Female founders win Seedstars SANAD funding

In 2025 the Swiss venture builder Seedstars partnered with the SANAD Fund for MSME, a Luxembourg-registered impact investment fund, to launch a call aimed exclusively at women-led startups across Africa. The initiative, which closed recently, targeted early-stage companies run by female founders in Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and sub-Saharan markets.

According to APS, Algerian women submitted 147 applications—nearly one-fifth of the total received—and nine Algerian teams reached the final two-day bootcamp in Algiers. Among them were founders pitching agri-tech platforms, fintech APIs and a coding academy for teenage girls. Seedstars’ regional director for North Africa told APS the Algerian cohort showed stronger traction metrics than last year’s regional average, with average monthly revenue of 2.1 million dinars (≈ $15,800) and user-growth rates above 25 % month-on-month.

The prize package includes $25,000 in convertible notes, six months of mentorship from Seedstars’ Algiers hub, and free seats in the SANAD Venture Lab. Algeria’s Ministry of Solidarity, Family and Women’s Conditions confirmed it will fast-track visa facilitation for any finalist who needs to travel to investor meetings in Casablanca or Lagos.

For female founders who missed the deadline, the SANAD–Seedstars partnership is expected to run at least one additional cycle in 2026, with a larger local budget under the national “Start-Up Algérie 2030” plan. The plan earmarks 2 billion dinars (≈ $15 million) for women-led ventures, up from 800 million dinars in 2024, according to El Khabar.

Key takeaway for entrepreneurs: The SANAD–Seedstars window is the clearest near-term funding route for Algerian women founders, offering both cash and structured follow-on support. Entrepreneurs should track the next call window and prepare audited financials and a three-year growth model to meet the 25 % monthly user-growth threshold observed in this year’s Algerian cohort.