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To support the growth of East Africa's technology startups, IFC today announced an investment in the Antler East Africa fund. Antler is an early-stage venture capital fund, focused on developing the next generation of tech leaders.
IFC's $1.5 million investment in Antler East Africa, along with $500,000 from the Women's Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative, or We-Fi, will support the company's new incubator program that launches in March and includes a focus on supporting women entrepreneurs.
Antler will provide a support network including personalized coaching, workspace, and training to startup founders accepted into the program. The program will support teams who have an idea and want to turn it into a business, as well as early-stage startup teams looking to grow and raise capital. Through the incubator program, Antler plans to make 35 new investments in early-stage startups over the next three years.
"We know what it takes to get a startup off the ground and want to build a flexible support system that enables strong collaboration and interaction between fellow entrepreneurs, advisors, angel networks, and investors in Kenya and beyond. Our goal is to connect and fast-track the initial stages of the entrepreneurial journey," said Marie Nielsen, Partner at Antler East Africa.
According to the IFC-Google report, eConomy Africa 2020, Kenya's Internet economy, for example, has the potential to grow from $7.42 billion in 2020 to $12.84 billion by 2025, and up to $51 billion by 2050. To support this growth in Kenya and other countries in East Africa, IFC is working with partners such as Antler to provide local tech startups with capital and support systems that enable them to launch and grow their businesses while creating jobs.
"Africa's digital economy is growing and it is critical that our investments and partnerships empower more entrepreneurs to tap into this growth. By supporting Antler, we can help entrepreneurs in East Africa, including women, to bring their ideas to life or take their startups to the next level, contributing to the region's digital transformation," said Jumoke Jagun-Dokunmu, IFC Regional Director for Eastern Africa.
About IFC
IFC—a member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2021, IFC committed a record $31.5 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
About Antler
Antler is a global startup generator and early-stage VC that is building the next wave of tech. With a mission to turn exceptional individuals into great founders, Antler aims to create hundreds of companies globally over the next five years. We select the world's most brilliant and determined people, help them find the right co-founder, and connect them to a top-tier network of advisors and experts worldwide. Antler breaks the barriers to entrepreneurship by providing funding from day one and building strong teams from the ground up while enabling founders to rapidly launch and scale their ideas.
About We-Fi
The Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) is a collaborative partnership among the 14 governments that have made financial contributions, six multilateral development banks that serve as implementing partners, and other public and private stakeholders. We-Fi was formally established in October 2017 as a Financial Intermediary Fund hosted by the World Bank. We-Fi invests in programs and projects that help unlock billions of dollars in financing to address the full range of barriers facing women entrepreneurs—increasing access to finance, markets, technology, and mentoring, while strengthening policy, legal and regulatory frameworks. As one of the We-Fi Implementing Partners, IFC supports private sector clients with investment and advisory services to expand financial services and market access for women-owned/led firms, as well as increasing the capacity of women entrepreneurs to run high-growth businesses. For more information, visit www.we-fi.org.
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