While Africa is expected to become a key market for international trade and investment over the coming decades, deforestation and climate change are putting food, water and socio-economic development at risk across the continent. At its current pace, land degradation could render over half of Africa’s existing farmland unusable by 2050.

When African-led businesses promote nature-based solutions to these challenges, they can harness immense impact for people, nature and climate. That is why investing in these leading entrepreneurs is the key to a more sustainable future. Contributing to AFR100’s goal to restore 100 million hectares of land across the continent by 2030, the Land Accelerator Africa programme, provides training and mentorship to boost companies’ business management skills, communications and investment readiness. The program selected 103 locally led, market-driven green businesses across 26 African countries to join its 2023 cohort. From the 103 businesses, the top 16 were selected to receive further customized mentorship and attended the Land Accelerator Africa Summit in Lilongwe, Malawi from October 16th through 20th, 2023.

This is the fifth cohort of the Land Accelerator Africa program that, since 2018, combines efforts from the AUDA-NEPAD, Fledge and  World Resources Institute (WRI) with funding from GIZ/BMU, Mitsubishi Coorporation and SIDA to equip entrepreneurs with skills to build economically viable companies that attract investors and foster restoration. The program now has 293 graduates across all its cohorts. Collectively, these graduates have placed about 260,000 hectares of land under restoration in Africa and engaged nearly 449,000 smallholder farmers across the continent.

The Top 16 companies of the 2023 cohort represent 12 African countries and feature inspiring businesses ranging from cosmetic products to organic fertilizer. The numbers further illustrate how they are diversifying the business and restoration sector: 56% of these companies are founded by women, and 53% are led by youth.

The Land Accelerator is a highly selective training program and curated network for entrepreneurs who restore degraded forests and farmland. These entrepreneurs are at the forefront of Africa’s growing forest and landscape restoration (FLR) movement.