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Pitch competition · China

Africa's Business Heroes

An annual prize competition for African entrepreneurs with established businesses. Ten finalists share US$1.5 million in grant funding, with up to US$300,000 for the winner.

Closed Run by Jack Ma Foundation

Apply on the programme's site Programme website

Verified 18 October 2026 · From the programme's own pages

Terms

Funding
US$300,000 US$1.5 million in grants shared by ten finalists: US$300,000, US$250,000, US$150,000, US$100,000, US$100,000 for the top five places
Instrument
Grant
Equity taken
not published
Programme fee
not published
Duration
not published
Cohort size
not published
Cohorts
not published
Delivery
Hybrid
Stages
Seed, post-seed
Sectors
Sector-agnostic
Open to founders from
Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Perks
  • Training and mentorship
  • Publicity and media coverage
  • Network of African business leaders

Application dates

ClosedABH 2026

Usual timing: 2027 applications not yet announced; the 2026 call closed on 7 May 2026, with ten finalists going on to the Grand Finale.

Who can apply

  • African citizen, or the child or grandchild of an African citizen
  • Business formally registered and headquartered in Africa
  • At least three years of operating history
  • Open to candidates from all 54 African countries, any sector and any age group
  • Stage: seed, post-seed

What founders should check

  1. The programme does not publish how much equity it takes. Ask before you accept a place.
  2. It does not publish a fee. Ask whether you pay for desks, services or the programme itself.
  3. It mixes remote and in-person sessions. Ask how much time on site it expects.
  4. The last window we track closed on 7 May 2026. 2027 applications not yet announced; the 2026 call closed on 7 May 2026, with ten finalists going on to the Grand Finale.

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