Each business will receive funding, up to $200,000, and also get 18 months of targeted company-building support tailored to its specific needs.

Madica, an African structured investment programme aimed at pre-seed stage entrepreneurs, today announced its first round of investments in three startups.

Each business will receive funding, up to $200,000, and also get 18 months of targeted company-building support tailored to its specific needs.

Among the support offered to investee companies is a personalised curriculum, hands-on mentorship and executive coaching, as well as access to Madica's global network of investors for follow-on funding.

The first start-ups to be invested in are:

• Kola Market (Ghana), which was founded by Marie-Reine Seshie and assists SMEs in enhancing sales, optimising inventory, and securing financing via a B2B platform.

• GoBEBA (Kenya), co-founded by Lesley Mbogo and Peter Ndiang’ui, offers a direct-to-customer e-commerce platform that streamlines the purchase and delivery of bulky essential utilities.

• NewForm Foods (South Africa), which was co-founded by Brett Thompson and Tasneem Karodia, and enables food producers and retailers to rapidly develop and scale cultivated meat products at a cost well below industry standards.

Emmanuel Adegboye, head of Madica, said: “Each one of these startups represents the untapped potential of African founders who lack the support they direly need, because they are too often perceived as risky by global investors. This year, our goal is to support more of these founders and integrate them into the global startup ecosystem.

“The glaring imbalance in venture funding in Africa is a big concern, and we want to support founders who are often overlooked by investors. We aim to be a catalyst and inspire other investors to join our goal of broadening the reach of venture capital and founder mentorship.”

Focused on addressing structural inadequacies in Africa's startup ecosystem, Madica is a sector-agnostic investment programme, and is linked with Flourish Ventures, a worldwide Fintech venture capital firm.

Madica’s open application process means entrepreneurs can apply without an introduction. The programme works with local ecosystem participants, such as incubators, accelerators, and angel networks, to identify and support entrepreneurs.

This year, the programme hopes to invest in up to ten additional startups. Interested founders can learn more and apply on Madica's website.