Investing in women entrepreneurs is key to economic growth
Our mission is to unlock access to financing for African SMEs and that includes the women who keep those businesses alive
At Salad Africa, we believe economic growth and gender equality don’t have to be competing goals; they can, and should, work hand in hand. As a fintech startup providing embedded lending solutions to marketplaces, platforms, and SMEs, we sit at the intersection of innovation, inclusion, and economic development.
And in that intersection lies an opportunity to contribute meaningfully to UN Sustainable Development Goal 5: achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
But let’s be honest. As a startup, we also have revenue targets, investor expectations, and market share to grow.
So how do we balance the vision for social impact with the realities of startup life?
We’re in the business of financing, and access to financing is a form of financial power.
By designing credit assessment models that account for the realities of women-owned businesses, such as informal record-keeping, seasonal cash flow, or limited collateral, we expand access to a customer segment that is often under-financed yet highly resilient and growth-ready.
This isn’t charity—it’s smart business. According to the IFC, "African women have the highest rate of entrepreneurial activity in the world at an estimated 24% and are more likely to start businesses than their counterparts in other regions in the world."
Many digital platforms catering to female entrepreneurs already exist. For example, beauty marketplaces, agri-tech solutions, retail apps, and social commerce hubs.
By embedding credit into these platforms, we’re not just offering financing; we’re unlocking access to financing that helps women-led businesses scale. When women thrive, communities do too.
Data shows women reinvest up to 90% of their income into their households and communities, compared to 30–40% for men. That ripple effect builds a stronger, more inclusive economy.
Melissa Houston
Impact isn’t impact if we can’t measure it.
Salad’s social impact tracker is already helping us understand how our lending solutions affect businesses across different sectors.
By layering in gender-disaggregated data, we can track how many women-led businesses we reach, how they perform post-financing, and where we can improve.
This not only supports our social goals; it also gives us valuable insights that will improve how we approach product design and risk modelling and help drive our customer acquisition numbers
Gender equality isn’t just about who gets financed; it's also about who gets to build the products and lead the conversations.
Internally, we are intentional about building an inclusive team and creating meaningful growth opportunities for women across customer success, product, and leadership roles.
Gender equality isn’t just about who gets financed; it's also about who gets to build the products and lead the conversations.
Internally, we are intentional about building an inclusive team and creating meaningful growth opportunities for women across customer success, product, and leadership roles. A gender-diverse team helps us better understand and serve our customers—and leads to better performance.
Research by McKinsey reveals that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on their executive teams were 15 percent more likely to experience above-average profitability than companies in the fourth quartile.
Lareina Yee
By embedding gender equity into our lending solutions, platform partnerships, and internal hiring, we are future-proofing our business.
Not to mention that alternative investors and venture funds are increasingly valuing ESG-aligned startups and SME clients are more loyal to inclusive businesses and organizations.
Our mission is to unlock access to financing for African SMEs and that includes the women who keep those businesses alive. We’re committed to building financial products that support economic growth and social equity in African countries.
