Investor & Technical Assistance Database

This database targets companies looking for financial and/or technical support. The database lists organisations and initiatives providing different kinds of support, such as capital in the form of grants, loans and equity, or technical support in the form of advice, partnership brokering or networking support. To learn more about the database, click the info button on the right. 

For current training opportunities, networking events, and calls for application, access our opportunities page

Use the search filters below to narrow down your search for financial and/or technical support providers.

ABOUT THE DATABASE

Who is this database for?

This database aims to serve inclusive businesses that are looking for sources of support to help them grow, ranging from capital to technical support.

 

What does the database cover?

This database lists organizations that provide technical and financial support to inclusive businesses. The database will continue growing as support organizations are registered. Inclusive businesses are diverse, and so too are the range of organizations that provide support and the types of support they offer. The resources listed cover a continuum of financing solutions, from grants and concessional financing to commercial finance and private equity. They also include organizations and initiatives providing technical assistance (TA), advice, partnership brokering, information, advocacy, and networking. The database is easy to navigate and provides useful filters such as the range of financial support provided and the stage of enterprise supported (if such information is available). 

More organizations will be added over time and suggestions are welcome. Other database that we recommend include:

► GET.invest: focused on renewable energy in Africa
► Nexus for Development: focused on Southeast Asia
 The Mix: Database on microfinance services

Why and how was the database developed?

Inclusive business entrepreneurs often face difficulties identifying partners that could provide crucial financial and technical support. Even though such support is available, information about it is often fragmented and hard to find. The database addresses this challenge, making information on financial and technical support easy to identify and navigate by providing easily searchable categories and filters.

The entries and information provided in the database are compiled by the research team using information publicly available on organization websites or provided directly by the organizations themselves. 

 

Who developed the database?

The Practitioner Hub for Inclusive Business (now inclusivebusiness.net) and the Asian Development Bank set up this database to help overcome this challenge. The Connect to Grow programme supported further development of this database in 2016, specifically to include intermediaries in its target countries. In late 2017 and 2018, the DFID Impact Programme funded the most comprehensive review and update of the database yet, which was implemented by Endeva. The Endeva team reviewed the categories and all existing entries, and also added hundreds of entries with the support of the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) and other partners.

ANDE has just launched a new site of their own that provides data about financial and non-financial support available for small and growing businesses in a specific city or country. ANDE’s Ecosystem Snapshots aim to help those supporting entrepreneurs to foster conditions in which businesses can thrive. 

 

USING THE DATABASE

What can users search for on the database?

You can keep your search for organizations broad by just selecting the finance and/or technical support offering you are looking for or you can narrow down your search by selecting further filters such as type of organization, sector, region/country etc. If you are looking for a specific topic that is not included in the current category list, use the keywords search bar to search the entire database. This will return results on that topic from the whole database.

 

If users want all entries from Asia, does one need to select all Asian countries, too (or ditto for other continents)?

No. If you would like to see all the material for one continent, for example South Asia, select ‘South Asia’ under the ‘Region/Country’ filter and click on the ‘Apply’ button. This will bring up all intermediaries that provide support in South Asia.

 

Country

Financial offering

Amount of financial support

Intermediary Database

Displaying 1 - 10 of 10
MOSS Consultants & Capital
East Asia and Pacific, South Asia

MOSS maximizes the socio-ecological impact of social enterprises in emerging markets by making cutting-edge scientific knowledge accessible through practical tools, workshops, and mentorship programs that help tackle the root causes of societal problems.

Type of OrganisationConsultancy
Region/CountryEast Asia and Pacific, South Asia
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingMentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking, Training, and other classroom based support (online/offline)
Focus TypeSmall and growing businesses, Start-ups, NGOs/Non-profits, Investment funds
Focus StageStart-up, Early Stage, Growth Companies, Mature
Advance Consulting
Global

Advance Consulting is an international business consulting company specialized in the acquisition of (repayable) grants, concessional loans and equity finance for companies investing in emerging economies. Over the past 20 years we have successfully developed business plans and sourced concessional funding for our clients in more than 40 countries. To date Advance Consulting successfully supported over 400 companies to attract funding. Annually we raise between EUR 40 and EUR 80 million for our clients and impact projects globally. We have a strong network of impact funders, including (governmental) donor agencies, DFIs, institutional financiers, private investors and fund managers.

