Part of a planned Asia expansion, UK-based private equity fund Acorn Capital has taken over Africa-focused startup incubator EFI Hub for a whopping amount of $10 million. Proceeds from the sale are, however, pledged to be given away in charity to the rehabilitation and resettlement programs run by UNHCR for Burundi and Congolese refugees settled in Rwanda. EFI Hub co-founder Anu Shah confirmed the deal, stating that her only interest in the share sale is using the money in charity.
Owner of 70 per cent stake in the incubator, Shah said, “I will give away every single penny from the sale of the start-ups to the non-profit and social impact initiatives in Africa. I will donate all the money to initiatives that support the refugee rehabilitation programmes, especially those for Congolese and Burundi refugees settling programs in Rwanda.” She added, “I also intend to find ways to fund or work directly with UNHCR on their refugee resettlement programmes in Africa.” Shah's interest also lies in selected projects in Sub Saharan Africa for women empowerment. She said, “Refugee resettlement will be done by directly donating to organisations working in the space. These initiatives will be done by establishing a separate non-profit office in my name and I will establish a team to actively identify such powerful projects and invest in it.”
Shah has volunteered to work with refugees with Rwanda, and worked with Syrian refugees in Lebanon too. She said, “As a woman who had left home with nothing more than just $40 in her pocket, to work in a call center in India, and having worked in some extremely male-dominated geographies like Saudi Arabia, issues relating to women and women empowerment is closest to my heart. I have been blessed with such abundance of experience, success, and wealth, and I only need very little. Hence, I believe this is the best use of the wealth I have accumulated this early in life.”
Co-founded by Shah at Harvard University, EFI Hub was set up a year and half ago, and has raised over $300,000 from angel investors till now. It has mentored several tech businesses in Africa and India, raised thousands of dollars for its portfolio companies, and worked with the South African government on its technology investment policy and infrastructure.
