Twelve South African startups have been selected for the third edition of the Injini Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship in South Africa, which offers companies access to funding and other types of support.
Founded in 2017, Injini, which is a member of the UVU Africa Group, is a registered non-profit company that exists for the sole purpose of improving educational outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa. The only ed-tech specialised accelerator in Africa, its programmes and research via the Injini Think Tank contribute towards its mission to increase the quality, accessibility, and relevance of education in the region.
Disrupt Africa reported in 2023 Injini had partnered the Mastercard Foundation to launch the EdTech Fellowship for South Africa-based startups. The initiative empowers eligible startups with direct grant funding, product quality evaluation, intensive skill development, coaching, mentorship, bespoke market research, and market access.
After a rigorous process, Injini has selected its third cohort of fellows, which includes EduFeArn, Edulution Learning, Edutech Institute, and Huddle Education.
Also selected are Keller Education, Limu, OLICO Maths Education, OURS, and SchoolAdvisor. The cohort is completed by Thuma Mina Teaching, TechWays, and Thooto.
Similar to the alumni cohorts, the fellows will receive customised support focused on expanding market access to reach learners at the bottom of the education pyramid; measuring impact effectively to demonstrate their solutions’ value and scalability; and strengthening business sustainability, including preparation for investment where appropriate.
“We believe that ed-tech, when used in impactful ways, can democratise education, enabling learners to access meaningful and relevant learning opportunities,” said Krista Davidson, executive director of Injini. “When selecting this cohort, we prioritised the most urgent needs [KB1] of South Africa’s education system such as teacher training, infrastructure deficits and access to relevant and quality education.”
