Only one top $100m+ African start-up led by female CEO — Report

Only one of the African startups that have raised $100m and above in the past five-year period (2019-2024) have had a female chief executive officer, according to Africa; The Big Deal.

While the African startup scene has gone in the past few years, it still has a glaring gender disparity issue among the leaders of the startups, the insight firm that tracks startup deals of $100,000 and above noted.

It said, “27 African startups have raised over $100m+ in equity, debt or grant funding since 2019. Egypt’s MTN-Halan leads with almost $1 billion raised in the past 5.5 years, followed by Sun King and Opay. On the other hand, 56 startups have raised $50m+ in the same period.”

Despite this funding success, female leadership remains absent. According to Africa: The Big Deal, Gro Intelligence was the last female-led startup in the $100m club. However, it shut down in February 2024 when Sara Menker, its co-founder and CEO, was replaced amid rumours of the organisation’s impending closure. Gro Intelligence had previously made headlines in January 2021 when it raised $85 million in a Series B round, the largest by any female-led startup in Africa to date.

In September 2024, Carrol Chang emerged as CEO of Andela, making Andela the only startup among Africa’s Top 30 startups in terms of funding raised since 2019, which is currently led by a female CEO. Notably, Andela also stands as the only venture in the Top 20 with a female co-founder, Christina Sass, who is now the President and CEO of the International Youth Foundation.

Outside of Andela, more female CEOs are present in startups that have raised between $50 million and $100 million. They include Kobo360, a Nigerian logistics startup led by Ciku Mugambi, who became CEO in August 2023 after joining the company in 2021; Sabi, a Nigerian e-commerce platform founded by Anu Adasolum, who also serves as CEO; and Cape Bio Pharms, a South African biotech spinoff of the University of Cape Town, led by Belinda Shaw, which secured over $50 million in grant funding in 2020.

While Lori Systems was briefly led by a female, Uche Ogboi, from 2021 to 2023, the logistics company reverted to male leadership when another co-founder, Jean-Claude Homawoo, took over as CEO in mid-2023.

Among Africa’s 20 most-funded startups, 19 were founded by either a single male founder or all-male teams. The rarity of female CEOs reflects broader challenges women face in scaling businesses to significant funding levels. A recent report by Briter Bridges revealed that only 10 percent of Nigerian female-founded startups secured funding between 2019 and 2023.