Type of OrganisationConsultancy
Region/CountryGlobal
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingOne-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services
Focus TypeSmall and growing businesses
Focus StageEarly Stage, Growth Companies
IceAddis
Sub-Saharan Africa

IceAddis is a tech startup incubator in Addis Ababa. IceAddis provides co-working space, consultancy services and organises events for entrepreneurs, and acts as a platform to connect entrepreneurs, investors and people from the creative industries.

Type of OrganisationAccelerator/Incubator
Region/CountrySub-Saharan Africa
Ethiopia
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingMentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking, Physical co-working space
Focus TypeStart-ups
Focus StageEarly Stage
IB TopicsYouth
AWP Network
Sub-Saharan Africa

<p>The AWP Network organises pitch competitions for young entrepreneurs across Nigeria, supports women farmers through its agribusiness training programme and helps secondary school students in Nigeria develop their business plans and ideas through its DREAM Initiative.</p>

Type of OrganisationNetwork/ Business association/ membership organisation/ knowledge platform
Region/CountrySub-Saharan Africa
Nigeria
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingMentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Training, and other classroom based support (online/offline)
Focus TypeStart-ups
Focus StageEarly Stage
IB TopicsGender, Youth
Akirachix
Sub-Saharan Africa

AkiraChix is a not for profit organisation that runs a one-year technical training programme, targeting young women from Nairobi, Kenya. Each year, AkiraChix selects 30 Kenyan women to take part in an intensive course on programming, design and entrepreneurship, delivered by a team of trainers from the technology industry. Throughout the programme, students receive mentorship from leading women in the tech industry, who guide them toward becoming leaders in business and in their communities.

Type of OrganisationAccelerator/Incubator, NGO
Region/CountrySub-Saharan Africa
Kenya
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingMentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking, Training, and other classroom based support (online/offline)
Focus TypeNot specified
Focus StageEarly Stage
Digital Opportunity Trust (DOT)
Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa

The Digital Opportunity Trust (DOT) is a non-profit corporation supporting youth and cooperating with the private sector, governments, and community-based organisations. DOT provides entrepreneurs aged 18 to 29 with tools, knowledge, networks, seed funding and support to launch sustainable social initiatives.

Type of OrganisationNetwork/ Business association/ membership organisation/ knowledge platform, NGO
Region/CountryLatin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa
Ethiopia, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda
Finance OfferingGrants and awards
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingFellowship, Information sharing, resources and publications, Mentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking
Focus TypeStart-ups
Focus StageEarly Stage
Kumasi Hive
Sub-Saharan Africa

Kumasi Hive is an innovation and entrepreneurship hub providing comprehensive support to grow local innovations and business/start-ups. Kumasi provides entrepreneurs with access to co-working space, event space, training space, makerspace and hardware studio. Their business accelerator programme for non-hardware start-ups provides complete start-up support services for early stage start-ups. The Kumasi hardware incubator selects promising hardware ideas and startups, helping them move from idea stage through prototyping to product-for-market stage with both technical and business development support.

Type of OrganisationAccelerator/Incubator
Region/CountrySub-Saharan Africa
Ghana
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingMentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking, Physical co-working space, Training, and other classroom based support (online/offline)
Focus TypeStart-ups
Focus StageEarly Stage
IB TopicsYouth
MBC Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa

MBC Africa provides an enabling environment for agribusinesses in Africa by integrating the business services they need to grow onto one single platform. MBC Africa’s role is to identify, nurture and develop a critical mass of viable growth-oriented agribusinesses as a pipeline for sustainable and impactful investment in selected African economies. It provides a range of offerings for enterprises include a six month accelerator, a young fellows programme, technical advisory support and management training and coaching.

Type of OrganisationAccelerator/Incubator, Consultancy
Region/CountrySub-Saharan Africa
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingFellowship, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking, Training, and other classroom based support (online/offline)
Focus TypeStart-ups
Focus StageEarly Stage, Growth Companies
Reach for Change
Global

Reach for Change supports early-stage social enterprises that tackle problems faced by children by providing access to seed funding, business expertise and networking opportunities. The organisation's accelerator and incubator programmes improve the enterprises' investment readiness by developing business capabilities and leadership skills and help them scale through advisory support.

Type of OrganisationAccelerator/Incubator
Region/CountryGlobal
Finance OfferingGrants and awards
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingMentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking, Training, and other classroom based support (online/offline)
Focus TypeStart-ups, NGOs/Non-profits
Focus StageEarly Stage
IB TopicsYouth