Cameroon

Nkwa Tech Ltd is a Cameroonian company that has developed an application that encourages its users to save: users can set savings targets in terms of either amounts or dates. Withdrawal before reaching the target leads to penalties (set by the users), while achieving the target on time leads to rewards in the form of interest generated on the amount saved.

Nkwa Tech Ltd has a platform whose transactions are based on mobile payment technology. The platform incorporates an interface dedicated to end users, the operators' customers.

The entrepreneurs

Nkwa Tech Ltd was founded in 2021 by Akwo ASHANGNDOWAH, a Cameroonian entrepreneur with experience in creating technological applications.

Partenariat avec I&P et Fako Capital

Nkwa Tech Ltd is supported by I&P Accélération Technologies, a €2.5 million programme to finance and support around fifteen digital start-ups in Sub-Saharan Africa, backed by AFD through  Digital Africa. In Cameroon, this programme is being implemented by Fako Capital.

This partnership will enable this start-up to carry out :

• Bring the company into legal compliance (recasting of articles of association, acquisition of microfinance approvals, etc)
• Strengthen the company's governance by setting up an advisory committee to assist with strategic decisions
• Supporting the company in its structuring by setting up a robust accounting and financial system, an operations management system, and in the development of its human resources
• Strengthening the company's marketing efforts to increase its visibility and the number of users
• Support in launching microfinance activities

Founded in 2016, Solarly is a Cameroonian company supplying off-grid solar energy solutions (not connected to the traditional electricity grid): it offers its solutions in rural and urban areas with a focus on energy needs for productive use (health centers, schools, small industries) but also for basic household electrical needs.

Its leading products are :

-The SolarlyBox, a stand-alone off-grid solar system that supplies continuous energy by connecting solar panels, batteries and various equipment (fridge, television, telephone charging cable). The SolarlyBox is a connected object (Internet of Things), enabling :

• Performance monitoring, to anticipate and solve problems
• Data collection on usage
• Remote control and activation based on user payments

-AC Kits, combinations of components, integrated and marketed in a standardized way to meet the most frequent needs, such as :

• Powering the most popular basic appliances: lamps, cell phones, radios and TVs
• Powering a water pump for irrigation and/or a water tower
• Powering a fridge or freezer for food preservation
• Power an incubator for chick rearing

Today, it is estimated that more than 20,000 people are impacted by the Solarly product, either directly (households) or indirectly (hotels, health centers and schools).

The entrepreneur

Julien Riat is 31 years old and originally from Belgium. After graduating in Economics and Business Administration from the Université Catholique de Louvain (2012) and in International Business from EPHEC (2014) in Belgium, he joined an association that assists disabled children. He then joined Travis and Lloyd as a Business Developer. At a very young age, he embarked on the Solarly adventure with two of his friends. The three of them formed the basis of the project, later joined by other partners.

Partnership with I&P

Solarly is supported by I&P through I&P Digital Energy. The aim of the funding is to :

• Support the implementation of the company's new commercial and operational strategy to accelerate growth 
• Roll out the new research and development phase 
• Contribute to the opening and development of new hubs
• Strengthen WCR

Expected impacts

• Access to energy for vulnerable populations
• Improving the provision of health and education services through the electrification of health centers and schools that have benefited from Solarly's solar installations.
• Improving the agricultural and craft production capacities of small rural and informal production units 
• Improving the quality of service for small and medium-sized businesses in urban areas, thanks to a continuous supply of energy.

Lamana is a Cameroonian agri-food company producing baby foods marketed under Blesolac brand. The brand's products are a local alternative to imported infant foods, which are mainly sourced from foreign imports and have dominated the market in Cameroon for decades. The company, made up of 13 employees, has worked to build a brand that is now present in almost 45 sales outlets spread over 4 towns. The company has won a number of entrepreneurial awards to date, including the prestigious Castel Foundation's top prize for Cameroon's most promising entrepreneurs. 

The entrepreneur

Lamana was created in 2017 by Pascaline Nenda, a young Cameroonian woman who began her entrepreneurial career after the birth of her daughter. Graduating in 2008 with a BTS in marketing and communications from the Institut Supérieur de Management (ISMA) in 2009 she secured her first job as an archivist at Yaoundé's Agence de Régulation des Marchés Publics. It was during this gap year and a visit to her home village that she was struck by the recipes based on local tropical fruits and tubers, which her grandmother used for her child's meals. On her return to the city, she decided to adopt this way of eating completely.

