Halcyon, a Washington, DC impact accelerator, runs this program for early-stage, for-profit ventures based in Sub-Saharan Africa that strengthen agriculture and food systems, from climate-smart farming and irrigation to agri-fintech, cold chains and post-harvest loss.
The 2027 cohort succeeds Halcyon’s Climate Resilience & Food Security in Africa Accelerator (March–July 2026). It runs February–June 2027: a virtual kickoff, a week in Accra, three virtual meetings and a week in Nairobi.
Benefits & funding
- US$10,000 equity-free stipend per venture (US$6,000 in the 2026 edition), paid in parts, including before the residencies and at the end.
- US$10,000 in AWS credits per venture.
- Two in-person residency weeks: Accra, Ghana and Nairobi, Kenya.
- Expert workshops, professional advisors and investor networking.
- Halcyon takes no equity.
Eligibility
- The venture must be based in Sub-Saharan Africa (countries below); there is no nationality rule.
- For-profit and impact-driven, contributing to at least one UN Sustainable Development Goal.
- A working MVP with realistic potential to scale, at the paid-pilot or post-revenue stage.
- The applicant is the CEO or main decision-maker; up to one co-founder may join.
- At least 21 by the program start, fluent in English, and working full-time on the venture.
- Must attend every residency and session.
- No degree requirement.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.
Residence required
Angola · Benin · Botswana · Burkina Faso · Burundi · Cabo Verde · Cameroon · Central African Republic · Chad · Comoros · DR Congo · Republic of the Congo
+ 37 more
Côte d'Ivoire · Djibouti · Equatorial Guinea · Eritrea · Eswatini · Ethiopia · Gabon · Gambia · Ghana · Guinea · Guinea-Bissau · Kenya · Lesotho · Liberia · Madagascar · Malawi · Mali · Mauritania · Mauritius · Mozambique · Namibia · Niger · Nigeria · Rwanda · São Tomé and Príncipe · Senegal · Seychelles · Sierra Leone · Somalia · South Africa · South Sudan · Sudan · Tanzania · Togo · Uganda · Zambia · Zimbabwe
Age requirement
≥ 21 yrs
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Application process
- 1Submit Halcyon’s short year-round eligibility form by 23 October 2026; one form covers every Halcyon program.
- 2If invited, complete the second-round application by 30 October 2026.
- 3Finalists pitch to a committee of external experts on 7–8 December 2026.
- 4Selected founders are notified on 18 December 2026; each Halcyon program takes up to 10 ventures.
Program timeline
eligibility form deadline
Oct 23, 2026
finalist pitch days
Dec 7, 2026 to Dec 8, 2026
selected founders notified
Dec 18, 2026
virtual kickoff (Accra residency Mar 11, 2027 to Mar 19, 2027)
Feb 9, 2027
Nairobi residency, program ends
May 28, 2027 to Jun 4, 2027