Local startup Umojalands has been named among the winners of the Inclusive Fintech 50 (IF50) program. The initiative is a global innovation competition that aims to identify and elevate cutting-edge emerging inclusive fintech startups that have the potential to drive financial inclusion.
Over the last three competitions, IF50 has attracted over 1,000 eligible applicants. According to IF50, past winners have collectively increased their funding by $620 million in the year following their win.
Umojalands was selected because it is trying to reduce the risk of lending to smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe by what the startup calls “intelligence logic derived from alternate datasets, thereby giving a good and comprehensive overview of the underbanked small-scale farmer.“
Umojalands also makes use of multispectral satellite imagery to convert soil, crop and climate data into actionable insights which can be used to closely monitor risk at any point in the growth cycle of a crop.
One of two wins for Umojalands this month
The startup also won the “Solve for Africa Challenge 2022” at the recently ended YouthConnekt conference in Kigali, Rwanda. The prize was for the same product line that saw them among the winners for the IF50 Challenge.
Also read
- Local fintech Uhuru to test with a bank under RBZ Fintech Sandbox – Uhuru Innovative Solutions will test with a local bank under the umbrella of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s (RBZ) Fintech Sandbox. The local fintech firm becomes the latest to join the sandbox which seeks to bring startups in payments, credit, investment and more, closer to the regulator and traditional financial institutions.
- Azanza: interns bootstrapping a health startup & the US$50K funding – we reported on Azanza Health, a local health startup that was selected by the Bill and Melinda Gates-backed Investing in Innovation (i3) Africa program. We got in touch with the team at Azanza and were able to have a conversation with the CEO, Dr Tinotenda Micheal Simemeza who shared more about the health startup.
- Akayi makes its first investment in the Zim startup ecosystem – Startup ecosystem enabler Ayaki has announced its first equity investment in Zimbabwe. If you have never heard of the organisation, Akayi has been bringing together startup founders and aspiring entrepreneurs to share knowledge and experiences to help further the local business scene.