Partnership with I&P

Lamana is supported by I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. The aim of this partnership is to help the company increase its production capacity and expand into a new market segment through : 

• acquiring more efficient production machinery
• relaunching the marketing of mini-formats (50g) of products
• restructuring the company by strengthening the management system

Jamalia Group is a Cameroonian agro-industrial company specialized in the production and commercialization of sweets and snack products such as caramelized peanuts (Caramélo) and roasted and salted peanuts (Peanuts) under the brand Natura.

The entrepreneur

Jamalia Group was created in 2015 by Mathias Dessu to offer snack that correspond to Cameroonian culinary habits. After his studies and experiences in Germany and with a strong desire to promote products made in Cameroon and reconvert to agro-industrial, a field he is passionate about, this entrepreneur decided to return to Cameroon after 15 years outside the country to launch Jamalia Group.

Partnership with I&P and Zira Capital

Jamalia Group est is supported by I&P and Zira Capital through I&P Acceleration in Sahel.

This funding will allow the company to :

• acquire the machines necessary for the semi-industrialized production of the new product (spicy plantain chips)
• set up premises more conducive to the development of the activity in terms of quality
• improve commercial actions and build a brand identity

Swyft is a young company operating in delivery in Cameroon and constitutes the missing chain in the logistics sector by positioning itself as the only last mile delivery solution. Swyft offers pick-up services from the customer's location for shipment with the support of a call center to manage the communication between the customer and the deliverers.

The entrepreneur

Swyft was founded by Franck BATCHADJI. He started his professional career in 2012 as Operations Manager at Atlantic Coast Cotton, one of the largest apparel distributors on the East Coast of the United States. He held for three years before being recruited as Sales Manager at All Star Executive, a manufacturer of office supplies, where he spent two years. He later became a logistics specialist by joining Eagle Service (a delivery service for Michelin) as a dispatcher for a year before deciding to return to Cameroon permanently. He started then farming and then took over the responsibility of the family orphanage which he managed for one year. During this period, he carried out many shipping and receiving operations for the orphanage and faced difficulties such as: long waiting lines in the agency, the impossibility of having a follow-up of the shipping status of the packages, etc. It is from these negative experiences that he got the idea to create a more accessible, flexible and less stressful parcel delivery service for his users.

Partnership with I&P

Swyft is supported by I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. This partnership will enable the company to improve in quantity and quality its delivery activity in order to meet the increasing flows of the current demand. 

The funding will allow in particular to : 

• Realize of a communication campaign
• Develop a tracking and dispatching software
• Finance the purchase of material and equipment and the fitting out of the agency
• Recruite personnel

La cuisine de Nounou is a Cameroonian company specialized in food industry by producing cooking preparations such as spices, barbecue sauces, etc. Today, thanks to its know-how and the quality of its products, the company has included a variety of 100% natural products allowing it to position itself at several levels of the meal preparation chain with products such as chilli sauce, ketchup, mustard, etc.

The entrepreneur

La cuisine de Nounou was created in late 2018 by Manuela Njankouo with the objective for the "working mum" to save time in preparing different dishes to cook for her family.

Manuela Njankouo holds a degree in software engineering from the African Institute of Informatics (IAI) obtained in 2010. She worked for 2 years as a support executive in the information systems division at Crédit Foncier du Cameroun, before starting her own business. With the aim of perfecting her skills and improving the various products her brand, Manuela took a training course in entrepreneurship at the KEDGE Business School in Bordeaux in 2019 but also a training course in the production of vegetable preserves, cooking sauces and pasta at the Conserverie Alain Martin in Bordeaux, the leader in organic preserves in Aquitaine, France.

As her business develops and thanks to the dynamism of this young woman entrepreneur, who will be awarded the second prize in 2021 by the Pierre Castel Foundation in Cameroon, the company will gain visibility and expand its customer portfolio, which is mainly made up of large and medium-sized stores, in order to reach its main target, which until now has been middle-income households.

Partnership with I&P

La cuisine de Nounou is supported by I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. The funding will allow the company to develop a new market segment, especially in local stores and popular markets (mass market) through the production of mini fomats of its flagship products, which are spices and barbecue sauces. This funding will be supported by technical assistance to improve the company's structuring, its quality processes and its marketing and sales actions.

