Madica, an Africa-focused pre-seed investment programme, has secured $6 million from Flourish Ventures to fund 25 to 30 additional startups over the next three years, extending an investment experiment aimed at proving that overlooked founders can build businesses capable of generating venture capital returns.
The additional capital will expand Madica’s portfolio beyond the 18 startups it has backed since launching in 2022, as the programme seeks to establish whether patient early-stage funding combined with hands-on company-building support can help entrepreneurs in underserved markets build globally competitive businesses.
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The extension follows early signs of funding traction across Madica’s existing portfolio, whose companies have attracted additional funding averaging twice the amount Madica invested in them, according to the programme.
While the figures indicate that other investors have provided follow-on capital to its portfolio companies, the programme’s longer-term test is whether these businesses can achieve sustained growth and generate returns through eventual exits.
Madica said the additional three years would allow it to track the performance of a broader portfolio, assess the contribution of its investment and support model, and gather evidence that could help other investors refine their approaches to early-stage funding in Africa.
“Three years have given us valuable lessons and encouraging early signals, but building enduring companies and assessing venture outcomes takes longer,” Emmanuel Adegboye, head of Madica, said.
He added that the additional capital would enable the programme to test its investment thesis across more companies while deepening the support it provides founders.
The funding comes as Madica seeks to challenge assumptions about where viable, venture-scale businesses can emerge on the continent, particularly in markets, sectors and founder networks that receive less attention from established venture capital investors.
Since its launch, the programme has backed 18 startups across 10 African countries and 12 sectors, including artificial intelligence, climate technology, semiconductors, biotechnology, mobility and human resources.
Its application data also points to entrepreneurial activity beyond established investment centres. Madica said applications received have spanned 28 sectors and 78 countries, with 40 percent originating outside Africa’s four largest venture capital markets.
The figures highlight the breadth of interest in startup financing beyond the continent’s most established hubs, although applications alone do not establish how many businesses in those markets can scale or deliver investor returns.
The programme’s ownership profile also reflects its focus on founders who may be underserved by traditional funding networks. All companies in its portfolio are majority African-owned, more than half have at least one female co-founder, and 39 percent are led by female chief executives.
For Flourish Ventures, the additional commitment provides an opportunity to test whether a model combining capital with structured operational support can unlock opportunities among founders who might otherwise struggle to access institutional investment.
Efayomi Carr, investment partner at Flourish Ventures and co-founder of Madica, said the firm remained convinced that African entrepreneurs could build world-class businesses with appropriate capital and support.
The extension is therefore more than an expansion of Madica’s startup portfolio. It is an attempt to establish whether investment strategies that deliberately target overlooked founders can produce commercially sustainable businesses and attractive venture outcomes.
That distinction matters in a market where funding announcements and follow-on investments do not necessarily translate into successful exits. Madica’s next phase will need to demonstrate that early funding traction can lead to stronger businesses and realised returns, rather than simply more capital raised.
Madica continues to seek early-stage African startups with a minimum viable product, evidence of traction from paying customers, full-time founders, little or no institutional funding, and headquarters on the continent.
Royal Ibeh is a senior journalist with years of experience reporting on Nigeria’s technology and health sectors. She currently covers the Technology and Health beats for BusinessDay newspaper, where she writes in-depth stories on digital innovation, telecom infrastructure, healthcare systems, and public health policies.
