Not Enough Females Operating in the African Venture Capital Space

The African venture capital sector is still very much a “man’s world”, but the quality of its investments and ability to make a greater impact suffer as a result. That is according to Omobola Johnson and Andreata Muforo, who together make up two-fifths of the management team at Africa-focused VC firm TLcom Capital, which is the first focus of a series of case studies and podcasts produced by Disrupt Africa, commissioned by Boost Africa Technical Assistance Facility and financed by the European Union under EDF Thematic Blending and Cotonou Investment Facility. Female fund managers are very much in the minority worldwide. In the US, only nine per cent of decision makers in the VC space are women. In Africa, no definitive numbers are yet available, but female fund managers are hard to come by – a big mistake for the VC world, as data clearly demonstrates a direct link between gender diversity in teams, and increased profitability. The Diversity dividend: Female fund managers in Africa series looks at firms that recognise this truth, and put diversity front and centre.

SOURCE: DISRUPT AFRICA