Investing in Africa’s Future, One Fund at a Time
To date, we’ve committed $85 million across diverse investment vehicles, including private equity, venture capital, and debt funds. These investments are driving gender-smart, inclusive growth in sectors such as healthcare, agribusiness, fintech, consumer goods, and renewable energy.
To date, we’ve committed $85 million across diverse investment vehicles, including private equity, venture capital, and debt funds.
Aligned with our investment thesis, the Fund integrates Gender, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (GDEI) principles, alongside rigorous Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) standards, to influence the African investment ecosystem.
Our goal is to drive transformation across diverse asset classes, including venture capital, private equity, debt, and alternative strategies, all while promoting resilience and opportunity for those traditionally excluded.
Our goal is to influence practices and drive innovation across diverse asset classes, including venture capital, private equity, debt, and alternative strategies, while fostering resilience and creating opportunities for those traditionally excluded.
We are committed to using finance as a tool for gender-equitable social change, ensuring that young women and girls, especially in rural and peri-urban areas, have pathways to economic autonomy. By tackling biases in capital allocation, promoting innovative investment structures, and supporting local investment teams, we aim to:
Demonstrate how investment vehicles can disrupt entrenched power dynamics.
Expand access to markets and enhance the agency of African entrepreneurs.
Inspire cross-broader participation in Africa’s economic development, ensuring that growth is inclusive, context-sensitive, and sustainable.
The Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund seeks to drive transformative economic growth across Africa by addressing critical barriers to capital access, particularly for women entrepreneurs and youth-focused businesses.
By investing in women-led and gender-lens-focused investment vehicles, the Fund aims to catalyze job creation, promote gender equity, and foster inclusive economic ecosystems.
Leveraging a gender lens and impact-first approach, the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund demonstrates a scalable and replicable model for unlocking capital in Africa, fostering economic empowerment, and driving transformative development.
Investments are targeted at enterprises with the potential to create high-quality, sustainable jobs, with a strong focus on opportunities for Africa’s youth and women.
By strengthening the capacity of women-led and gender-lens-focused funds, the Fund enhances their ability to drive gender equity, enabling these vehicles to serve as engines of economic growth and social transformation.
The Fund operates at the intersection of social and financial outcomes, investing in vehicles and businesses that deliver measurable impact while ensuring financial sustainability.
The Fund offers a comprehensive range of Business Development Services, including market research, financial management training, governance support, and gender equity training.
These services are part of the USD$25 million allocation specifically earmarked for BDS, gender-lens investing support, results measurement, and learning.
BDS is delivered through a dynamic combination of in-person workshops, online training modules, one-on-one mentorship sessions, and consultancy services. The BDS component of the initiative is supported by ESPartners (ESP). BDS is meticulously designed to incorporate capacity building for entrepreneurs, tailored support for women entrepreneurs, Gender, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (GDEI), and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles.
Warehousing capital is an investment approach designed to empower fund managers with early access to capital for portfolio building. Warehousing capital in the context of the Fund is an innovative investment approach aimed at incubating and offering fund managers the opportunity to build a strong track record. What sets this Fund apart is its ability to anchor Investment Vehicles (IVs) that successfully meet the Conditions Precedent, through the intentional and strategic collaboration it provides.
This unique approach enables fund managers to warehouse deals, positioning them for success by giving them early access to capital for portfolio building. It’s more than just a financial investment—
it’s a strategic partnership that allows fund managers to feel empowered to strengthen their fundraising capabilities and supports the growth of impactful initiatives. With this model, fund managers are equipped to create sustainable value and achieve long-term success.
We understand the unique challenges faced by first-time and emerging fund managers. That’s why we offer Working Capital, specifically designed to cover pre-close and set-up expenses for aspiring and emerging Investment Vehicles (IVs) ready to make an impact.
Additionally, under certain conditions, we provide repayable grants tailored to the specific financing needs of IV teams likely to receive investment from the Fund. These grants are intended to support pre-close and set-up costs and are only made available after initial approval by the Investment Committee.
At the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund, Gender, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (GDEI) are more than values- they are foundational principles that guide every aspect of our work.
We believe that meaningful and sustainable progress in Africa’s investment ecosystem requires reviewing systemic barriers and power dynamics and fostering an environment where fund managers and entrepreneurs have an equitable opportunity to thrive.
Our commitment to GDEI is woven into our investment processes, partnerships, and impact strategies. This means:
We prioritize gender equity by addressing power imbalances, amplifying the voices of women, and supporting female-led and gender-diverse teams. We recognize that gender equity goes beyond representation and must challenge the structures that perpetuate inequality.
We celebrate the richness of Africa’s diverse communities by empowering investment vehicles that reflect and respect local contexts, identities, and perspectives. Diversity strengthens innovation and drives inclusive growth.
We strive to level the playing field by addressing historical and systemic inequities in access to capital and opportunity. Our work ensures that capital flows to underrepresented groups like women and youth unlocking potential in places too often overlooked.
We foster an ecosystem where all voices are valued and everyone- regardless of background, gender, or geography- can participate meaningfully in shaping Africa’s economic future.
Through this commitment, we actively challenge norms, biases, and practices that hinder inclusion, empowering fund managers and entrepreneurs to create opportunities that reflect the realities and aspirations of the communities they serve.
Our vision for GDEI is not just about meeting metrics; it’s about reshaping the systems to ensure lasting, transformative change for Africa’s people and economies.
