Wetin dey happen for Naija startup scene? E be like say our babes don run comot come follow Kenya, as dem don collect the funding crown!
As we enter 2026, dem don drop serious gist say African startups collect almost $20bn funding since 2019. Na wetin Africa: The Big Deal talk for dem yearly review. E mean say over 2,200 startups don raise at least $100k! No be joke. And guess wetin? MTN-Halan don top the list with over $1bn fundraising. Na the kind level wey dey make other countries dey look us with envy.
But as dem dey shine, Nigeria dey reason strategy, because we don fall reach fourth position. Na Kenya carry go front, with $933.6m, thanks to energy and all those fancy solar wahala. South Africa dey follow sharply with $625.7m from fintech and insurtech, while Egypt dey chill for third place with $430m. Naija dey lag behind with just $410.1m. E no sweet at all!
We fit reason am, say na no be say Naija no get gist for tech and startup, but macroeconomic wahala don scatter our bread. Currency dey do gaga, inflation dey hold us hostage, and investors dey fear local businesses wey no sabi carry global dey waka. Na this one make investor wahala grow for Nigeria, and our young entrepreneurs wan shine, but dem no fit run with the big boys.
2025 still bring wahala with wetin dem call “unicorn drought”. Naija no mint any new unicorn, unlike 2024 wey we see two. Now e be like say investors don change dem priorities. Dem dey more interested in startups wey fit show say dem go profit, rather than just raise big money.
Debt financing don collect about 45% of total funding, especially for energy and logistics. Local capital dey gather cut too, as e don contribute about one-third of total deals. E be like say dem dey try stabilise the ecosystem as everybody dey find sense in the midst of global wahala.
As we dey enter 2026, make we focus on some hot topics like green infrastructure and efficiency. Investors dey hungry for the real deal, na so e go be. For Nigeria to regain our compound crown, we need serious policy clarity. We dey hope say our tech babes go find better exit paths and rise again for the startup realm!
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