EdTech fellowship: 12 Kenyan founders selected for up to KSh 12m funding
This story has significance for readers across Kenya and beyond.
- Twelve Kenyan startups joined Cohort 4 of the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship, launched in Nairobi on July 23 2026
- The programme, run by iHub, extended its cycle from 8 to 18 months and shifted focus to early-stage founders building for excluded learners
- Each selected startup receives up to KSh 12.9 million (USD 100,000) in equity-free funding alongside technical and business support
Twelve Kenyan startups have been chosen for the fourth cohort of the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship.
The programme was officially launched in Nairobi on July 23, 2026, in what organisers described as a deliberate pivot toward founders at the earliest stages of building education technology.
The fellowship, administered by iHub, has restructured its model significantly for this round.
Where previous cohorts placed growth-stage companies through an eight-month programme, Cohort 4 puts early-stage founders through an 18-month cycle, prioritising untested ideas over businesses that already have commercial traction.
Nissi Madu, Managing Partner at iHub, framed the cohort as a wager on founders with lived proximity to the problems they are solving.
"Innovation has the greatest impact when it begins with the learners who have historically been excluded. Cohort 4 reflects that belief. These founders are tackling some of the most persistent barriers to equitable education through solutions designed with inclusion at their core. Over the next 18 months, our role is to help them test, refine, and generate evidence for their solutions while building sustainable businesses that can scale their impact," Madu said.
Who the 12 Startups Are
Selection criteria were tightly defined around four groups that mainstream EdTech has largely bypassed: learners with disabilities, refugees and people in rural or underserved communities, girls and young women, and developers of data systems that inform education policy.
Wariko Waita, Director of the Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning at the Mastercard Foundation, positioned the fellowship within a broader transformation agenda.
"At its best, EdTech does not just digitize education; it redistributes opportunity, and that's where the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship comes in. The Fellowship sits at the intersection of three powerful forces: education system transformation, inclusive technology-enabled solutions, and sustainability of Africa's EdTech entrepreneurship," Waita said.
Category | Focus Area | Startups |
Assistive Technology & Specialised Learning | Platforms for learners with disabilities | DEAFHEALTH, AssistiveMath, Signvrse, Deaf Outreach Program, SmartSteamMinds Edtech, Chipurobo |
Multilingual & Offline Tools | Solutions for refugees, displaced populations, and rural communities | Neurollect Audread, JUZA AI LTD, Ubuntu Universe Limited, RYEH CBO |
Digital Skills & Entrepreneurship | Digital skills and entrepreneurial content for girls and young women | Gwiji for Women, Tausi App |
Every selected startup receives up to KSh 12.9 million (USD 100,000) in equity-free funding, supplemented by technical assistance across product development, business strategy, and communications, structured around a pilot framework designed to test solutions with real users before any scaling begins.
The selected startups will get the expert support necessary to develop their products to address the needs of the marginalised.
The programme has operated in Kenya since 2023 and has now supported 36 EdTech companies across four cohorts. Cumulative figures show more than 700,000 learners reached, over 11,000 educators trained, and partnerships with more than 2,100 schools, including access extended to over 6,000 learners with hearing and visual disabilities.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
Reporting originally appeared via TUKO. Read the full source for additional context.