The African technology sector is making tangible strides toward gender equality, with significant increases in female representation among founders and CEOs over the past three years. According to a new report by Disrupt Africa in partnership with Madica, Thinkroom, and Jumpstarter Crowdfunding, 19.2% of startups now have at least one woman on their founding team, up from 14.6% in 2023. The percentage led by female CEOs has also risen to 12.1% from 9.6%.
While African tech remains male-dominated, these gains demonstrate meaningful momentum toward a more inclusive ecosystem. Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and Egypt—the continent’s largest startup markets—have shown particularly strong improvements, with female co-founder representation growing to 22%, 19.1%, 23.6%, and 15% respectively.
The report highlights that gender diversity varies across countries, with smaller markets like Zambia, Uganda, Senegal, and Rwanda often leading the way. While fintech—the sector attracting the most investment—continues to lag at just 16.5% female co-founder representation, other verticals like legaltech, e-health, ed-tech, and agri-tech are showing more balanced outcomes. Legaltech has even surpassed the 30% mark for female co-founders.
The full report offers a comprehensive analysis of gender dynamics in African tech, including case studies and investor perspectives. It’s available for free download here.