Overview

The Mastercard Foundation has opened applications for the Fund for Alumni Start-ups in Transition (FAST) Program, an initiative designed to empower young African entrepreneurs by providing funding, mentorship, and enterprise development support.

Eligibility

The programme is specifically designed for young African entrepreneurs who are either aspiring founders or currently operating early-stage ventures. Eligible applicants include alumni from the following programmes:

Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI)
African Leadership Academy (ALA)
Anzisha Prize
Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program

Applicants who are still completing their studies may receive provisional acceptance and join the next cohort after graduation.

Benefits

Participants in the FAST Program may receive financial support depending on the development stage of their business:

Idea Phase

Average funding of USD $3,000
Maximum funding up to USD $5,000

This stage focuses on:

Idea validation
Market research
Product or service concept development

Build Phase

Average funding of USD $12,500
Maximum funding up to USD $15,000

At this stage, participants focus on:

Business model development
Market expansion strategies
Operational growth and scaling

In addition to financial support, participants gain access to business development training, mentorship from experienced entrepreneurs, networking opportunities with African founders, and enterprise development support.