Mastercard Foundation Fund for Alumni Start-ups in Transition Program

The Mastercard Foundation, in collaboration with CCHub Nigeria, MDF Global, Concree, Scale Up, Savannah Innovations Lab, the Center for Enterprising Organizations, Inkomoko, and the Africa Leadership Academy (ALA), is pleased to announce the initiation of the Mastercard Foundation Fund for Alumni Start-ups in Transition (FAST) program.

The Mastercard Foundation FAST program aims to support and empower emerging entrepreneurs by offering financial assistance of up to $15,000 for each venture.

This Mastercard Foundation Fund for Alumni Start-ups in Transition Program is available to aspiring entrepreneurs or those who are in the early phases of their entrepreneurial journey, presenting a distinctive opportunity for alumni from the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), African Leadership Academy (ALA), Anzisha Prize, and the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program.

Participants will benefit from access to funding, business development training, and a collaborative network of like-minded entrepreneurs and mentors.

The Mastercard Foundation FAST program will extend support in two primary stages to assist entrepreneurs at various points in their development:

Idea Phase: Up to $5,000 to aid in the development and refinement of initial concepts.

Build Phase: Between $10,000 and $15,000 to facilitate the transformation of these concepts into viable business models.

Application – Mastercard Foundation Fund for Alumni Start-ups in Transition Program

Join us on this remarkable journey. Apply from August 12, 2024, at: https://mastercardfdn.org/FAST-Application

Eligibility – Mastercard Foundation Fund for Alumni Start-ups in Transition Program

The Mastercard Foundation Fund for Alumni Start-ups in Transition is awarded to (proposed or established) businesses that are majority owned by alumni of at least one of the following programs:

• Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program
• African Leadership Academy (ALA)
• Anzisha Prize
• Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI)

Applicants must be able to receive coaching and other program activities in one of the following languages: Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, or Spanish.

Successful applicants will be asked to validate their eligibility by submitting relevant documentation for verification.

If you are currently based IN Rwanda and/or looking to establish your business in Rwanda please use this link to apply via our Rwanda-based partner Inkomoko instead: https://forms.gle/dYDfXX5LzE76AuvJ8