African startups look to new investors

Kathy Gibson reports from AI Everything and Gitex Kenya in Nairobi that African start-ups are increasingly drawing interest from investors in the Middle East, Europe and Asia who are prepared to take longer-term positions and to tailor their approaches to the continent’s diversity. Speakers at the events urged founders to recognise wide regional differences across Africa and to adjust return timelines, risk expectations and pitch narratives when courting Gulf and Asian capital.

“The continent has 54 countries, each with their own maturity and technology standpoint. So you cannot look at Africa as a whole,” said Rishikesh Trivedi, MD: cross border investments at 888vc, UAE. He warned founders that typical investment timelines of five to seven years elsewhere often stretch to “eight to 20 years” when investing in Africa.

Japanese investors at the conferences echoed the long-horizon view. “I always think about where Africa needs to be in the next 100 years,” said Takuma Terakubo, CEO and general partner at Uncovered Fune, Japan. “Japanese companies tend to have been operating for a long time, so they are looking for long-term relationships: they are not interested in quick returns.” Ryo Oizumi, director: corporate planning division, business strategy office at Nagase & Co, Japan, said his company has been investigating the African market for the last three years and is only now looking to open a branch.

Investors pointed to demographic and structural reasons for their interest. “There are two numbers that I want to talk about: 19,8 – which is the average age in Africa; and 48,6 – which the median age in Japan,” said Sadaharu Saiki, co-founder and general partner at Sunny Side Venture Partners. He noted comparative growth forecasts — “While Africa is expected to see 1,7x growth, Japan is predicted to see 1,2x growth” — and argued this underpins the continent’s appeal even as gaps in the ecosystem remain.

Practical advice for founders

• Be specific about geography: North Africa, West Africa (including Francophone markets) and South Africa have different maturity levels and market linkages, Trivedi said.
• Adjust ROI timelines: expect longer horizons in many African markets — Trivedi cited eight to 20 years — and be “razor-sharp about the countries and companies you look at.”
• Tailor pitches to investor priorities: Trivedi urged founders to understand what Gulf and Asian investors want beyond financial returns, giving the UAE’s focus on food security as an example and advising founders to “create a food security narrative.”
• Build relationship capital: regional investors often seek multi-year working relationships; Saiki warned that international investors “have options” and want clear differentiation on market size and uniqueness.
• Plan for infrastructure gaps: Terakubo highlighted limited infrastructure as a barrier but said the right investments can allow startups to mitigate those challenges.

Speakers painted a pragmatic outlook: increased capital flows are arriving from the Middle East and Asia, but success will favour founders who present country-level focus, long-term commitment and partnership narratives that align with investor priorities. As Trivedi put it, “A relationship is necessary, but not always sufficient – as an investor, the first thing I want to see is that I can work with the founder for the next 10 years.”