The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) has teamed up with accelerator Katapult to support African tech startups.
Under the partnership, the leading tech entrepreneurs across Africa will be supported with investment capital. The goal is to strengthen the scaling ecosystem for startups, and also benefit partnership by funneling global and regional capital towards impact funds.
TBI offers the tools for political leaders and governments to create open, inclusive, and prosperous societies in a globalized world. The TBI has been working with the Rwanda government since 2008.
Speaking on the partnership, Rishon Chimboza, the executive director of TBI, said that speeding up businesses’ development in Africa will be faster and the African economy will benefit.
“I am delighted that TBI is partnering with Katapult to support Rwanda’s agri-tech startups, and to build an investor network to help these businesses thrive and grow. Scalable businesses can play a vital role in Africa’s economic future, and given the right support, with public and private sectors working together, they can grow rapidly,” said the director.
Katapult, an impact acceleration and investment company headquartered in Norway, already has 15 African companies in its portfolio. Currently, the firm is entering the Rwandan market with an agri-tech accelerator in Kigali which is also the first part of the partnership with TBI.
According to the founder and owner of Katapult, Tharald Nustad, the project will not only create good conditions for new jobs, drive economic development, and provide capital for new and innovative solutions for food security in Rwanda, but the wider region.
“The timing for scalable tech solutions is now, and with fast-growing urbanization, a tech-savvy young population, we are ready to build the future of tech business from Rwanda,” he said.
Funded by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), a directorate under the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. There will be an accelerator and investor training programs to support tech startups in Rwanda also in Africa on a more general basis.
