Africa is home to a diverse group of visionary female entrepreneurs and investors who have broken through gender barriers and are shaping the continent’s economic landscape.
These women are making an impact as influential investors in various industries, demonstrating their unwavering commitment to driving economic growth, empowering communities, and creating lasting change.
Let’s delve into the fascinating world of the five most influential female investors in Africa.
Maya Horgan Famodu
As Founder and Managing Director of Ingressive Capital, Maya has seeded some of Africa’s fastest-growing businesses, including Paystack, 54gene, and Tizeti. Her firm, Ingressive Capital is known as one of the oldest local funds and one of the few female-founded firms on the continent. She has also invested in female-founded startups like Oze, Healthtracka, and Jetstream.
Maya also co-founded Ingressive for Good, a nonprofit organisation focused on cultivating technical talent and resources for the African startup ecosystems. Moreso, her Ingressive Advisory has aided over 50 international companies to enter and operate across Africa. She is known as the first solo woman to raise a tech fund in Nigeria.
Adesuwa Okunbo Rhodes
Described as one of the youngest female private equity fund managers, Adesuwa Okunbo-Rhodes is the Managing Partner and Founder of Aruwa Capital Management. Her firm prioritises untapped investment opportunities in West Africa in the small to lower mid-market.
With more than a decade of experience investing in businesses across Africa, Adesuwa uses Aruwa Capital Management’s investments to invest in women as fund managers, entrepreneurs, consumers and stakeholders in society. Okunbo Rhodes has invested in Lifeforce Pharmacy, Pngme, Wemy Industries, Koolboks, and Agroeknor International.
Fatoumata Ba
Fatoumata is the founder and executive chair of Janngo Capital. With the belief that technology and capital can leapfrog development and achieve SDGs in Africa, Janngo Capital builds, grows and invests in pan-African tech startups with proven business models and inclusive social impact.
Through Janngo, Fatoumata is focused on investing 50 per cent of its proceeds into companies founded, co-founded, or benefiting women. Her firm has invested in over 11 tech and tech-enabled startups, including Sabi, Expensya and Jexport.
Eloho Omame and Odunayo Eweniyi
Eloho Omame, a former Managing Director at Endeavor Nigeria and Odunayo Eweniyi, Co-founder of Piggyvest established FirstCheck Africa in 2021. With a mission of tackling Africa’s VC gender funding gap to empower female high-growth entrepreneurs, FirstCheck has invested in Foondamate, Healthtracka, Tushop, Zoie Health, Pivo, Akiba Digital, Uncover, and MoneyHash.
Known as an early believer for a generation of African women in tech, FirstCheck helps female founders get the financial, social and belief capital to build category-defining companies.
Tokunboh Ishmael
Tokunboh is one of the first in Africa to pioneer impact investing private equity. She founded Alitheia Capital in 2007 with Olajumoke Akinwunmi. She also co-founded Alitheia IDF where she raised over $100 million to invest in female-led businesses in Africa. Her company which embodies the philosophy of true profit with a purpose has invested in Ghana’s Jetstream Africa, South Africa’s AV Light Steel and Nigeria’s ReelFruit Ltd, SKLD (formerly SchoolKits) and Chika’s Food.
As a staunch advocate for financial literacy, Tokunboh created Yellow Cowries, a platform that employs gamification to teach kids and entrepreneurs how to achieve financial freedom.
Source: Business Elites Africa
