While a few lucky startups have hit the funding jackpot, for most, securing cash remains a bit of a treasure hunt.

Early-stage founders, juggling the demands of building their empires, often feel like they’re running on fumes. They’re desperate for a map, a compass, anything to guide them through the local funding maze and towards the financial and technical resources they need to take off. Unfortunately, the existing local funding support system is more like a dusty old map with missing pieces and questionable directions.

With more than 100 startups covering insurtech and fintech to IOT and electric vehicles, Tanzania promises a diverse VC market if a few things will improve and more startups get funded. Briter Bridges reports a lot around the challenges and the data around this ecosystem. Apart from the challenges reported we have seen a few Tanzanian founders raising millions of dollars.

From 2019, Tanzania has skyrocketed to prominence, eclipsing Tunisia, Senegal, and Egypt in deal values. While these nations rely on blockbuster deals like Instadeep, Wave, and MNT-Halan, Tanzania’s steady stream of high-value investments deals signals its emergence as the next top venture capital hotspot, as we have learnt from data published by Africa the Big Deal.

Below is the top 5 of the well funded Tanzanian tech startups based on the publicly available data and reports we have seen.

1. Ramani (Fintech)
   One of the only two Tanzanian startups to be funded by Y Combinator, a prestigious US based startup accelerator that has supported many successful tech companies globally. Famously Cofounded by Martin Kibeti and the incredible Usiri Brothers, One as the CEO and the other as a Forbes listed CTO, After getting their startup into YC they went on to focus on execution, talking a little and later coming back for fundraising a VC round bigger than any disclosed funding we know in the country.
2. Nala (Fintech)
   Last week Nala announced a successful series A round with a cool $40 million, As you may know, Nala, The first Tanzanian fintech to be funded by YC, NALA is a global payment tech company with keen focus in Africa. Probably Tanzania’s most famous startup and quite a formidable fintech powerhouse at a global stage. Among the only two YC funded Tanzanian startups, In 2022 they raised $10 million in a seed round to build Revolut for Africa then recently decided to build payment rails for the next billion.
3. EA Fruits: (Agritech)
   East Africa Fruits is one of Tanzania’s well-funded agritech startups. Founded by Elia Timotheo in 2013, the company aims to tackle food distribution challenges by improving the efficiency of the farm-to-market supply chain. EA Fruits aggregates, processes, and distributes fresh produce directly from farmers to markets, reducing post-harvest losses and ensuring fair prices for smallholder farmers.The company has successfully raised significant funding to support its operations. In 2020, EA Fruits secured a $3.1 million Series A funding round led by Goodwell, with participation from FINCA and Elea. Additionally, EA Fruits has received various grants and awards, including the African Entrepreneurship Award and the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund, which highlights the startup’s impact and potential in transforming agricultural sector.
4. Credable (Fintech)
   By partnering with leading telecommunications operators and other businesses, Credable integrates financial services into widely used digital platforms, enhancing financial inclusion. May be less publicly known but quite impactful fintech startup that works with mobile money and a few banks to facilitate credit scoring and loans to millions of customers across a few markets. Credable raised $2.5 million in a seed funding round led by Ventures Platform, with participation from Launch Africa, MAGIC Fund, ACASIA Ventures, AAIC Investment, and Adaverse Africa.
5. Dawa Mkononi (Healthtech)
   The team led by Joseph has raised over $2 million apart from a number of grants and Over $300,000 awards money they gathered along the way showing the impact they are creating in healthcare and B2B pharmaceuticals commerce. The company’s investors include Sanofi, Pontem Ventures, Warioba Ventures, Villgro Africa, Axian.

Other funded startups, may be not so well:

This may include NovFeed (Biotech), Laina (fintech), Settlo (SaaS), Selcom (fintech), Sarafu (E-commerce), Jamii (Insurtech), TemboPlus (fintech), SafiriApp (SaaS), Silabu (SaaS), KopaGas (IOT) and Swahilies (SaaS), although we may not have all the specifics but we still see bit and bits here and there to tell that they raised a few millions.

Conclusion:

It’s clear that Ramani, Nala, Credable, EA Fruits, and Dawa Mkononi are among the most funded startups in Tanzania. Each of these startups operates in different sub sectors, showcasing the diversity of the Tanzanian startup ecosystem.

Ramani focuses on digital finance solutions for supply chain, Nala on payment services, Credabale on credit scoring mainly for consumers, EA Fruits on agricultural value chain, and Dawa Mkononi on healthcare value chain. All of these sectors are a billion dollar markets in Tanzania and we need more winners over here.

These startups exemplify the importance of identifying a clear market need and developing a strong value proposition that resonates with customers. By focusing on execution and achieving key milestones, founders can demonstrate their ability to deliver results and attract investor interest. Building scalable business models, fostering relationships with investors, and communicating effectively are also crucial aspects of successful fundraising. By applying these lessons, founders can enhance their fundraising efforts and build startups poised for growth and impact in Tanzania’s burgeoning startup ecosystem.

This article first appeared on Cofounders Notebook

Featured image credit: edited from Unsplash