Nine startups who are part of the inaugural cohort of the Safaricom Spark Accelerator Program have taken part in an investor demo day, a crucial milestone, showcasing their achievements and potential, while fostering connections with prospective investors.
The investor demo day is the final phase of the accelerator program for the nine start-ups and is aimed at enabling them to raise funding from leading venture capital funds
“At Safaricom, we believe technology is a catalyst for change and solutions, and that’s why we incentivize and support innovative start-ups with the tools they need to reach the next level. With the Spark accelerator program, we are investing in our future leaders while contributing to significant societal change and economic growth,” said Safaricom CEO, Dr Peter Ndegwa.
The start-ups include Health X Africa, Vunapay, BlackRhino VR, Twiva, Chpter, Churpy, Nobuk Africa, Faidi HR and Chumz represent the future of Embedded Finance, SME Productivity Tools, Digital Content, Healthcare, and Future Fintech.
The Safaricom Spark Accelerator program is a partnership with Sumitomo Corporation and M-PESA Africa that aims at accelerating early-stage startups to grow and scale their businesses.
Other partners include iHub who are the implementing partner and AWS, Vodacom and PwC as supporting partners.
When will applications Spark Accelerator Program be opened?
At the same time, Safaricom, Sumitomo Corporation and M-PESA Africa announced that calls for applications for early-stage startups in the technology, fintech, the creative economy and those scaling SME productivity tools to join the second cohort will open on April 1st 2025 to 15th May 2025 on https://www.safaricom.co.ke/sparkaccelerator.
This will offer an opportunity for more start-ups to benefit from capacity building and training, bespoke product development and technology support, access to market opportunities and access to capital.
The Spark Accelerator program was launched last year following the restructuring of Safaricom’s Spark Venture Fund. The program is committed to fostering transformative growth within Kenya’s tech ecosystem by supporting early-stage start-ups.
