Future of Work – Africa 2022

About the program

10 to 12 million young Africans enter the labor market each year and an estimated one-third of the 600 million young people entering the global labor market by 2030 will be a young African.

Village Capital in partnership with Moody’s Foundation aims to support entrepreneurs across Africa that are building for-profit, market-based solutions in education, employment, and benefits that could help young people in sub-Saharan Africa, better prepare for the future of work, access more, and better employment opportunities, and build careers.

Future of Work 2022 is looking to support 45 startups across the region with investment readiness training through a core cohort of 10-12 startups, and an expanded cohort of 33-35 startups featuring self-guided training, extensive virtual support, and engagement with mentors.

The program supports impact-focused startups leveraging highly sensitive data to improve the quality, and access to digital, financial, and healthcare services.

Benefits startups will receive

• Connections:
  Build deep connections with the other impact-driven founders in your cohort.
• Mentorship:
  Network with mentors ranging from investors to potential strategic partners and customers.
• Training:
  Join interactive sessions tailored to help your company identify early milestones and prepare for your next round of capital.
• Advice:
  Chat with an investment analyst who will coach you 1:1 on building a financial model, identifying unit economics, and using financial metrics.
• Exposure:
  Get featured on Village Capital’s program website and other collateral.

Eligibility criteria

• Ventures must address unemployment through the following:
• Technical, professional, upskilling, or reskilling programs
• Testing and credentialing programs
• New approaches to apprenticeship or employment matching such as a gig, job matching, and distributed manufacturing platforms
• Financial health for informal workers, and/or
• Edtech for post-secondary and tertiary institutions