B20 South Africa Unlocks R1.7 Billion Digital Inclusion Fund for African Entrepreneurs

Published: November 29, 2025

Author: Sakhiwo Dlalisa, Founding Director of Youth Development Project SA (PTY) LTD

The image features a cluster of international flags funneled into a black tap labeled “YDP SA Presents.” Gold coins flow from the tap into a black bucket marked “B20,” symbolizing global investment being directed into a shared fund as part of B20 support toward Africa’s digital inclusion and the growth of tech start-ups.

B20 South Africa Unlocks R1.7 Billion Digital Inclusion Fund for African Entrepreneurs

The global economic landscape is shifting its focus to Africa. South Africa, leveraging its G20 Presidency, has spearheaded the launch of a formidable $100 Million (R1.7 Billion) Digital Inclusion Fund through the Business 20 (B20) forum. This fund is explicitly designed to catalyze digital transformation and job creation across the continent. This article provides essential context on the B20/G20 framework, validates the fund's necessity with stark South African unemployment and digital divide statistics, and introduces the Youth Development Project SA (YDP SA) Investor Readiness Program - launching 2026. This program is a crucial step for entrepreneurs to prepare their ventures to access this capital, ensuring their business are robust, compliant, and ready for global investment.

Decoding the Global Economic Forums: G20 and B20

The magnitude of the Digital Inclusion Fund announcement lies in its institutional backing. To understand this, we must first define the key players:

• The G20 (Group of Twenty): Hosted for the first time in its 26-year history on African soil, the G20 summit this year took place in South Africa. This is the premier international forum where 19 countries and the European Union address global economic challenges, striving for financial stability and sustainable growth. South Africa's Presidency is a powerful mandate to steer global priorities towards African inclusion.

  
  

• The B20 (Business 20): Serving as the official G20 dialogue forum with the global business community, the B20 brings together powerful business leaders to formulate actionable, private sector-driven policy recommendations. The fund is a direct, tangible outcome of the B20 South Africa Digital Transformation Task Force's work.

  
  

• B20 Final Communiqué: The B20 South Africa cycle has officially wrapped up after a major collaborative effort. Eight task forces worked together to create 30 practical recommendations focused on building a more inclusive, sustainable, and resilient global economy.

  
  

  From this work, five key themes were identified, along with the conditions needed to make real progress. These priorities were refined with input from African business leaders and global partners to ensure they address both local challenges and global opportunities.

  
  

Download The B20 Final Communique

The R1.7 Billion Fund: Capital Meets Connectivity

Announced at the B20 South Africa Summit breakfast, the Digital Inclusion Fund is earmarked for technology-focused start-ups across Africa whose primary mission is to bridge the continent’s digital divide. Chaired by Phuti Mahanyele-Dabengwa, CEO and Executive Director of Naspers South Africa, the initiative reinforces the commitment of major business leaders to fostering inclusive digital growth.

The Digital Transformation Task Force is chaired by Phuti Mahanyele-Dabengwa, who serves as Chair of the Digital Transformation Task Force and Executive Director at Naspers Limited: https://www.b20southafrica.org/task-forces/digital-transformation-task-force/

The fund is structured as a blended capital platform. It combines concessional funding from development finance and philanthropic institutions with commercial investments from private sector stakeholders. This model is engineered to de-risk early-stage investments while enabling scalable, sustainable impact.

Key Investment Sectors

Investments will prioritize sectors critical to the digital economy, providing vital support for businesses that often struggle to secure traditional financing:

• Connectivity Solutions

• Digital Skills and Education (EdTech)

• Health Technology (HealthTech)

• Financial Inclusion (FinTech) for the unbanked

• Agritech innovations

Validating the Need: The Moral Imperative for Investment

The fund's launch is driven by compelling economic and social challenges that digital transformation must address. As Shalini Khemka, Founder & Chief Executive Board Director of E2ExChange co-lead of the fund & noted, 2.6 billion people worldwide remain excluded from the digital economy. This exclusion restricts access to education, healthcare, and finance.

B20 South Africa 2025: A Blueprint for Inclusive Digital Transformation

The B20 South Africa 2025 Digital Transformation Task Force has released a powerful policy roadmap designed to ensure the digital future is inclusive, ethical, and sustainable. Chaired by Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa (CEO of Naspers), the task force brings together global business leaders to address one of the most pressing issues of our time: leaving no one behind in the digital age.

1. Expand Digital Infrastructure & Connectivity

Goal: Ensure affordable and reliable internet access for all, especially in underserved regions.

Key Actions:

• Deploy high-speed internet in rural and remote areas.

• Support community networks and local internet initiatives.

• Make smartphones and digital devices more affordable.

2. Strengthen Digital Literacy & Skills

Goal: Equip the workforce with future-ready skills.

Key Actions:

• Integrate digital literacy into school curricula.

• Align higher education with industry needs (AI, cloud, cybersecurity).

• Provide upskilling programs for workers and the unemployed.

3. Advance Trustworthy AI

Goal: Foster ethical, human-centric artificial intelligence.

Key Actions:

• Establish global AI governance frameworks.

• Promote transparency, fairness, and bias mitigation.

• Support research and education in AI ethics.

4. Promote Secure Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)

Goal: Build inclusive digital systems that serve everyone.

Key Actions:

• Develop digital ID and payment systems (e.g., inspired by India’s Aadhaar and UPI).

• Encourage private sector innovation within public digital ecosystems.

• Adopt global standards like Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) to help small businesses trade across borders

Why This Matters?

Digital transformation isn’t just about technology, it’s about people, opportunity, and equity. This report calls on G20 governments and businesses to collaborate in building a digital future that works for everyone.

