…Opens applications for third cohort of Black Founders Fund

By Juliet Umeh

Search Engine giant, Google said it has so far, committed $4 million to support eligible black-founded start-ups this year alone.

This is even as it opened applications for the third cohort of Black Founders Fund for Startup in Africa and Europe.

Black founders fund is Google’s initiative to promoting job creation and wealth generation in the continent. The programme provides start-ups not only the funding, but also hands-on support, connections and resources to help founders build solutions that are relevant for the African economy.

According to Google, “Start-ups operating and headquartered in Africa or having a legal presence on the continent are eligible to apply for the Black Founders Fund.

“Other eligibility criteria for start-ups that wish to apply are that the business should be benefiting the black community or that early-stage start-ups have black founders or diverse founding teams.”The start-ups should be building for Africa and the global market, have the growth potential to raise more funding, create jobs and generally be making measurable impact.

“Upon selection, the start-ups will receive up to $150,000 equity-free cash awards and up to $200,000 per start-up in Google Cloud credits, support in the form of training, and access to a network of mentors to assist in tackling the challenges unique to each start-up. The applications for the third cohort will close on 26 March, 2023.

Head of Start-up Ecosystem, Google Sub Saharan Africa, Folarin Aiyegbusi, said: “Start-ups are a critical driver of innovation, economic growth and social progress especially in Africa and the support that the selected start-ups will receive will go a long way to unlock the potential and promote growth in the African tech ecosystem and the next generation of African tech entrepreneurs. We encourage all eligible start-ups to apply.”

Google said: “Following the successful completion of two cohorts of the Black Founders Fund, the program has supported a total of 110 black-owned start-ups across Africa.

“Sixty growth-stage start-ups were selected and supported through the program last year in Africa.”