Scaling digital Agriculture Innovations through Start-ups

Start-Up Portfolio

SAIS

Scaling digital Agriculture Innovations through Start-ups

Start-Up Portfolio

Our Services for Start-Ups

If you are a start-up and join a SAIS Investment Readiness Programme (IRP) you get access to a wide array of tailormade services which are designed to help you to become investment ready.

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Our Mission: scale digital innovations for social impact

“Scaling digital Agriculture Innovations through Start-ups” (SAIS) is a programme implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

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100+ Start-ups supported

See all start-ups

Sais in numbers

65%

of the Start-ups raised follow-on funding after having completed the programme

Start-ups raised

$91M

of the Start-ups raised follow-on funding after joining the programme

Start-ups provided digital innovations to

>2.1m

of which 800.00+ are female

Over

94%

of the Start-ups are still in the market

Who we are

We are a company development and accelerator programme for African tech start-ups in the agriculture, food, and livestock sectors. Start-ups and their solutions are a central pathway to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

About SAIS

Latest News

While Africa’s startup landscape has matured rapidly, a persistent “missing middle” often prevents innovative ideas from reaching investment-ready scale. Venture studios are emerging as a vital structural response to this gap, acting as institutional co-founders that go far beyond traditional mentorship to provide hands-on execution, operational talent, and early-stage capital.

This comprehensive white paper by FMO, GIZ SAIS, and Briter Intelligence analyses a cohort of over 40 active African venture studios to reveal how this high-intensity model is derisking investments and accelerating the journey from ideation to growth. FMO’s contribution to the report was supported through the Investing in Young Businesses in Africa (IYBA) programme, a Team Europe Initiative funded by the European Commission to strengthen market creation efforts and improve access to finance for young and early-stage businesses across key African markets.