Local start-ups clinch Sh25m funding

Chandaria Group of Companies Chief Executive Officer Darshan Chandaria during the interview at Chandaria Industries head office at Baba Dogo, Nairobi.(Standard)

Five local start-ups have each secured Sh5 million funding that will be invested in the affordable housing sector.

The firms, operating under the ShelterTech Kenya Accelerator Programme, were chosen from a short-list of 15 business start-ups for being investor-ready.

“These start-ups have put in a lot of work in their business ideas and we would have wished to match all of them with investors. However, we are compelled to go with the most investor-ready outfits,” said Chandaria Group Chief Executive Darshan Chandaria, one of the judges at the Accelerator Demo Day.

The judges were drawn from the real estate, financial and technology sectors.

The winners are Gjenge, a social enterprise recycling waste plastic into artistic construction products; ManPro, a construction management system; and The Vlage, which provides co-living spaces through its digital platform.

The others are AHomes, which provides artisans with labour opportunities and certification, and MycoTile, which provides alternative building material made from mushrooms.

Depending on their capacity to absorb and after further due diligence, three of those businesses will share a further Sh15 million courtesy of Habitat for Humanity.

Two other start-ups were also picked for possible funding.

They are Mali Kodi - a cloud-based rental properties management system and Corec (Continental Renewable Energy Co Ltd), which produces, among other things, quality durable resin bonded roofing tiles, manhole covers and plastic lumber planks.

“The purpose of this event is to encourage young and upcoming businesses that they can still be market-validated through access to investment opportunities,” said Pangea Accelerator team lead Anne Lawi.