Women in tech reach final 10

By BUUMBA CHIMBULU

TEN women-led technology startups have secured places in Standard Chartered Bank Zambia’s Women in Tech Cohort 6 after emerging from a competitive field of more than 100 applicants, positioning them for mentorship, funding opportunities and business growth.

Speaking during the Women in Tech Cohort 6 Top 10 Networking event in Lusaka, Standard Chartered Bank Zambia Chief Executive Officer Sonny Zulu said supporting women entrepreneurs, particularly those leveraging technology, remained critical to unlocking economic growth and creating jobs.

Dr Zulu noted that women-owned businesses continued to face significant challenges in accessing finance, mentorship, markets and professional networks, limiting their growth potential.

He cited findings by the World Bank and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), which show that women-led small and medium enterprises in Zambia continue to face both supply-side and demand-side barriers to formal financing, including limited access to capital, weaker financial management capacity and gaps in business networks.

“The success of women entrepreneurs cannot be driven by one institution alone. It requires collaboration between Government, the private sector, ecosystem partners, financiers, mentors and the media,” Dr Zulu said.

Dr Zulu also commended programme partners BongoHive and Village Capital for their continued role in nurturing innovation and entrepreneurship.

Meanwhile, BongoHive co-founder Simunza Muyangana said the overwhelming response to the programme reflected the growing number of women developing technology-driven businesses in Zambia.

“That number tells us something important - the demand for what we are building together is real, and it is growing,” he said.

Mr Muyangana noted that the selected businesses span key sectors including education technology, financial technology, agricultural technology, software as a service, artificial intelligence, market intelligence, marketing technology, health technology, environmental, social and governance solutions, and ICT services.

“These are not just sectors; they are the infrastructure of a functioning economy. And you are building it, piece by piece,” Mr Muyangana said.

He said many of the entrepreneurs had already developed minimum viable products before joining the programme, demonstrating that they were entering the accelerator with existing momentum rather than simply business ideas.

Mr Muyangana revealed that previous cohorts of the Standard Chartered Women in Tech programme had collectively raised more than US$260, 000 in funding, illustrating the programme’s growing impact on Zambia’s innovation ecosystem.

He encouraged the finalists to embrace the rigorous mentorship programme ahead, saying the entrepreneurs who benefitted most were those willing to learn, adapt and challenge their own assumptions.