Cairo, Egypt — EdVentures, the investment arm of Nahdet Misr Group and the leading EdTech venture capital firm in Egypt and the MENA region, has announced its inaugural cohort of the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship, a three-year entrepreneurship acceleration program designed to support promising African EdTech ventures. The fellowship will impact 36 start-ups in Egypt over the period.
The selection process for the inaugural cohort of the 2024 program kicked off in April and attracted over 200 applicants. After carefully vetting the applicants, 12 start-ups emerged, earning their place in the Fellowship.
"We are profoundly honoured to partner with the Mastercard Foundation through its Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning to implement the EdTech Fellowship program in Egypt," stated Dalia Ibrahim, Founder and CEO of EdVentures. "The selection of the first cohort of 12 start-ups signifies a pivotal moment for the EdTech industry, where technological advancements are reshaping the future of education. It aligns perfectly with EdVentures' core mission to foster innovation and empower young entrepreneurs."
The inaugural cohort of 12 start-ups selected for the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship are:
- 5 Quarters a learning application for dental students.
- Armstrong an interactive STEM e-learning platform.
- Business بlلعربى an Arabic podcast for self-development and business skills.
- Career 180 offers capability building solutions as a one-stop shop for youth's career development and job placement needs.
- Deaf Gain offers consulting services tailored for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing.
- Fednee a platform for professional networking, career development, mentoring, and collaboration.
- iSchool teaches kids ages 6-17 coding and AI using accredited curriculums.
- Mharet Tefl a speech therapy program designed to assist children with speech and pronunciation difficulties.
- Nafham by Tayro an application for online individual or group learning.
- OTO Courses provides online one-on-one English and other courses with private instructors.
- Science Street a platform for promoting science literacy.
- Bait Alkhyata a platform that fosters social development by establishing inclusive services that impact lives of women and their communities.
This pioneering cohort will undergo an intensive eight-month acceleration program, including specialized training, mentorship opportunities, industry workshops, networking events, and access to learning science courses. Notably, each start-up will receive a significant boost of up to USD$60,000 in equity-free funding and post-program support of up to one year after the end of the Fellowship.
"Through our partnership with tech hubs such as EdVentures, we hope to transform the quality of education by making it relevant and inclusive for Egypt's and Africa's underserved learners through home-grown, technology-enabled solutions. In 2023, the solutions by the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship cohorts in South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya reached 2.6 million learners. We look forward to an even greater impact this year," said Joseph Nsengimana, Director of the Mastercard Foundation Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning.
This strategic initiative aligns with Egypt's Vision 2030, which aims to drive transformative change in the MENA EdTech sector by focusing on digital innovation, inclusivity, and youth empowerment.
About EdVentures:
Established in 2017, EdVentures is the investment arm of Nahdet Misr Group and the leading EdTech specialized corporate venture capital firm in the MENA region. The company supports startups and young entrepreneurs operating in the education and EdTech sectors through its incubation, acceleration, and investment programs. Since its launch, EdVentures has supported over 76 startups and invested in 20 of them.
About Mastercard Foundation:
The Mastercard Foundation is a registered Canadian charity and one of the largest foundations in the world. It works with visionary organizations to advance education and financial inclusion to enable young people in Africa and Indigenous youth in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work. Established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company, the Foundation is an independent organization separate from the company, with offices in Toronto, Kigali, Accra, Nairobi, Kampala, Lagos, Dakar, and Addis Ababa. Its policies, operations, and program decisions are determined by the Foundation's Board of Directors and leadership.
About Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship:
The Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship is an entrepreneurship acceleration program that supports promising African EdTech ventures. In partnership with innovation hubs and accelerators across Africa, the Fellowship provides critical business, financial, and educational support to help EdTech companies scale, achieve sustainability, and increase impact. Launched in 2019, the Fellowship has supported 12 companies from seven countries, reaching over 800,000 learners, with plans to partner with 12 tech hubs to support over 250 EdTech companies and reach 1.8 million young people by 2025.
