Global Courant
Post-COVID, Africa has witnessed unprecedented growth in its startup economy and startup investment. African youth are leveraging technology to create innovative and sustainable solutions across multiple sectors, attracting massive capital investment to the continent.
Last year was a record year for startup funding on the continent. According to Partech data, African tech start-ups raised a total of $6.5 billion (+8% yoy) in 764 deals (+6% yoy) thanks to solid debt financing growth (+102% yoy, 24% of the total funding) and resilient equity funding (almost flat at -6% yoy). “Despite the global VC slowdown, this ecosystem is still growing,” it notes.
As the African startup ecosystem quickly becomes a major source of foreign direct investment on the continent, more of these tech companies are gaining recognition on the global stage. On Thursday 15 June, three African startups in the climate technology, health technology and fintech subsectors won the Africa Tech Awards 2023 at the Viva Technology conference, Europe’s largest technology conference. The start ups; Kubik, Waspito and Curacel were selected from more than 300 entries.
Kubik
Kubik is a Kenya-based climate technology startup that uses hard-to-recycle plastic waste to create low-carbon, sustainable and affordable buildings. Kubik was co-founded in 2021 by Kidus Asfaw and Penda Marre. Through this innovation, the startup helps Africa to reduce the impact of climate change.
Waspito
Waspito is a Cameroon-based healthcare platform that connects people with healthcare providers through direct video consultations from their smartphones. The startup offers services such as online consultation, drug delivery, specialist doctors and others. The aim is to promote affordable and accessible quality care across the continent. Waspito was founded in 2020 by Jean Lobe Lobe.
Curaçao
Curaçao is a Nigeria-based AI-powered claims processing and fraud management platform. The fintech startup was co-founded in 2019 by Henry Mascot and John Dada to automate the insurance claims process, enabling staff to process claims volumes quickly and efficiently. It also automatically checks claims to detect fraud, waste and abuse.
About Viva technology
Viva Technology (VivaTech) is an annual technology conference dedicated to innovation and startups, held in Paris, France. VivaTech was founded in 2016 by Publicis Groupe and Groupe Les Echos. From Africa to Asia, startups, VCs and corporate partners come together at VivaTech to empower local heroes to become world champions.
