Spark South Africa is on a mission - to search across the country for female startup founders who have launched a venture that exists to improve the lives of women and girls. The SHE programme believes that women are the best levers for change in South Africa, and it recognises that female founders need help if they are to succeed. And, they need that help now.

On the SHE programme, fifteen female founders are selected and go through an intense five-day live-in entrepreneurship accelerator where they access world class training from the Spark* International team and rapidly improve their ventures to make them more scalable, sustainable and impactful. After the accelerator, Spark* South Africa provides up to three years of support, with access to lawyers, website and graphic designers, mentors, research and quick and frequent injections of R2500 to help them overcome barriers or test ideas.

We connect our entrepreneurs with the South African women of influence in our network who mentor them, open connections, invest, and forge the deals that take their ventures to the next level of growth and impact.

The team at Spark International are a proven team and have a great track record in helping entrepreneurs on their journeys to success. Since 2011 Spark* International has accelerated 205 entrepreneurs across South Africa, Kenya and Australia, and these ventures have significantly and measurably improved the lives of 46,495 people living in poverty. Spark* is recognised globally as one of the leading players in the startup impact entrepreneurship space and our team is made up of proven entrepreneurs, graduates from the world’s best universities, and most importantly, South Africans. We know what works, and we know how to accelerate female founded startups.

So, the countdown is on - applications for the SHE programme must be received by Spark on or before 1 June, so contact them today.

Please direct all enquiries to the CEO of Spark* South Africa, Katleho Tsoku, at katleho@sparkinternational.org