World’s Largest Financing Facility Aims to Ignite the African Startup Revolution
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) unveiled the “timbuktoo” initiative during a special session at the 24th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Led by H.E. President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, H.E. President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, and UNDP Administrator Mr. Achim Steiner, the initiative aspires to become the world’s largest financing facility, bringing catalytic and commercial capital together to bolster Africa’s startup ecosystem.
The initiative, presented to global corporate leaders and African financial institutions, aims to address critical gaps in the startup ecosystem. With a billion-dollar target, “timbuktoo” seeks to spark the African Startup Revolution, leveraging the continent’s significant youth demographic and abundant innovative talent. President Kagame announced an immediate contribution of US$3 million to kickstart the Africa Innovation Fund under “timbuktoo.”
“For many African countries, our foremost challenge now is to ensure we put in place the right structures to enable young Africans to create innovative and compelling businesses that can contribute significantly to job creation and sustainable economic growth,” highlighted President Akufo-Addo.
Administrator Steiner emphasized that “timbuktoo” is a new model of development, rallying key stakeholders to simultaneously address legislative, investment, and infrastructure challenges. The initiative aims to transform Africa’s share of global startup value, currently at 0.2 percent, by mobilizing US$1 billion in catalytic and commercial capital to impact 100 million livelihoods and create 10 million dignified jobs.
With a focus on innovative solutions for people and the planet, “timbuktoo” aims to turn ideas and nascent innovations into scalable, pan-African enterprises. The initiative’s design blends commercial and catalytic capital to de-risk private investment, fostering deep linkages between government policy, universities, corporates, and various investors in support of Africa’s burgeoning startup ecosystem.