(Business in Cameroon) – The “Start-Up 237: 100 Projects Made in Cameroon” program has invested CFA400 million in 55 projects during its first year. These updates were shared on November 19 in Yaoundé during the “Start-Up Day” event, organized by the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF) in partnership with the French Embassy in Cameroon.
Over the past year, the initiative has recruited 46 mentors and trained 20 managers from support organizations, including 18 incubators. It has also created 102 support plans and organized 700 coaching sessions, both online and in person.
The supported start-ups are innovating in sectors like health, agriculture, agribusiness, education, and digital technologies. French Ambassador to Cameroon Thierry Marchand, who attended the event, highlighted that start-ups from every region in the country were included. He praised the inclusion of start-ups from the crisis-hit North-West and South-West regions but expressed disappointment that only one start-up from the East region was selected.
An important milestone for the program is scheduled for March 2025 to review its progress before the project concludes in November 2025. The ambassador urged the project management team to ensure that all start-ups awaiting equipment receive their materials by March next year.
“Start-ups often require specific tools that are not always readily available from suppliers,” explained Professor Alain Kiyindou, AUF’s director for Central Africa. He noted that the process of acquiring such equipment can be lengthy.
The “Start-Up 237” program, funded with CFA1.3 billion primarily by France’s “Team France Fund,” aims to promote youth and women’s entrepreneurship and employability. It plans to support 100 start-ups, not only with seed or growth funding but also through continuous mentorship by local and international experts across Cameroon’s four cultural zones.
Spanning two years (2024–2025), the program focuses on strengthening the skills of young Cameroonian entrepreneurs, both structurally and operationally. It seeks to equip them with tools to build resilient and sustainable businesses.
