The Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2021

Africa Insights, Rankings & Ecosystem Pages





Key Findings

  • Average early-stage funding in African startup ecosystems in this GSER period totaled $46.5 million, double the amount observed last year.
  • African ecosystems are collectively worth $6.6 billion in value. Of that, $6 billion is concentrated in the Top 5: Cape Town, Lagos, Johannesburg, Nairobi, and Accra.
  • Fintech dominates early-stage investment in Africa, with over $206 million invested in the Sub-Sector between January 2018 and June 2020.
  • Exit value in Africa totaled over $1.1 billion, with the top three in Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban.



The Top Performers are identified by applying our Global Ranking methodology within a specific region, while the Regional Challengers are identified using the Emerging Ecosystems methodology.