Her Startup - Female founders selection and beginning of the Founder Institute accelerator program

November 2024 Africa

We are excited to announce that after receiving over 200 applications from 18 countries, the Her Startup program has officially kicked off with a line up of 10 talented founders.

The diverse range of applicants showcased innovation across various sectors, including fintech, health-tech, Greentech, legal, entertainment, and mobility.

With the collaboration of our partner at Founder Institute USA (FI) and Founder Institute Abuja, all applications were carefully reviewed. The selection process of female founders began with an interview and then used our inhouse methodology with core criteria and scoring and FI's Entrepreneurial DNA test score.

The female founders selected are the following:

Adventina Emmanuel Grevas - VATTEN (Tanzania - Agritech)
Eucheria Luke – ENTERPRISE SUITE (Nigeria - Business solutions)
Hanatu Abdulakeeta – CRAFT PLANET (Nigeria - Eco-friendly construction materials)
Blessing Aniefiok – DYNALIMB TECHNOLOGIES (Nigeria - Health-tech)
Maryjane Kalunta – CRAFTOOR (Nigeria - Marketplace for the creative economy)
Mary Kalunde Munyaoe – YNA KENYA (Kenya - Mobility)
Ngozi Nwabueze – POCKET LAWYERS – (Nigeria - Legal)
Olapeju Nwangangaok – PLOUTOS PAGE – (Nigeria - Accounting)
Wheapadu Emmanuel – EKI TECHNOLOGIES (Nigeria - Training for the creative economy)
Enobong Okposin – TINAPAY (Nigeria - Fintech)

These founders will now have access to a 16-week training from FI which will cover topics like vision & mission of the business, customer development, revenue & business models, pitch mastery, legal& equity, go-to-market & scale, product development, investor progress review, co-founders & team, growth, funding.

Applicants will be regularly assessed by FI and their performance is expected to improve during the program. If scores are insufficient or if expected works are not delivered, applicants can be dropped from the program at any time. A training allowance is granted to the applicants to compensate the fact that they will be less available for their business during that period.

Successful graduates of the FI accelerator program will pitch to our investment committee to win the possibility to get a seed financing averaging 5,000 US$. In addition, graduates will receive continuous mentorship, possibility to access a co-working space for those based in Nigeria, and a 1 year healthcare plan. Based on performance, graduates could also receive support for an additional capital raise.

We are excited about this beginning and to see the ventures that will emerge from our program.