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.

Read more

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).

Read more about our mission

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

Welcoming SAIS Cohort 2026: The Next Generation of African AgTech Founders

At this year’s SAIStival in Nairobi, our annual community gathering and the starting point of the Investment Readiness Programme, we welcomed 12 new start-ups from nine countries into the SAIS family. Cohort 2026 arrived with fresh energy and bold ideas, connecting with the outgoing 2025 cohort, mentors, investors, and ecosystem partners from day one.

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.