- The Spark Accelerator Program has unveiled the second cohort of 10 startups that are poised to drive innovation and scale in Africa.
- The selected startups are: Mediakits.Io, WePlay Arcade, GoPay, FlexPay, QuePay, Leta.AI, Oye, DigiTax, Incourage Insurance Agency Limited and StockApp.
- The operate in broad segments of the economy including embedded finance, creative economy, future fintech, and SME productivity tools.
Spark Accelerator program, an initiative backed by Kenya’s tech giant Safaricom has welcomed 10 startups into the second cohort of training, aiming at better reshaping the future of digital first economy across Africa. The 10 startups, which were selected from a pool of 200 applicants, will undergo training before pitching before potential investors for various forms of financing next year to speed up growth.
In an industry update on Wednesday, Safaricom and partners announced the lucky 10 startups as: Mediakits.Io, WePlay Arcade, GoPay, FlexPay, QuePay, Leta.AI, Oye, DigiTax, Incourage Insurance Agency Limited and StockApp. Leaders of these startups will now undergo an intensive three-month program coaching that is aimed at accelerating their expansion, setting them up for long-term success across target markets in Africa and beyond.
The Spark Accelerator is a corporate accelerator powered by a strategic partnership between Safaricom, M-PESA Africa, and Sumitomo Corporation, implemented by iHUB, with support from Vodacom, PwC, and AWS.
What Spark Accelerator Program trains on
Spark Accelerator Program includes core modules of training, mentorship, financing, as well as a go-to-market initiative that spans across two avenues, namely iHUB-led track and corporate engagement track. The iHUB-led Track offers a tailormade coaching that immerses the participants to expert-led workshops, advisory forums, and success mentorship plans.
On the other hand, corporate engagement track offers startups access to Safaricom and M-PESA Africa’s commercial and technical teams, plus the tech giant’s vast distribution value chain, offering the firms an edge in their push to scale and integrate with ecosystems.
The second cohort of Spark Accelerator program has drawn startups with presence across various segments of the digital economy, including embedded finance, creatives, future of fintech, as well as those minting various productivity tools targeting SMEs.
“As part of our commitment to our purpose of transforming lives, we aim to Nurture, Grow and Scale commercially viable tech start-ups that drive positive societal impact. We have broadened our scope of support to early-stage startups that fit the criteria, to include technology and product development support, access to market and access to capital,” said Dr. Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom.
Spark Accelerator program will culminate in an investor showcase in February next year, where the startups will pitch to a team of venture funds, and potential investors. What’s more, the startups will be receiving nine to 12 months of strategic support after the acceleration immersion.
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Creative ecosystems need financing models
“Africa’s innovation and creative ecosystems need financing models that go beyond the current traditional financing sources. Corporate accelerators play a vital role by bringing the resources, infrastructure, and market access of established companies into direct partnership with startups. This approach strengthens the capacity of ventures to scale and creates new pathways for sustainable growth and resilience across the continent. The commitment of Safaricom, M-PESA Africa, Sumitomo, AWS, and PwC makes this vision possible, and we are proud to work together to shape Africa’s innovation and creative future.” Ojoma Ochai, Managing Director iHUB and Co-creation HUB.
The inaugural cohort showcased the program’s strength in empowering startups with market access, tech support, mentorship, and investor connections, driving scalability and sustainability. For example, Twiva collaborated with Safaricom Hook to onboard over 11,000 influencers, while Chpter scaled its AI-driven platform into South Africa and Nigeria. HealthX Africa boosted its subscriber base by 40% in six months, integrating with M-PESA’s consumer miniApps to meet growing demand for hybrid healthcare.
Chumz reached over 300,000 users through gamified savings strategies and expanded into Rwanda, and BlackRhino’s partnership with Safaricom’s Brand team earned the 2024 Marketing Society of Kenya’s Best Emerging Technology in Marketing award. Safaricom continues to foster commercial partnerships with these Cohort I startups.
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African startups with global impact
The Spark Accelerator’s success stories highlight its pivotal role as a catalyst for African startups with global impact, fostering innovation that resonates far beyond the continent.
Second-cohort startups will leverage Safaricom’s robust technology assets, such as Daraja and M-PESA Africa Open APIs, alongside hands-on product development and integration support, enabling them to rapidly build, test, and scale transformative solutions across diverse markets.
Through iHUB’s Pan-African innovation network, these startups tap into a dynamic community of entrepreneurs, experts, and ecosystem enablers, unlocking opportunities for cross-border partnerships, market expansion, and knowledge sharing. Further bolstered by partners like AWS, which provides Activate Credits for critical cloud infrastructure, the program equips startups with the corporate tools, community connections, and technical resources needed for efficient scaling and enduring success.
