friLabs is deepening its role in Africa’s innovation economy, reporting more than 13,000 jobs created or supported, $2.7 million mobilised across programmes and more than 10 million people reached in 2025. Its newly released 2025 Impact Report highlights how a continent-wide network of innovation hubs and targeted programmes is helping entrepreneurs access the capital, skills, partnerships and markets needed to grow their businesses.
Operating through a network of 528 innovation hubs across 53 countries, AfriLabs is placing greater emphasis on the systems that enable African startups to move beyond ideas and build sustainable enterprises. The report presents a picture of innovation driven not only by the creation of new businesses, but also by the support structures that help them scale, generate employment and deliver solutions to communities.
Women’s entrepreneurship is among the areas highlighted. Through its RevUp Women programme in Nigeria and Cameroon, 459 women founders received targeted business support. One participating business, WaziEat, increased its customer base from 200 to 350, illustrating how mentorship, financing and market support can contribute to business growth.
Environmental sustainability and inclusive economic development also feature prominently in the report. Across 12 African countries, 30 green enterprises supported through the Greenovations programme created more than 200 jobs and reached over 30,000 beneficiaries. In the agricultural sector, AgriTech Analytics trained 4,400 small-scale women farmers, with 900 subsequently accessing financing. Meanwhile, Mvutu’s energy-efficient cold-storage solution helped reduce food waste and emissions while creating 10 jobs for women.
Access to finance remains a major consideration for African startups seeking to expand their operations. Through the AfriLabs Connect Deal Room (ACDR), the organisation engaged startups and ecosystem organisations across more than 15 countries and facilitated $10 million in early investment opportunities. The initiative underscores the importance of connecting entrepreneurs with potential investors and strengthening the networks through which businesses can access funding and commercial opportunities.
AfriLabs is also investing in the development of talent and the policy environment surrounding technological innovation. Its AfriLabs Academy reached more than 14,000 learners across over 70 countries, extending access to learning opportunities beyond individual national markets. In parallel, the Ministerial Roundtable on AI and African Sovereignty brought together more than 50 senior policymakers and ecosystem leaders to advance African-led discussions on artificial intelligence governance, adoption and regional cooperation.
These efforts align with AfriLabs’ broader Moonshot ambition to help foster a $1 trillion African digital economy. Its work spans artificial intelligence, environmental resilience, gender and inclusion, education and human capital, investment, health, infrastructure and creative technology, reflecting the range of sectors in which innovation can contribute to economic transformation.
The report’s findings highlight the importance of connecting entrepreneurship with the wider conditions needed for long-term growth. Funding, technical skills, market access, supportive policies and stronger institutional collaboration can help determine whether promising ideas develop into viable businesses capable of creating jobs and addressing local challenges.
For Africa, where entrepreneurs are developing solutions across technology, agriculture, clean energy and other sectors, strengthening these support systems remains central to building a more inclusive and competitive innovation economy. AfriLabs’ reported results for 2025 offer an indication of how coordinated programmes and a broad network of innovation hubs can contribute to that objective.
As the organisation continues to advance its digital economy ambition, its focus on investment, skills development, inclusion and policy engagement positions the innovation ecosystem as an important component of Africa’s wider economic development agenda.
