Rwanda Innovation Fund invests in Akili Network

The Rwanda Innovation Fund latest investment will increase Akili Network’s positive educational impact on African families with more local educational content.

Rwanda Innovation Fund invests in Akili Network

The investment from Rwanda Innovation Fund will increase Akili Network’s positive educational impact on African families and enable greater access and more local educational content.

Leveraging different platforms and technologies in order to channel impactful content – and pretty much nothing is more impactful than children’s education – is an obvious goal.

Angaza Capital, the manager of the Rwanda Innovation Fund (RIF), is happy to announce its latest investment in Akili Network, the creators of Akili Kids! TV, one of Africa’s most-watched TV stations in households with children under 18 years old.

This investment will increase Akili Network’s positive educational impact on African families and enable greater access and more local educational content.

The Rwanda Innovation Fund was officially launched in 2021, with the mission to back disruptive, innovative companies that deploy solutions to solve major sustainability challenges in Africa and provide answers to the dire needs of hundreds of millions of people across the continent.

“For us at Angaza Capital, leveraging different platforms and technologies in order to channel impactful content – and pretty much nothing is more impactful than children’s education – is an obvious goal. What we found in Akili is a highly value-driven team with brilliant execution driving impact at scale”, says Olivier Munyeshyaka, Associate, Angaza Capital.

With 95% of the families reporting that their quality of life was very much improved from watching Akili Kids! TV, Akili Network is looking to increase its content portfolio in a bid to create a family-focused TV destination that is not only free but also safe, educative, and entertaining for all families, including teens, parents and caregivers.

“We are incredibly excited about this investment from the Rwanda Innovation Fund and Angaza Capital as it will help Akili Network improve the lives of even more children and families”, says Jesse Soleil, President and Co-Founder, Akili Network.

Guided by a community-based approach, Akili Network produces and broadcasts educational entertainment that supports key developmental areas — from critical thinking skills and literacy, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), while supporting creativity, imagination, social-emotional skills, as well as child resilience and protection.

Akili Network ensures that all programs and activities are developmentally appropriate, safe, fun and offer important learning outcomes, as proved with their most recently released teen TV series ‘Flash Squad’ that develops child protective strategies and agency in young people; and through a subsequent study, 83% of the viewers reported feeling more confident about going online after watching Flash Squad on Akili Kids!

“The Rwanda Innovation Fund investment will be instrumental in supporting our work to create programming that can support the Sustainable Development Goals; change begins with children”, says Jeff Schon, CEO and Co-founder, Akili Network.