History
Build Africa Ventures (BAV) was founded in April 2025 with a bold mission: to empower daring entrepreneurs across Africa to build scalable, high-impact ventures. From day one, BAV was designed to combine hands-on venture building, mentorship, and ecosystem support - all tailored to founders who are serious about entrepreneurship. We recognized that Africa’s next generation of leaders needed more than theory; they needed practical experience, guidance, and access to networks that could turn ideas into real businesses.
Since inception, BAV has grown into a strong venture builder, running programs that guide founders from idea conception to launch, scaling, and investment-readiness - all while cultivating an ecosystem that celebrates learning, experimentation, and execution.
The BAV Programs
BAV runs three core programs designed to take founders on a journey from inspiration to real-world impact:
1. BAV Founder Launch Pad (FLP)
The BAV FLP is the entry point for founders. It’s designed for founders with ideas, early projects, or small side businesses who want to learn how real ventures are built from scratch.
Over a six-week cycle, founders participate in virtual and in-person workshops, hands-on exercises, and mentorship sessions to validate ideas, develop business models, and build early products or prototypes. BAV FLP equips founders with the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, preparing them to progress into BAV Labs, our core accelerator.
2. BAV Labs Accelerator
The Labs is where the main venture-building happens. This program is designed for top BAV FLP graduates and other promising founders who have early-stage ventures ready to scale.
Over a three-month intensive cycle, founders refine their products, implement structured business frameworks, generate early revenue, and prepare for investment. They receive dedicated mentorship, advisory support, and access to BAV’s network of investors and partners.
The program culminates in Demo Day, where founders present their ventures to investors, strategic partners, and the wider ecosystem, positioning them for growth, funding, and long-term impact.
3. MBA Execution Room
The MBA Execution Room is an exclusive, high-impact program designed to provide founders with actionable insights they can immediately apply. Inaugurated on February 21, 2026, in honor of Moses B. Arthur, the program delivers focused, practical sessions tailored to accelerate venture growth.
This private, registration-only experience brings top entrepreneurs to lead concentrated workshops on essential business topics, including sales, marketing, revenue models, and scaling strategies. Unlike traditional conferences, the Execution Room emphasizes deep learning and real-world application, equipping founders with tools and strategies to advance their ventures. The program runs multiple times a year, featuring different entrepreneurs for each session, ensuring fresh perspectives and high-value learning opportunities every time.
The BAV Fund
To further support bold ventures, BAV is building the BAV Fund, a dedicated investment fund that will invest directly in promising businesses. The Fund provides capital, strategic guidance, and long-term partnership opportunities, enabling BAV-backed ventures to scale faster and reach greater impact. Through the BAV Fund, we are not just enabling founders to launch businesses - we are actively co-investing in Africa’s next generation of companies.
How BAV Works
At BAV, the journey for a founder is designed to be progressive, practical, and empowering:
Discover and Build – Founders start with FLP to validate ideas, build early products, and learn the fundamentals of venture creation.
Scale and Accelerate – The most promising founders enter BAV Labs to refine their business, generate revenue, and prepare for investment.
Learn from Experts – Through the MBA Execution Room and ongoing mentorship, founders gain access to actionable knowledge from top entrepreneurs and BAV’s ecosystem of advisors and partners.
Fund and Grow – Through the BAV Fund, selected ventures gain capital, strategic guidance, and partnership opportunities to scale with confidence.
Beyond the Programs
BAV is more than just programs - it’s an ecosystem for bold entrepreneurs across Africa. Founders gain:
Mentorship and guidance from experienced entrepreneurs and industry experts.
Access to funding and partnerships through the BAV Fund and investor network.
Community and collaboration with other founders, alumni, and BAV partners.
Practical experience in building real businesses.
Portfolio Ventures
Even in its first year, BAV has begun launching ventures that demonstrate its impact. For example, NexGloow, a portfolio company, offers premium remote hair services for men and women while training the next generation of stylists through its academy - showcasing how BAV ventures combine innovation, service, and skills development.
Why BAV Matters
Africa is full of talented founders with big ideas, but too often, those ideas never make it off the page. BAV provides the resources, mentorship, investment, and ecosystem to ensure that founders can:
Move from idea to execution.
Learn how businesses are built in practice.
Access the networks and funding needed to scale.
Deliver real impact in their communities and industries.
BAV isn’t just teaching entrepreneurship - it’s creating the conditions for Africa’s next generation of companies and leaders to thrive.
