Starting in October of 2020, Seedstars set out on a mission to find the best early-stage startups in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. From more than 300 applications, 20 companies were selected to join the Investment Readiness Program powered by SAIS 2 (Southern Africa Innovation Support Programme), which aimed to enhance the quality of the entrepreneurs and improve their growth potential, thus increasing the overall funding received by startups in the 10 countries of focus: Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Malawi, Mauritius, and Mozambique.

Initial capacity building activities included a month long educational program, ecosystem strengthening and networking activities. At the beginning of 2021, 15 startups were then selected to continue in 2 months of intensive 1-on-1 mentorship with an industry expert of their choice.

Startup Demo

Today, we are thrilled to present these 15 companies from the SADC region who represent top tier innovation within 10 different sectors. They are all raising funds, and have prepared a pitch video that explains how their solutions are tackling pivotal issues within the region. Out of the 15 finalists, there were 5 grant winners that were selected through the tough competition to receive a grant powered by SAIS 2. If you would like to be connected with one of the startups for potential partnership or investment, please do not hesitate to contact Seedstars and we will put you in touch!