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Report: Reimagining the Future of Entrepreneurship Support in East Africa
A new report from WDI, "Reimagining the Future of ESOs in East Africa," integrates insights from accelerators, incubators, investors, ESO donors and intermediaries in the East African entrepreneurship ecosystem.
- Categories
- Education, Energy, Environment, Health Care, Investing, Social Enterprise, Technology, Transportation
- Region
- Global
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DigsConnect Founder Alexandria Procter Launches $1.4 Million Vehicle to Back African Startups
The new vehicle, named Pharos of Alexandria Ventures, is now accepting applications for a series of exclusive pitch sessions to be held in Cape Town this November.
- Categories
- Investing, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Pyramidia Ventures Secures US $1.5 Million to Scale Agri-Tech Startups and Address Food Security Challenges in Africa
This latest funding round includes US$1.3 million in capital from the Dutch impact investor Triple Jump, alongside US$200,000 in technical assistance and business development support from the Dutch Good Growth Fund.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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CoreNest Launches $25 Million Fund to Support Startups in El Salvador
The initiative, which is a joint effort between the Government of El Salvador and strategic allies of the ecosystem, will support around 300 high potential startups over the next five years in the Central American country.
- Categories
- Investing, Technology
- Region
- Latin America
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Swedfund Invests $15 Million in Excelsior Capital Vietnam Fund II to Boost SME Growth
The fund said in a statement that Excelsior II provides growth capital to mid-sized companies and will contribute to job creation in sectors like retail, manufacturing, healthcare, education and tech.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- South Asia
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PayPal Commits $100 Million to Accelerate Digital Growth Across the Middle East and Africa
This strategic investment will be deployed through a mix of minority investments, acquisitions, PayPal Ventures funding, people, and technology deployments that will help local businesses scale, etc.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Global
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Consultants at a Crossroads in Global Development: New Research Reveals their Challenges — And Highlights Strategies for Navigating the Current Disruption
The dismantling of USAID earlier this year has had many ripple effects, including over 238,000 global jobs lost at the agency and its implementing partners. But according to development consultants Alethia Wong and Lorenz Wild, the plight of independent consultants working in global development — who are often not represented in workforce statistics — hasn't received much attention. To better understand these impacts on the consulting ecosystem, they launched a survey of independent consultants earlier this year: They share the results in this article, exploring how development consultants are pivoting to earn income and how contracting companies can support them — and sharing advice from job recruiters for consultants looking for full-time roles.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise
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How India’s Non-Bank Financial Companies are Closing the MSME Credit Gap — And What Other Emerging Markets Can Learn from Their Success
Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) make up around 90% of businesses and employ over half of the workforce globally, while generating up to 40% of GDP and creating 70% of formal jobs in emerging markets. Yet according to Sameer Nanda at Ugro Capital Limited, these businesses face an ongoing credit gap that, in India alone, amounts to an estimated ₹80 trillion. He explains how non-bank financial companies are addressing this gap by offering dynamic and flexible lending services designed for MSMEs — and shares useful lessons from their approach that can be applied in other emerging economies with similar credit challenges.
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