Funding for startups led by female CEOs dropped to unprecedented lows in 2024, with only $48 million raised, a staggering fourfold decline compared to 2023, Africa: The Big Deal latest report, revealed.
Meanwhile, their male counterparts secured nearly $2.2 billion in funding, highlighting a glaring gender disparity in Africa’s startup ecosystem.
The absolute funding levels for female CEOs in 2024 marked the lowest since 2020. Equally troubling is their share of the total investment: a mere two per cent, the smallest percentage recorded since tracking began in 2019.
This stark contrast reflects a deep-seated gender imbalance in the distribution of venture capital on the continent.
In September 2023, an analysis revealed that only four of Africa’s 100 most-funded startups since 2019 had a female CEO. That number dropped to three when Cikü Mugambi, former CEO of logistics startup Kobo360, resigned in November.
The funding gap persists across all metrics, offering little solace when examining the gender composition of founding teams.
Startups with gender-diverse founding teams raised just $123 million in 2024, while solo female founders or all-female founding teams attracted an even smaller $21 million. In stark contrast, solo male founders secured $430 million, and all-male founding teams amassed a staggering $1.6 billion.
Percentage-wise, the disparity is even more striking: Solo female founders or all-female teams: one per cent of total funding; Gender-diverse teams: 5.5 per cent and solo male founders or all-male teams: 95.5 per cent.
This means 99 per cent of total investments went to startups with at least one male founder, compared to just 6.5 per cent for those with at least one female founder.
The declining numbers are part of a broader trend of underrepresentation for female CEOs in Africa’s startup landscape. Despite the rising awareness of gender equity in global business circles, the data underscores a growing disparity in the venture capital space.
Since 2019, female-led startups have consistently faced challenges in securing substantial funding, but 2024 marked the sharpest decline yet. The figures highlight not just a funding gap but a systemic issue that continues to marginalise women entrepreneurs in Africa.
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