E'Santé is a startup based in Cameroon specialized in home medicine, telemedicine and family medicine services accessible through its online platform. 

The entrepreneur

E'Santé was founded by Dr Philippe OHANDJA AYINA, an entrepreneur with a passion for medicine and connected technology. 

Graduated with a doctorate in medicine from the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences of the University of Douala and a university diploma in Connected Health from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Paris Descartes, he started his professional career as a general practitioner at the Ad Lucem medical foundation in Douala where he practiced for 3 years before joining the Louis-Pasteur clinic in the same city. His passion for health and technology led him to follow a specialized training in telemedicine in France. After this training, he spent 8 months as a general practitioner in the emergency department of the Groupe hospitalier public du sud de l'Oise. It was during this experience that he discovered telemedicine and, motivated by his entrepreneurial spirit and desire, decided to launch E-santé.

Partnership with I&P

E'Santé is supported by I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. This partnership aims at supporting the company in the purchase of laboratory equipments.

Yellow is the first independent solution for mobilizing their trade receivables in Cameroon.

This young company responds to the difficulties encountered by SMEs in mobilizing short-term resources due to long payment delays.

Yellow relies on transparency, speed in setting up funds, and flexibility to provide SMEs with a response adapted to their needs. To meet this challenge, Yellow has a team of young, solution-oriented, positive, and committed professionals who develop a cooperative model.

The company hopes to relieve many SMEs, have a stong impact on the economy's financing, and become the reference player in alternative finance for SMEs by mobilizing their trade receivables. 
 

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Yellow was founded by Angela NGO NDOUGA, who has 15 years of experience in specialized financing and business management. After starting her professional career in 2011 in France as an account manager in the International Department of Compagnie Générale d'Affacturage (CGA), a subsidiary of the Société Générale Group, she worked for COFACE West Africa service in Douala. She also actively participated in the deployment of factoring projects in Gabon (BGFI), Senegal, and Côte d'Ivoire (Société Générale).

This young entrepreneur co-founded the company Lusis and Co, where she developed the factoring department for five years. She led the negotiation and implementation process of a 2 million euro credit line by the African Import-Export Bank (AFREXIMBANK), thanks to which she assisted 102 Cameroonian SMEs in the mobilization of 8 million euros of trade receivables. After this experience she decided to launch Yellow, which she now manages full time.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

Yellow is supported by I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel, financed by the European Union. The partnership aims to support the company in the platform's development for the digitalization of services, the fitting out of premises, and computer equipment and human resources acquisition.

Since 2024, the company has also been supported through I&P Accélération Technology, funded by Agence Française de Développement. The financing and support aims to help the company strengthen its digital services platform (developments, server acquisitions), its human resources and its transformation.

Useful links:

More info on I&P Acceleration in Sahel

More info on I&P Acceleration Technology

Le Comptoir fermier is a company that transforms and distributes processed and unprocessed meat in Cameroon (Yaoundé and Douala), but also in Gabon (Libreville). This young company is characterized by its respect of product quality criteria and customer service.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Le Comptoir fermier was founded in 2018 by Eugene Badjang and Samuel Bito. The founders are both Cameroonian and have local and international professional experience.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

Le Comptoir fermier is supported by I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. The main objective of this project is to increase the company's production capacity, contribute to the improvement of its supply chain and implement a communication strategy.

Lakelle is a Cameroonian company that makes clothing to international standards. The company was born from the desire of its promoters to create a brand of ready-to-wear clothing at affordable prices, adapted to the cultural specificities of the African context with a strong modern accent. Today, the company employs a large majority of women, many of them refugees from the Anglophone zone.

THE ENTREPRENEURS

The company is managed by Sharon and Viola Welang, two sisters who have enjoyed training and work experience in United States. Sharon Welang, CEO of Lakelle, has also worked in Africa, notably at MTN Cameroon where she contributed to the deployment of mobile money and at MSF Africa, one of the most successful African fintechs. Viola Welang has spent most of her professional career in United States and has been running the management consulting firm Business Essentials for the past 9 years.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

Lakelle is supported by Sinergi and I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. The main objective of this project is to increase the company's production capacity, contribute to the improvement of its supply chain and implement a communication strategy.