Innovation Village
Gather Ventures, an impact investment firm founded by Kenyan-born Jo Opot, has launched a climate-focused investment fund dedicated to supporting women-led startups across Africa. The initiative is backed by the Clara Lionel Foundation, founded by global music icon and philanthropist Rihanna.
The fund, known as the Gather Impact Fund, was established in 2021 with a mission to drive climate resilience and economic empowerment for African women. It prioritizes businesses that are not only environmentally sustainable but also actively promote gender equity and asset ownership for women.
Jo Opot’s vision for Gather Ventures is deeply personal. Growing up in Kenya, she witnessed firsthand the systemic barriers that prevent women from building and retaining wealth. She points out that legal recognition of women’s inheritance rights in Kenya was only enacted in 2012, a delay that has had lasting consequences.
