By Adedapo Adesanya

Early-stage venture capital fund, Ventures Platform, which invests in innovative startups across Africa, has called for the establishment of an inclusive climate innovation fund to support underrepresented groups in climate entrepreneurship.

This is part of recommendations made in its recently published climate tech whitepaper entitled Innovating for a Sustainable Future: Leveraging Venture Capital and Startup Innovation to Combat Climate Change in Africa.

The white paper outlines key goals, strategies, challenges, and ecosystem support needed to enhance the impact of African climate tech startups, providing a comprehensive guide for non-climate VCs and entrepreneurs in the technology sector. It also proposes a framework for a coordinated climate response in the African tech sector.

Formally launched at the recently held Africa Prosperity Summit in Lagos, the paper explores how the agility and innovation of startups, combined with the strategic deployment of venture capital, can catalyse the development and scaling of climate-smart solutions tailored to the specific needs and challenges of African communities and ecosystems.

Furthermore, the paper offers insights to climate tech startups on how to secure and maintain venture capital support, while providing an in-depth analysis of how venture capital and startup ecosystems can act as powerful engines of progress in the face of environmental adversity.

Other recommendations made include the need to develop Africa-specific metrics for measuring the success and impact of climate-focused startups, considering both environmental and socio-economic factors.

Since launching in 2016, Ventures Platform has funded over 90 startups, with at least one in every region of the continent and across various sectors including climate tech. Many of its startups are category leaders in fintech, healthtech, and insurtech, including Moniepoint, Mdaas Global and Tanel Health.

While not primarily a climate fund, Ventures Platform understands the importance of sustainable investments for long-term prosperity and has factored this into its investment guidelines by prioritising businesses that implement sustainable practices, reduce environmental impact and drive long-term ecological benefits.

Drawing from its learnings as a key player in Africa’s tech ecosystem and from broader research, Ventures Platform has published this climatetech white paper to better equip non-climate Venture Capitalists (VCs) and startups with insights and tools to support Africa’s climate resilience through strategic investments and operational choices.

The fund also called for the facilitation of cross-border collaborations between different types of VCs through networking events, joint investment programmes, and knowledge-sharing platforms.

According to the United Nations, Africa contributes under 4 per cent of the global greenhouse gas emissions yet suffers disproportionately from climate change.

Ventures Platform, through the white paper, proposed a simplified framework focusing on adaptation, mitigation and enablers, to guide the African VC and startup ecosystem in addressing climate challenges.

It examined that adaptation strategies include developing climate-resilient infrastructure and agricultural practices. Mitigation efforts focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions through renewable energy adoption and sustainable land use while ‘enablers’ encompass financing mechanisms, policy frameworks, educational programs, and technological innovations.

It also recommended the conduction of sector-specific climate opportunity assessments to identify and prioritise high-potential sectors for climate innovation in Africa.

Presenting the white paper at the Africa Prosperity Summit, Mr Dotun Olowoporoku, Managing Partner, Ventures Platform, shared, “African VCs often prioritise impact and livelihoods along with traditional metrics, but there is an urgent need to focus on climate-resilient business models”

Mr Olowoporoku also noted that climate change poses formidable threats with potential for severe impacts across multiple sectors, and noted that,”building climate-resilient business models can unlock business, societal and environmental sustainability.”

“As Venture Capitalists, we can drive change in Africa’s climate action by providing funds, encouraging innovation, and scaling climate-smart solutions. Startups like MAX, Rana Energy, and ThriveAgric, which were recognised in the 2024 TIME 100 Climate list, show how tech-driven solutions can address local issues and help global climate efforts.

“At Ventures Platform, we are deeply committed to investing in companies that are not only commercially successful but also actively contribute to solving some of society’s collective challenges”.

Commenting further on the landmark paper, Mr Dolapo Morgan, Senior Investment Associate at Ventures Platform, shared, “Africa is at the receiving end of the world’s climate disaster and it is important for us to turn this challenge into opportunities. It is time for entrepreneurs to focus on building climate-resilient business models for long-term sustainability while creating innovative climate solutions to tackle climate challenges.

“We are already beginning to see some startups and investors move in this direction and that is a good start. This white paper is a call for a coordinated African response towards scaling the opportunities that climate change presents to our technology sector, emphasizing the pivotal role non-climate funds can play in complementing and amplifying the efforts of climate-focused investments,”