Kasha, an e-commerce startup that sells men's protection and contraceptives via an SMS-based, Arifu - an edtech startup -raised funding from the Swedish Optimizer Foundation. The foundation made the announcements towards the end of last month.
The foundation invested $150,000 and $100,000 in Kasha and Arifu. Unlike the former, Arifu had before received an investment from the Optimizer Foundation. In September last year, Optimizer invested $100,000 into Arifu. The same amount they received this year.
Kasha's business idea is based on the fact that about 30% of schoolgirls in Africa stay home simply because they can not afford to buy binders.
The startup, which started in Rwanda in 2016, has created an e-commerce platform. They sell everything from soaps and hygiene products to contraceptives. Through agreements with Unilever and Johnson & Johnson, Kasha can offer cheaper products sent in discrete packages.
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Arifu - on the other hand - has an app that works like Apple's assistant, Siri. The only distinction is that it does not need an internet connection or even a smartphone. Rather it relies on USSD.
The users can text a keyword to a country-specific card number. Based on questions and answers, they are forwarded to relevant information about everything: from opening a bank account to streamlining their cultivation.
According to the founder and CEO, Craig Heintzman, the Arifu app has about 800,000 users in Kenya. Founded in 2013, Arifu has been operations in Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda. They are also looking to launch in Zambia and Nigeria.
Optimizer Foundation, which launched last year, opened an office in Nairobi the same year. The goal was to "get closer to the East African market". The investments in Arifu and Kasha marked the fourth done in by the foundation, so far.