More links for all B20 Documents available here: https://www.b20southafrica.org/b20-documents/

The South African Reality and Job Creation

In South Africa, the need for this capital is particularly acute due to persistent structural challenges:

• Youth Unemployment: The unemployment rate for youth (aged 15–24) has been particularly devastating, hovering around 62.2% in recent quarters. This highlights the urgent need for new, innovative sectors that can absorb labour at scale.

  
  

• NDP 2030 Goals: The National Development Plan (NDP) 2030 aims to reduce the unemployment rate to 6% and create approximately 11 million new jobs. Achieving this requires fostering an environment where small and expanding firms, especially in the tech sector, can rapidly scale and become the principal employers.

  
  

• Digital Skills Gap: While South Africa has high mobile penetration, a significant portion of the population lacks the intermediate and advanced digital skills necessary for productive use of technology, creating a bottleneck for innovation and business growth.

  
  

This R1.7 billion fund directly tackles these issues by directing capital into firms designed to create digitally-enabled jobs and bridge the skills and connectivity gaps.

The Bridge to Capital: YDP SA Investor Readiness Program

Having $100 million available is one step; ensuring African entrepreneurs are prepared to receive it is the next. Global investors require ventures to possess impeccable governance, technological resources for scale and efficiency, transparent, robust financial structures, and clear operational structure for scalability. This is the gap we at the YDP SA are trying to fill in support of the NDP 2030. The NDP 2030 aims to eliminate poverty, reduce inequality, and create 11 million jobs by 2030, aligning with the B20’s R1.7 billion investment to support African tech startups and drive inclusive economic growth.

YDP SA, in partnership with universities and an array of accredited social and skills development & empowerment organisations, will deliver the Investor Readiness solutions for aspiring and existing entrepreneurs. This initiative aims to raise millions to fund high-potential SMEs whose business models address core Sustainable Development Goals, supporting the national objective of expanding youth entrepreneurship.

Program Pillars and Data Sharing

In collaboration with partners, this program will equip candidates with critical skills to ensure they are fully prepared for investment and scalable growth:

• Governance and Strategic Structure

• Financial Management and Advanced Modelling

• IT Systems and Automation

• Investor Relations and Communication

• Capital Raising Strategy

• Legal and Regulatory Compliance

A full applications database will be shared with Naspers Chair Phuti Mahanyele-Dabengwa’s office to strengthen outreach and marketing, providing validated, high-quality deal flow for the B20 ecosystem.

Call to Action.

Step 1: Join the Investor Readiness Database

The formal call for applications for the B20 fund will follow once its governance structure is finalized. The time to prepare is now. We invite all aspiring entrepreneurs to register their interest to be included in our database for the YDP SA Investor Readiness Program.

Once we share your details with relevant stakeholders, they can connect with you. We also strongly encourage all interested members to join the 'YDP SA Investor Readiness Program Group'.

Find the group in our Groups page, link to groups: https://www.ydpsa.com/group

Step 2: Join the Investor Readiness Group and find the link to the form.

Find the link to the form in our Investor Readiness Group. Link to group: https://www.ydpsa.com/group/ydp-sa-investor-readiness-program-group

Alternatively, you can use this link below to fill in your details.

Submit your details

Step 3: You have two ways to make your submissions.

Option 1

Option 1: Feel free to use our AI system to submit your details. It's cool & fun however can be a bit challenging.

Option 2

Use this method to fill in traditionally which offers less complication. Simply select the 'Form' icon on top of the page.

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Synergy with Youth Development Project SA (PTY) LTD

At YDP SA we are passionate advocates for youth empowerment and economic transformation. As the driving force behind Youth Empowering Solutions, we work tirelessly to bridge the gap between institutional capital and the untapped potential of Africa's youth. YDP SA focuses on delivering skills and resources to entrepreneurs and professionals to ensure their ventures contribute meaningfully to the NDP 2030 job creation agenda and aid in the dauntingly high unemployment.

I'm Sakhiwo Dlalisa, and I am always eager to connect and advise our members. We welcome collaborations and sponsorships as we strive to empower more aspiring professionals, organizations, and leaders. Let's grow a better tomorrow, today.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sakhiwo-dlalisa/

Company Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ydp-sa

For General enquiries email us: info@ydpsa.com

For Sponsorships, collaboration enquiries: sales@ydpsa.com

Reference

B20 South Africa (2025) The B20 South Africa Final Communiqué. Available at: https://www.b20southafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/B20-Final-Communique-2025_VM_26Nov_A.pdf (Accessed: 29 November 2025).

Benamara, A. (2025) 'B20 South Africa Unveils $100 Million Digital Inclusion Fund for African Entrepreneurs', TechAfricaNews, 24 November. Available at: https://techafricanews.com/2025/11/24/b20-south-africa-unveils-100-million-digital-inclusion-fund-for-african-entrepreneurs/ (Accessed: 29 November 2025).

CIO Africa (2025) 'South Africa Launches $100 Million Digital Inclusion Fund', CIO Africa, 28 November. Available at: https://cioafrica.co/south-africa-launches-100-million-digital-inclusion-fund/ (Accessed: 29 November 2025).

Malinga, S. (2025) 'R1.7bn digital inclusion fund to support Africa’s tech start-ups', ITWeb, 28 November. Available at: https://www.itweb.co.za/article/r17bn-digital-inclusion-fund-to-support-africas-tech-start-ups/Kjlyr7wBYbjvk6am (Accessed: 28 November 2025).

National Development Plan (NDP) 2030 (no date) National Development Plan (NDP) 2030. Available at: https://www.gov.za/documents/other/national-development-plan-2030-our-future-make-it-work-15-aug-2012?utm_source=chatgpt.com. (Accessed: 28 November 2025).