2026 Mastercard Foundation Scholars Programme Entrepreneurship Prize Competition
The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Cambridge is pleased to invite members of the public, ecosystem partners, founders, investors, students, researchers, and innovation stakeholders to attend the SEF 2.0 Pitch Day 2026.
This year, 13 scholar-led startups will present innovative ventures addressing critical challenges across:
Clean Technology
Agricultural Technology
Health Technology
Climate Tech
The startups will pitch bold and scalable ideas demonstrating how their innovations can create meaningful impact and drive transformation across Africa.
The showcase forms part of the Scholars Entrepreneurship Fund (SEF) 2.0, an entrepreneurship and venture development initiative supporting Mastercard Foundation Scholars to move from ideation to implementation through structured venture support.
During the event, participating teams will present their ventures before a panel of judges and ecosystem experts who will provide strategic feedback on venture readiness, market understanding, implementation potential, and pathways to scale.
Successful ventures within the cohort will receive:
Up to $5,000 in catalytic funding
Follow-on venture development support
Mentorship and ecosystem access
Structured guidance towards implementation and market readiness
SEF 2.0 adopts an inclusive and developmental approach to entrepreneurship. We invite you to join us in supporting the next generation of African innovators and entrepreneurs building solutions for the continent’s future. Read about last year’s winners here!
2025 Winners Allen Chafa, Hauwa Busari, Sally Musonye and Laura Kasuni
Judge’s Profiles:
Adeyemi Adegbayi is an investor at Catalyst Fund. He is a member of the investment team, focusing on deal flow generation, investment execution and portfolio management.Yemi has spent his career in venture capital investing and tech, working alongside tech startups, investors, DFIs, and funders to pioneer tech-enabled solutions across emerging markets.
He has invested in and advised over 50 startups across Africa and Latin America. Previously, he worked at TLcom Capital, PurpleChip, and ARM, supporting investment strategies across Africa and technology adoption in the finance sector. Furthermore, Yemi co-created “Build by Vizible,” an emerging markets-focused technology and venture capital podcast that explores the journey of founders, investors and entrepreneurs. Yemi holds an MBA from the University of Oxford and a Computer Science degree from Babcock University.
Maria-Yassin Jah is an energy transition investment strategist with extensive experience in African markets, capital partnerships and advising start-ups. She currently leads the Transition Finance Advisory practice at a global management consultancy, advising investors, corporates, governments and early-stage ventures on market entry, M&A, investability, capital raising and due diligence across the energy transition value chain.
Previously, she was Head of Strategic and Capital Partnerships at an Africa-focused investment platform developing agricultural feedstocks for transition fuels. Earlier in her career, she worked at S&P Global and a commodities trading firm, providing market analysis and strategic advice across global energy and commodities markets.
Alongside her executive role, Maria advises on energy transition, energy security and ESG, including as a member of a German government commission, an advisor on energy security matters to the German national security council, and mentor and advisor to start-ups across Africa operating in the energy transition ecosystem.
A Gambian-German national with strong African and European networks, she holds degrees from SOAS University of London, the London School of Economics and Political Science, and the University of Cambridge.
Nadia Mohd-Radzman is a plant biologist specialising in peptide and legume biology at the Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (SLCU). She is a founder of an early-stage agritech company that develops peptide-based bioherbicide to displace glyphosate, and the director of Broad 'n Mind, a project to increase awareness about the benefits of broad beans to improve mental health. In Cambridge, she is an active steering committee member of Cambridge Global Food Security (GFS) and a college research associate at the King’s E-Lab.
Kamiar Mohaddes is an expert in the macroeconomics of climate change and sustainability at the University of Cambridge, where he is the Director of the climaTRACES Lab, a new interdisciplinary research initiative at Cambridge focusing on climate, nature, and sustainability.
He is also the Director of the Global Executive MBA programme at Cambridge and Fellow in Economics at King’s College, Cambridge, where he co-founded and directs the E-Lab
WHEN: Wednesday, 9 June 2026
2.30 PM – 5.00 PM: Pitching at Cambridge Judge Business School
5.00 PM – 6.00 PM: Drinks reception and networking at Cambridge Judge Business School
WHERE: LT1, Cambridge Judge Business School
TICKETS: Register here.