Applications have opened for the 2026 AUDA-NEPAD Home-Grown Solutions Agribusiness Accelerator Program, a regional initiative under COMESA designed to support African-owned and African-led growth-stage agribusiness companies. According to the organizers, the programme aims to scale innovative and impact-driven solutions that strengthen Africa’s agricultural value chain and boost economic development. The application deadline is December 14, 2025.
The Home-Grown Solutions Agribusiness Accelerator, known as HGSA-A, focuses on enterprises offering practical responses to food insecurity, climate challenges, and trade barriers. The programme team noted that it provides tailored advisory support to help businesses improve investment readiness, increase fundraising capacity, and expand regional trade opportunities under the AfCFTA. They stated that the initiative is meant to drive sustainable agribusiness growth across Africa and unlock long-term commercial value.
To qualify, applicants must be legally registered and operating within a COMESA member state. The programme also prioritises women-owned or women-led enterprises at 70 percent and youth-owned or youth-led enterprises between ages 18 and 35 at 30 percent. Organisers explained that eligible companies must be growth-stage firms that are African-owned or African-led, with a proven and innovative business model and an annual turnover close to USD 100,000 depending on the country. Businesses must also maintain audited financial accounts for at least the last three years and meet basic compliance requirements.
The programme supports companies in agribusiness sectors such as input supply, aggregation, processing, storage, logistics, distribution, market access, value addition, commercialisation, import substitution, and digital agriculture. It also targets enterprises offering climate-smart agricultural inputs and those demonstrating strong potential to scale into regional or international markets through export linkages, COMESA partnerships, or replicable expansion models.
HGSA-A emphasised inclusive participation by encouraging companies that actively engage youth, women, people with disabilities, and refugees. The organisers stated that the initiative aligns with wider development goals around food security, nutrition, and Africa’s economic stability. They added that participating companies must show commitment to green growth in line with the OECD Green Growth Strategy by adopting resource-efficient and sustainable agricultural practices.
Selected companies will receive context-specific advisory support, access to regional and global markets, investment readiness coaching, capital linkage opportunities, technical assistance from sector experts, and networking with peers, buyers, and investors. Interested applicants are encouraged to visit the official webpage of the Home-Grown Solutions Agribusiness Accelerator to submit their applications.
