• On February 27, 2026, AfDB's board approved a €6.5M investment in Saviu II — €4.5M in equity and €2M first-loss via the EU's Boost Africa programme.

• Saviu II targets around 20 B2B tech startups at the seed to Series A stage, with tickets from €500K to €3M and 60% allocated to Francophone markets.

• The fund reached a €25M second close in early 2025 with Proparco, Triple Jump and AXIAN, and is targeting a final close between €30M and €50M.

The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has approved a €6.5 million investment in Saviu II, a venture capital fund managed by Saviu Partners and focused on technology startups in Francophone West and Central Africa. The commitment, validated by the Bank's board on February 27, 2026 in Abidjan, positions the AfDB as a limited partner with €4.5 million in straight equity. The remaining €2 million is structured as a first-loss tranche deployed on behalf of the European Commission under the Boost Africa programme, a blended finance instrument designed to reduce downside risk for private co-investors.

Saviu II is the successor to Saviu I, a €10 million fund launched in 2018 that backed 12 startups, 72% of which operate in Francophone markets. The new vehicle reached a first close of €12 million in late 2023, supported by private entrepreneurs, high-net-worth individuals and family offices. A second close at €25 million followed in early 2025, bringing in development finance institutions Proparco and Triple Jump, alongside pan-African group AXIAN. The fund is targeting a final size of between €30 million and €50 million.

A focused strategy on underserved Francophone markets

Saviu II will deploy tickets ranging from €500,000 to €3 million into approximately 20 B2B startups at the seed to first institutional round stage. Target sectors include fintech, agritech, healthtech, edtech, logistics and cleantech. At least 60% of commitments will go to Francophone countries — Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Senegal, Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso and Mali — markets that receive significantly less venture capital than Anglophone hubs such as Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa.

Beyond capital, Saviu Partners provides portfolio companies with operational support across business development, talent acquisition, international expansion and follow-on fundraising. This approach addresses structural barriers that have historically limited deal flow in the CFA franc zone, including regulatory fragmentation, language constraints, and smaller average ticket sizes than in English-speaking markets.

The AfDB's participation fits within the Bank's broader mandate to support private-sector growth, youth employment and digital transformation across the continent. The Boost Africa programme, co-run with the European Investment Bank, has previously supported funds including Partech Africa and TLcom Capital using similar first-loss structures. Dedicated vehicles targeting Francophone Africa specifically remain rare within that landscape, making Saviu II's geographic focus a defining feature of the transaction.

Idriss Linge