Halcyon has announced the 2026 Climate Resilience & Food Security in Africa Fellowship, a program dedicated to advancing innovation in climate adaptation and sustainable food systems across the continent. The fellowship supports visionary founders who are building market-driven, technology-enabled solutions to strengthen Africa’s ability to respond to the growing challenges of climate change. It targets entrepreneurs developing scalable ventures that improve agricultural resilience, enhance food security, and promote environmental sustainability.
The Halcyon Climate Resilience & Food Security Fellowship 2026 for African Entrepreneurs program follows a hybrid format that combines immersive in-person residencies and virtual sessions designed to help participants refine their business models, access capital, and expand their networks. Selected fellows will attend a one-week residency in Accra, Ghana, engage in five days of online programming focused on investment readiness and impact scaling, and conclude with a one-week residency in Nairobi, Kenya.
Through mentorship, access to global networks, and practical workshops on product-market fit and leadership, the fellowship aims to empower founders with the tools and knowledge to build climate-smart businesses that create measurable social and environmental impact. Each participant will also receive a $6,000 equity-free stipend, $10,000 in AWS credits, and entry into Halcyon’s international community of over 600 entrepreneurs committed to sustainable development across emerging markets.
Sectors
Solutions addressing climate adaptation and resilience and food security, including but not limited to:
- Climate-smart agriculture and food systems
- Renewable and resilient energy systems and storage
- Adaptive infrastructure and green building technologies
- Climate intelligence and early-warning systems
- WaterTech (water security, resilient water systems, and more)
- Blue economy and coastal resilience
Benefits
- $10K in Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS) credits
- $6K equity-free stipend per venture
- Workshops with experts in product-market fit, capital strategy, and leadership
Professional advisors - Networking with investors and varied stakeholders in climate
- Access to Halcyon’s global community of 600+ founders
- Continued benefits after your program
Eligibility
We’re looking for for-profit startups building scalable solutions tackling pressing climate adaptation and resilience challenges and food security in Africa.
Location: Africa
Stage: Must have a working Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and a realistic potential to scale. Applicants must demonstrate early user feedback or evidence of early commercial validation, such as pilots, LOIs, or revenue.
Team:
- May apply with up to one Co-Founder.
- Applicant must be the CEO or hold primary decision-making power.
- Must be fluent in English (programming will be in English).
- Must be at least 21 years of age by the start of the program.
- Program Engagement: Applicant(s) must commit to participating in all residencies,program activities, events, and in-person and virtual sessions.
Impact: Must be developing a product and venture which contributes towards one or more of the UN’s 17 SDGs.
In addition, Halcyon scores each application based on four criteria: 1) Impact, 2) Scalability, 3) Innovation, and 4) Talent.
Program Structure & Timeline
The final cohort is selected from 10 ventures across Africa. The program is delivered in a hybrid modality through a virtual kickoff meeting, two one-week, in-person residencies in Ghana and Kenya, and four additional virtual programming days.
Founders receive training in Halcyon’s methodology on product-market fit, capital strategy, and leadership, as well as access to critical resources and connections to accelerate their ventures.
Timeline:
- October 31st, 2025: Application window opens
- November 20th, 2025: Last chance to submit your eligibility application to be considered for this application window! Halcyon team begins reviewing eligibility applications
November 24th, 2025: Halcyon team sends out invitational applications to select candidates - December 4th, 2025: Invitational application deadline
- Late December, 2025: Finalists invited to a virtual pitch
- Mid-Late January, 2026: Selected founders notified
- March 25th, 2026: Virtual Program Kickoff
- April 17th-April 24th, 2026: Residency Week #1 in Accra, Ghana
- May 5th, 2026: Virtual Meeting #2
- May 20th, 2026: Virtual Meeting #3
- June 10th, 2026: Virtual Meeting #4
- July 9th, 2026: Virtual Meeting #5
- July 24-July 31st, 2026: Residency Week #2 in Nairobi, Kenya
For more information: visit the website for Halcyon Climate Resilience Fellowship 2026
