Emerald Africa: Lessons from backing early-stage digital lenders in sub-Saharan Africa

In this guest post Alex Simuyandi of Emerald Africa shares learnings from the past three years of providing early-stage debt capital to digital lenders working with agri and rural SMEs across sub-Saharan Africa.

Announcing our 2025 Impact Report

Reflection and insights from Small Foundation and our partners on the networks powering collaboration across the continent – and our shared vision of a thriving Africa free from extreme poverty.

Our Scale

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years of working with partners across Africa

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African countries our partners worked in over 2025

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African SME investments by our partners as of 2025

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members of our partner networks in 2025

Our learning & impact

System entry points

Our work is focused on three system ‘entry points’. While each entry point has distinct ambitions, they interconnect and reinforce each other. 

Commercially viable, sustainable models serving rural MSMEs

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Connected, transparent and learning ecosystems

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Changing patterns of empowerment and agency 
in Africa

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Featured partner

EFAfrica Group (EFAG)

Operating in Kenya and Tanzania, EFAfrica Group (EFAG) specialises in equipment loans for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and farmers, helping enterprises develop and scale.

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