Madica grows portfolio with $600,000 investment in three African startups

Madica, an Africa-focused pre-seed investment program, has made new investments in three startups, deploying up to $200,000 in each, part of its stated goal of backing founders typically locked out of Africa’s concentrated venture capital flows.

The startups span three countries and three sectors: Kilimo Fresh (Tanzania), co-founded by Baraka Chijenga and Justice Mangu, connects smallholder farmers to urban markets through a technology-enabled produce supply chain; Hakimu (Kenya), co-founded by Rawan Dareer, Ahmed Ahmed, and Ahmed Elbashir, is building a pan-African legal infrastructure using AI; and Biovana (Nigeria), co-founded by Estelle Dogbo and Dr. Jumi Popoola, is a health data harmonisation platform targeting global pharmaceutical and clinical research markets.

Beyond the capital, the investments underscore a structural bet Madica is making on startups. Africa’s tech funding remains heavily concentrated in a handful of markets and disproportionately flows to founders with established networks. The Big Four—Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and South Africa—got between 80% and 85% of total funding in 2025.

Madica’s approach, which pairs funding with an 18-month structured program including mentorship, executive coaching, and two fully funded immersion trips, is designed to address the parts of the startup journey that money alone cannot fix.

Each startup was selected from applications across the continent and will gain access to Madica’s global investor network alongside its curriculum.

“Each new investment brings us closer to the portfolio we set out to build, one that reflects the full breadth and diversity of African entrepreneurship. These three startups join a growing community of founders we’re backing with the resources, relationships, and runway they need to succeed at this early stage,” said Emmanuel Adegboye, Head of Madica.

Alongside the investments, Madica released the first edition of a fundraising guidebook series, Zero to Funded: A Founder’s Guide to Pre-Seed Fundraising in Africa. The 75-page guide targets early-stage founders navigating their first raise without the benefit of strong networks or prior fundraising experience, covering topics from how to evaluate venture capital trade-offs to how to balance local market dynamics with global investor expectations. 

Madica also appointed Tauriq Brown, former CEO of TooMuchWiFi, an internet infrastructure company and a veteran of Rocket Internet and Mountain Partners, as a mentor to its portfolio. He will support founders with practical, execution-focused insights to drive growth.