50 African Tech Giant Team Up Through Pando DAO to Accelerate Africa’s Startup Ecosystem

Pando DAO is also the official community partner of the Silicon Zanzibar Government Initiative.

Initial initiatives will include a hub open to Pando DAO members and a Pando CEO Summit, launching later this year.

Pando DAO, a community of top tech founders in Africa, has officially launched with a mission to accelerate Africa’s startup ecosystem and drive development across the continent. The community today announced it has joined as an official community partner of Silicon Zanzibar, the government initiative launched earlier this year with the goal of turning the island into a hub for tech talent and companies.

Pando DAO is a decentralised autonomous organisation with a mandate to develop the African tech ecosystem. Founding members of the community represent over 50 founders and early builders from across Africa, including mPharma, Wasoko, Pariti, SunCulture, Africa Health Holdings, Stitch, Marketforce, 54Gene, Mara, VertoFX, Turaco, Raise, Carry1st, Jetstream and more.

Collectively, these founders represent companies that are currently valued at over $2B+ and have raised over $500M in capital. Pando member companies employ over 10,000 people across 15 African countries. One key project is a VC fund for early-stage tech companies in Africa, which will leverage its members’ expertise and network and return funds to them.

Pando DAO has officially partnered with Silicon Zanzibar. It will support the Zanzibari government in opening operations and creating a policy framework to support innovation and the digital economy in Zanzibar. In doing so, it will enable Silicon Zanzibar to serve as a model for other African governments.

Initial initiatives will include a hub open to Pando DAO members and a Pando CEO Summit, launching later this year.

Speaking on the launch of the partnership, Yacob Berhane, CEO and co-founder at Pariti and a founding member of Pando DAO, said, “We are thrilled to be partnering with the government of Zanzibar on this initiative. We believe that through this partnership, we will be able to drive the tech ecosystem in Africa forward, with Zanzibar serving as a key part of that story by attracting tech companies and talent and also developing homegrown companies and talent as well.”

Mudrick Soraga, Zanzibar’s Minister of Investment & Economic Development, concluded, “We are excited to officially partner with Pando to co-create the policies and initiatives that will transform Zanzibar’s economy. Working with Pando DAO presents us an opportunity to work side-by-side with the leading players in the African tech ecosystem.”