2017 was the best year on record for African tech startups in funding terms, with 159 companies from across the continent securing a combined total of US$195 million. This is according to the latest Disrupt Africa African Tech Startups Funding Report, which tells a very positive story of the continent’s increasing appeal to investors. But what is clear is that the traditional boundaries between “impact” and “returns-focused” are becoming more and more blurred, with the argument that all investments in Africa are “impact investments” gaining traction and impact firms increasingly as returns-driven as traditional VCs. “The impact investing landscape has broadened in recent years to include funds with a range of definitions of impact and financial returns,” Amee Parbhoo, director of investments at impact firm Accion, told Disrupt Africa. Onyeka Akumah is chief executive officer (CEO) of Nigerian agri-tech startup Farmcrowdy, a for-profit business with undeniable impact that was one of the 159 African tech startups to secure funding last year.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 09, 2018 06:00 UTC