SMEs and Ventures

Startup Ecosystems in Africa Receive the Least Startup Funding – Agwu, C. J.

Startup Ecosystems in Africa received the least funding compared to their counterparts in China, Isreal, USA and Europe. This is contained in the Startups Ecosystem report for 2021 published by Starttupblink.

In this year’s Global Startup Ecosystem Index we have provided an analysis of startup ecosystem funding and how it is distributed within the world region. The analysis was done for 2021, and includes early and late-stage investments to startups by professional firms (such as Angel, Pre-Seed, Seed and Series A to J), as well as other types of investments destined for startups, such as Grants, Equity and Product Crowdfunding, and Non-Equity Assistance. Here are some of our key findings:
Funding of Startup Ecosystems
While only 29.8% of the global top 1000 cities are in North America, more than half of the global startup funding is received by North American startups. A similar picture, although less extreme, is seen in the Asia Pacific, with 15.9% of the top 1000 cities and 24.0% of all startup funding. 

On the other side of the spectrum, Europe has 42.6% of the top 1000 startup ecosystems, but only 18.3% of startup funding. Europe may have a  diverse startup scene, with a large number of active and successful ecosystems, yet investors appear to see more potential in North America and Asia Pacific.Also underperforming are Latin America & the Caribbean (with 6.0% of cities in the top 1000 and only 2.9% of startup funding) and the Middle East & Africa (with 5.7% of cities in the top 1000 and 2.5% of startup funding). 

Two further interesting facts are related to the Asia Pacific region and to the Middle East & Africa region. While, overall, the Asia Pacific region is over-represented in global startup funding, this is not the case for most of the region’s countries, as 57% of this region’s funding flows to one country: China.

Similarly, 69% of the funding in the Middle East & Africa goes to Israeli startups. Both of these regions are characterized by one strong player – China and Israel respectively – while startups in other countries receive substantially less fundingFor an in-depth look into the regional analysis, we invite you to download the Global Startup Ecosystem Index. DOWNLOAD THE FULL STARTUP ECOSYSTEM REPORT 2022

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