Celo is a fully EVM compatible proof-of-stake layer-1 protocol, featuring a fast, ultralight client designed for mobile, with the ability to have transaction fees paid with tokens or stablecoins. Celo is on a mission to build a financial system that creates the conditions for prosperity for everyone.

The Celo Foundation is a non-profit organization based in the US that supports the growth and development of the open-source Celo Platform. Guided by the Celo community tenets, the Foundation contributes to education, technical research, environmental health, community engagement, and ecosystem outreach—activities that support and encourage an inclusive financial system that creates the conditions for prosperity for everyone.

The Foundation meets with local developer communities in the African area through ambassadors and pioneers initiatives concentrating on microwork and decentralized finance (DeFi) financing.

Celo unveiled its Web3 fund at its monthly happy hour which is a community event aimed at fostering a prosperous and interconnected blockchain community in Uganda 

The Celo Africa Web3 Fund connects entrepreneurs with venture capital (VC) firms such as Unicorn Growth Capital, Echo VC, Uncovered Fund, and Flori Ventures, a seed-stage VC that invests in the Celo ecosystem. The Celo Developer Guild also provides technical support in collaboration with partners such as blockchain development platform Tatum and Ape Unit, a network of innovators, strategists, developers, and designers.

The fund is accessible to all African-based start-up applicants, with preference given to African citizens.

The fund also provides in-person training, mentorships with the Celo Foundation Research and Innovation team, and marketing assistance. Fund candidates can also apply for membership in the Alliance for Prosperity to work directly with mission-aligned groups promoting social impact and financial inclusion on Celo.

Umar Bukenya Ssebyala, the Celo Foundation’s Uganda Ecosystem Lead, stated that the money would assist expand African start-up businesses built on Celo in support of block chain technology and Web3 adoption as part of the Celo Foundation’s worldwide objective to establish a more equitable global financial system.

He went on to say that the new fund builds on Celo’s current footprint in Africa and targets several verticals in the financial innovation arena, such as payments, remittances, savings, and loans.