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Uganda-Based Electric Cooking Startup PowerUP Announces Successful Initial Close of its Seed Round
PowerUP is at the forefront of transforming cooking habits in Africa, introducing households to a new era of clean and efficient electric cooking.
- Categories
- Energy, Health Care, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Press Release: Bboxx Commits to Africa’s Future as It Moves Global HQ to Rwanda
Bboxx is planning to train nearly 1000 more Rwandans in the next 5 years and invest USD$100 million in the country.
- Categories
- Energy, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Trash Talk: Five Lessons for Reducing Plastic Pollution by Establishing Sachet Recycling Loops
Sachet waste — i.e., packaging for small, single-use quantities of consumer goods — is a growing environmental threat. With increasing demand for sachet-packaged products, particularly in emerging economies, the world now produces a staggering 855 billion pieces of this waste each year. Rolph Droste at Bopinc discusses the environmental impact of sachet waste, and shares learnings from a consortium of businesses and nonprofits that is establishing a large-scale, market-driven solution for recycling this waste in Bangladesh.
- Categories
- Environment, WASH
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Safaricom Triples M-Pesa Users in Ethiopia to 3.1 Million
Safaricom’s Ethiopia subsidiary launched the mobile money service on August 15 last year.
- Categories
- Technology, Telecommunications
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Why Latin American Entrepreneurs Should Stay in the Region — And How Corporate Venturing Can Power Their Growth
Many young entrepreneurs in Latin America are leaving the region to pursue their entrepreneurial journey abroad. International legal advisor Eugenia Di Marco explores the reasons behind this decision, and discusses a promising source of support that could convince them to stay: corporate venturing — i.e., investments and initiatives aimed at supporting external innovation and building a vibrant business ecosystem where startups can thrive.
- Categories
- Investing, Technology
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African Tech Startup Investment Falls 28% to $2.4 Billion in 2023 as Global “Funding Winter” Begins to Bite
This is the first time the sector, which has expanded so exponentially in the last few years, has declined since 2016.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Ampersand, a Rwandan E-Bike Startup, Raises $19.5 Million in a Funding Round
The Ampersand fleet has increased to over a thousand since its commercial launch in May 2019, and by the end of 2024, it is projected to surpass ten thousand.
- Categories
- Technology, Transportation
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Securitization for Social Impact: Why It’s the Ideal Instrument for Scaling Social Enterprises Providing Consumer Financing in the Developing World
Economic uncertainty has led to a risk-averse approach from investors in recent years, forcing social enterprises and other businesses in developing countries to find alternative sources of finance. Ron Pfende at d.light shares an innovative solution to this challenge: securitization, the process of transforming a group of cash-generating assets into one investable security. He explains how d.light has leveraged this approach to finance its growth, and how securitization yields returns for businesses and investors alike.
- Categories
- Investing, Social Enterprise
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