Accelerate Africa Venture Fellowship

Accelerate Africa is a pre-seed and seed-stage accelerator launched in January 2024 by Iyin Aboyeji through Future Africa, with the explicit ambition of becoming "the Y Combinator of Africa." Aboyeji is a serial entrepreneur who co-founded Andela (the pan-African talent marketplace) and Flutterwave (Africa's largest fintech company), making him one of the most prominent figures in African tech.

The accelerator was launched with a $750,000 grant from USAID through the Prosper Africa initiative, with additional support from the Empowering Economic Growth Foundation (EEGF). Unlike many African accelerators that operate remotely, Accelerate Africa runs entirely in person, requiring founders to participate on-site for the full program duration.

Accelerate Africa aims to empower pre-seed and seed-stage startups across Africa by providing intensive in-person training and access to funding. The program focuses on enhancing essential skills for founders and aims to help them achieve significant revenue growth post-program.

Applicants should ensure they are available for the full program duration and prepare to engage fully with the curriculum and mentorship opportunities.

Open to pre-seed and seed-stage startups from any sector across all 54 African countries. Founders must be available for the full in-person program duration. The venture fellowship track targets early to mid-career professionals interested in transitioning into venture capital within the African tech ecosystem.

The program is open to pre-seed and seed-stage startups from any sector across all 54 African countries. Founders must be available for the full in-person program duration.

For startups: 8-10 weeks of intensive in-person acceleration, curriculum covering storytelling, team building, business development, product development, and fundraising, potential $250K-$500K investment from Future Africa post-program, access to pitch to angel investors and institutional funds, and target of $1M revenue within 18 months. For fellows: career transition support into VC, mentorship from industry leaders, comprehensive VC curriculum, and community of African tech investors and entrepreneurs.

The program lasts 8-10 weeks, with two cohorts per year.

The inaugural cohort included 10 startups from Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and Eswatini, covering sectors such as AI, healthtech, autotech, and HR tech. Long-term outcomes are not yet available as the program is newly launched.