France’s Proparco looks to ramp up African startup investments

Proparco, a subsidiary of the French government’s development agency, is directly investing in African start-ups in order to support innovation on the continent and secure returns for the agency, in a move that reflects an increasingly commercial outlook as official development assistance wanes.

Speaking at Africa Day 2025, held at Sciences Po in Paris, Proparco’s CEO Françoise Lombard said: “Proparco has committed very strong support to the African innovation system – we have supported the majority of pan-African venture capital funds, such as TLCom and Partech, but also more regional funds. Proparco has also supported around 40 startups directly.”

Proparco’s direct investments in African startups range from pre-series A funding up to Series D, with investments starting from €1m. Startups must demonstrate at least €400,000 in annual revenues and the ability to expand outside their domestic market.

Proparco has previously invested in major African firms such as Nigerian fintech unicorn Moniepoint, with Lombard noting that the firm is particularly interested in investing in companies in the fintech, healthtech, agtech, and cleantech industries.

Aid cuts change development focus

Lombard noted that cuts in foreign aid are changing the way development agencies are operating.

“Official development assistance is decreasing and, now, people do not want to talk about assistance anymore – they want to talk about investments,” she said.

The OECD projects a 9 to 17% drop in official development assistance in 2025, compounding a 9% drop in 2024. Four of the major Western providers of development funding – France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States – all cut funding last year and are set to do again in 2025.

When it comes to supporting the private sector, development agencies have traditionally been focused on activities such as helping commercial banks to mobilise capital by providing guarantees and technical assistance.

Lombard suggested that this approach is now evolving as a result of cuts in development funding – which in France have been driven by sluggish growth and an increasingly serious debt crisis.

But while development agencies may be less reluctant to talk about commercial returns than in the past, Lombard said Proparco’s support and financing for private sector players in Africa remains focused on three strategic pillars: “protecting the planet, reducing inequalities, and sustaining more resilient growth.”

The priority, she said, would be to invest in firms that “are impact-orientated and further the sustainable development goals.”