Rwandan company leverages drones to monitor assets and mitigate malaria
Industry and Investment News
Hi all,
it’s time again for our investment and industry news roundup covering Sub-Saharan Africa.
The highlights this week:
💰🌍 Several new funds have been launched (Conducive Capital, Renew Capital, Ring Capital) with the target to invest in Africa
🚗⚡Kenyan Go Electric Ltd presented its latest electric vehicle model “UTU saloon”
🛸🦟 Rwandan drone company Charis UAS is monitoring assets of more than $1 billion through its platform, and at the same time leverages its technology to mitigate malaria through detecting mosquito breeding
Let’s dive in!
Investor news
😍 Good News:
TDB Group and GGGI signed an agreement to enhance cooperation in climate adaptation funding and accelerate climate finance strategy implementation.
The EU has committed $150 billion for renewable energy projects in Africa.
Venture Capital
Conducive Capital launches $50m VC fund to invest in early-stage startups in Africa
Renew Capital has launched a new pan-African tech fund, Renew Venture Lab Fund 2 focusing on asset-light startups with scalable and sustainable business models
Ring Capital has launched Ring Africa, a €50 million impact investment fund targeting French-speaking West Africa.
👎 Challenges:
A study reveals that climate change is projected to reduce African GDP by 7.1%, with crop revenue expected to drop by 30%, leading to 200 million people facing hunger.
Africa faces a $2.5 trillion shortfall in climate change financing by 2030, despite minimal emissions, with only 2% of global clean energy investments directed to the continent, says UN.
Industry News
🥑 Agriculture/ Food systems:
Kenya: Farmers like Yvonne Atieno and Mark Ogado are embracing regenerative agriculture to combat climate change, supported by initiatives like the TREYL project, aiming to enhance economic prospects, livelihoods, and sustainability in rural communities, according to IPS.
Malawi/Mozambique: Floodbase, a climate tech firm, will pilot fast-paying flood insurance in Africa, specifically offering low-cost parametric insurance to farmers and rural communities to address the lack of insurance coverage for smallholder farmers against natural catastrophes like floods.
Botswana: Tumo Kgabeng, founder of Anton Tech, discusses their AI research company aimed at transforming the agriculture industry to address food security - utilizing drones and AI to track pests, diseases, and soil quality, offering real-time recommendations for treatments and interventions.
Kenya/Tanzania: French investor Mirova invests $8.5 million in Pamoja for sustainable macadamia nut farming with the help of small-scale farmers
💡 Energy and infrastructure
South Africa: Record seed-funding round of $8mn for Hohm Energy, which connects homeowners with installers and financiers to ease the process of installing rooftop solar panels in South Africa.
DRC: Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) partners with Canadian company SkyPower to develop a 1,000 MW solar megaproject in the DRC.
The US is banking on the Lobito corridor in Africa, connecting Congo, Zambia, and Angola, to provide the necessary battery metals for its electric vehicle revolution.
Ghana: Ghana's recent introduction of green initiatives - including adopting clean fuel standards, implementing the Cylinder Recirculation Model for LPG, and promoting electrification and solar energy initiatives - showcases its leadership in the clean energy transition within West Africa.
Cameroon: Gaia Impact has sold its stake in a Cameroon-based solar home systems company to global energy company Électricité de France.
🚕 Mobility and transport systems
Kenya: Kenyan Go Electric Ltd, unveils its latest car model in Rwanda, marking progress in sustainable transportation and reaffirming its commitment to offering eco-friendly mobility solutions.
Nigeria: Uber Technologies Inc. is in discussions to invest in Nigerian vehicle-financing startup Moove in a funding round of up to $100 million, potentially pushing Moove's market value to $750 million.
🌆 Urban areas
Kenya: BURN introduces the continent's first large-scale electric cooking carbon project, listed by Gold Standard, aiming to enhance access to clean cooking by making e-cooking appliances affordable to low-income households through carbon funding and "pay as you cook" financing.
💧 Water systems
As climate change increases water stress in Africa, desalination offers a potential solution, particularly in remote areas, with solar power making small-scale desalination projects more feasible.
💻 Digital transformation
Rwanda: Drone startup Charis UAS is monitoring over $1 billion worth of assets using its proprietary platform, Charis Analytics, while also contributing to malaria mitigation by detecting mosquito breeding sites.
Equinix plans to invest $390 million in Africa over the next five years to establish data centers in South Africa and the western part of the continent.
Enjoying out content?
Don’t keep it for yourself and share!
Subscribe to not miss future updates!
Feedback or thoughts?
Please let us know! Just reply to this e-mail. We’re happy to hear from you!
Thanks for reading,
Carolin