Deadline: May 19, 2026
Applications are open for the AUDA-NEPAD Home Grown Solutions Accelerator 2026. The Home Grown Solutions (HGS) Accelerator is an initiative of the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the official development assistance agency of the Government of Japan. The Accelerator operates in line with the African Union’s Energize Africa Initiative and Agenda 2063 aspirations.
The accelerator is focused on supporting African Home Grown Solutions across 2 sectors:
Healthcare ventures strengthening Africa’s health systems across any healthcare subsectors increasing resilience including:
- Diagnostics & Medical Devices
- Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare Products
- Digital Health & Health Technology
- Maternal, Newborn & Child Health
- Disease Prevention & Management
- Health Workforce & Training
- Health Supply Chain & Logistics
Climate-focused ventures driving climate resilience across 4 sub-sectors:
Energy & Power – Ventures focused on increasing access to and use of clean and affordable energy across Africa including:
- Decentralized energy systems such as off-grid solar, mini-grids, battery storage and green hydrogen
- Innovative access and use models such as pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) clean energy solutions and waste-based clean cooking technologies
Mobility & Transport – Ventures providing sustainable mobility and transport solutions across Africa including:
- Low-carbon vehicles and electrification solutions e.g., e-mobility, two-wheelers and fleet electric vehicles
- Efficient logistics and transport services including last-mile delivery, low-carbon logistics and green port solutions
Waste & Circular Economy – Ventures that develop solutions that reduce waste and promote circular economy principles across Africa including:
- Waste reduction through resource efficiency and packaging optimization, recycling and re-use
- Repurposing solutions including e-waste and marine plastics recycling and responsible disposal of hazardous waste
Nature-Based Solutions – Ventures developing solutions that protect, restore and sustainably manage Africa’s natural ecosystems including:
- Habitat protection and preservation
- Anti-poaching and sustainable tourism initiatives
- Restoration and rehabilitation efforts e.g., wetland restoration, coral gardening, forest ecosystem rehabilitation and nature-based carbon removal solutions
Benefits
They will work shoulder-to-shoulder with your team to design and deliver a customized, four-month acceleration programme in 2026, to support your venture’s specific growth needs across three key areas:
- Context specific advisory
- Investment readiness support
- Matching to strategic partners
Eligibility
Healthcare venture eligibility criteria
You can be described as a Home Grown Solution, meaning you must:
- Operate mainly or solely in Africa (preference for companies operating across countries)
- Employ mostly local staff in the markets in which you are active
- Have strong African representation in your leadership
You are a growth or mature stage venture, meaning you must:
- Be registered as a for-profit entity
- Express ambition and potential to scale beyond your current size
- Demonstrate clear market traction and sizable customer base
- Growth stage: You have identified a strong product-market fit in your core offering / have proven the core concept of your venture, and are in the process of scaling and growing your venture
- Mature stage: You have successfully proven that your core offering is viable at scale, ideally across multiple markets
You strengthen Africa’s health system, for example:
- You manufacture medical consumables or devices on the continent
- You provide healthcare services to patients, be it diagnostic, treatment or otherwise
- You provide technology solutions to strengthen health access or delivery
Climate-focused venture eligibility criteria
You can be described as a Home Grown Solution, meaning you must:
- Operate mainly or solely in Africa (preference for companies operating across countries)
- Employ mostly local staff in the markets in which you are active
- Have strong African representation in your leadership
You are an early, growth or mature stage venture, meaning you must:
- Be registered as a for-profit entity
- Express ambition and potential to scale beyond your current size
- Demonstrate clear market traction and sizable customer base
- Early stage: You are still proving product-market fit and/or viability of your core offering
- Growth stage: You have identified a strong product-market fit in your core offering / have proven the core concept of your venture, and are in the process of scaling and growing your venture
- Mature stage: You have successfully proven that your core offering is viable at scale, ideally across multiple markets
You strengthen Africa’s climate resilience in the focus sub-sectors, for example:
- You manufacture or distribute clean energy products or services
- You provide sustainable mobility or transport solutions
- You manage waste or develop circular economy solutions
- You develop or implement nature-based solutions
Application
After the submission deadline, shortlisted companies will be asked to provide references of investors and customers and additional high-level information on their finances up to March/April 2026. Final decision making will happen towards end of May 2026, with Acceleration support definition and delivery to occur between June and September 2026.
- If you are a healthcare venture apply here
- If you are a climate venture apply here
For more information, visit AUDA-NEPAD Home Grown Solutions Accelerator.
