unlocks critical social and financial capital for early-stage companies to maximize business and impact growth.
Village Capital has operated in sub-Saharan Africa since 2012, running over 14 accelerator programs serving entrepreneurs in 15 countries in the region. VilCap has supported more than 120 locally-based startups and 78 Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESO) working in sectors such as financial health, hardware, sustainability, and the future of work. Learn more at www.vilcap.com and follow @villagecapital.
About Norad
Norad is the Norwegian agency for development cooperation. We work for the world to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Norad is a professional body under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Together with our partners and on behalf of Norway, Norad strives for a greener future in a world without poverty. Human rights must be respected, and none left out. By way of knowledge and cooperation, we ensure that the funds of Norwegian development aid contribute to global development.