The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has invited female entrepreneurs from its 15 member countries to apply for the second edition of the ShEquity accelerator program.

The ShEquity Business Accelerator (SHEBA) is a 16-week program that provides venture development and technical assistance to African female entrepreneurs in the ECOWAS area who want to grow their firms and become investment ready.

SHEBA was founded in March 2021 by ShEquity, an investment vehicle that makes smart investments in impactful, innovative, and scalable female-led and owned businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa, in collaboration with its implementation partner MBC Africa, to address the existing gender funding gap by de-risking African female-led businesses, preparing them for investment, and equipping the founders with the skills they need to grow and scale their businesses.

SHEBA provides ShEquity and other ShEquity network investors with access to investment-ready prospects in female-led and owned enterprises, in addition to a strong program development focus. Qualifying enterprises are suggested to the ShEquity team for investment consideration after completing the accelerated program. The average ShEquity initial investment is between $50,000 and $250,000, with further post-investment support available.

SHEBA focuses on enterprises in agribusiness, healthcare, technology-enabled solutions, renewable energies, mobility, and fast-moving consumer goods that are influential, inventive, and scalable (FMCGs). 16 founders from Benin, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo graduated from the first cohort.

“We are ecstatic to be introducing this second edition and are certain that this new cohort group will have the same game-changing impact on their businesses as the first cohort group,” ShEquity creator Pauline Koelbl said.

“SHEBA’s initial program participants saw a rise in the number of customers and overall revenue, as well as the evolution of business models, enhanced management confidence, and a shift in mindset to one of focus. Such outstanding results are the bedrock of the SHEBA program, which propels accelerator participants toward investment readiness.”

Applications will be accepted through May 6th. This application call is only for English speakers; a separate call for French speakers will be released next month.