A new impact fund is investing in environmentally focused startups across Africa, with financial backing from Rihanna. Gather Ventures, founded by Jo Opot, supports African women entrepreneurs working on environmental and climate resilience efforts. Born in Kenya, Opot’s personal experience informs her commitment to helping women not only earn income but build assets that contribute to long-term wealth and sustainability.
Opot highlighted the challenges many African women face regarding asset ownership, pointing out that in Kenya, women only legally gained the constitutional right to inherit property in 2012. Gather Ventures aims to change that by backing women-led ventures that build both climate resilience and asset creation for women and girls across the continent.
Supported by Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation, the fund focuses on sectors like agriculture, construction, education, workforce development, and technology. About 80% of its investments go to environmentally sustainable businesses. This includes companies like Mobility for Africa, which produces tricycles adapted for women, and Giraffe Bioenergy, which converts drought-resistant cassava into food and clean cooking fuel.
Opot emphasized the importance of investing in climate adaptation and resilience rather than only mitigation, noting that low-income communities often suffer most from climate change impacts they did not cause. She also called for gender equity to be prioritized in climate finance, citing the effectiveness of investing in women.
Gather Ventures offers flexible support — from grants to loans to equity — based on each business’s specific needs. The fund prioritizes agriculture as the largest employer of women and targets construction and technology for their growth potential and low female representation.
Opot hopes Gather Ventures encourages more African women to own green assets and urges those interested in climate justice to engage directly with the communities they aim to support.
