Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has committed up to $100 million to Africa-focused technology fund managers as part of efforts to accelerate the continent’s digital industrialisation.
The organisation said on Monday that the investment will deploy catalytic capital into leading Africa-focused technology funds.
AFC said the initiative is intended to address the under-representation of local capital in venture funding by encouraging greater participation from African institutional investors and increasing local ownership within the technology ecosystem.
The move comes as Africa’s digital economy is projected to contribute significantly to the continent's GDP in future, driven by a rapidly expanding digitally connected population and accelerating enterprise technology adoption.
Despite that growth, AFC said a shortage of long-term institutional capital continues to limit the development and scaling of high-potential technology businesses across the continent.
The financial institution noted that African tech and start-up sectors have rapidly matured, drawing heightened global attention.
It went on to say recent market data corroborates that African start-ups raised up to $3.9 billion, led largely by fintech and logistics sectors.
However, AFC said local institutional capital remains significantly under-represented across many venture fund cap tables, with most funding still coming from international investors.
As part of the initial deployment, AFC has made anchor commitments to Lightrock Africa Fund II and Future Africa Fund III, positioning the corporation across the innovation lifecycle from early-stage venture capital to growth-stage expansion.
The corporation said the commitments represent the first phase of a broader investment strategy, with additional Africa-focused fund investments currently under evaluation.
Samaila Zubairu,president and CEO of AFC, said: “Across the continent, young Africans are not waiting for the digital economy to arrive; they are seizing the moment, adopting technology, creating markets and solving real economic problems faster.
“That is the investment signal.”
Zubairu added that AFC’s technology fund initiative would support the convergence of growing demand, rapid technology adoption, youthful demographics and digital infrastructure development across Africa.
He described digital infrastructure as increasingly fundamental to economic transformation, supporting payments, logistics, services, data and cross-border trade while enabling industrial scale and job creation.
Pal Erik Sjatil,managing partner and CEO of Lightrock, added: “This commitment reflects a shared conviction in the opportunity to back high-growth, technology-enabled businesses with proven business models, strong fundamentals, and clear pathways to profitability.”
“With aligned capital, a long-term perspective, and a shared focus on value creation, we are well positioned to support exceptional management teams and scale category-leading businesses that deliver attractive financial returns alongside measurable environmental and social outcomes.”
AFC said it intends to use its balance sheet strength, structuring expertise and pan-African network to position itself as a leading institutional investor in Africa’s technology ecosystem while mobilising capital at scale for long-term development impact.
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