Zafy Tody is a startup incubator a bit unique in its spirit and operations, and as its founder, I would like to share the story behind its principles and fundamentals.

Its mission is to “Help accelerate the startup ecosystem in Madagascar, nurturing the pride of rising Malagasy entrepreneurs, creating jobs and a better future for young Malagasy talents”.

It is deeply and proudly Malagasy, as I am.

I left my country, Madagascar, at a young adult age to graduate in Computer Science engineering in France (INSA Lyon), and I never came back…

Instead, I’ve been working in various Information Technology companies i.e. IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, Accenture, and Amazon in multiple regions of the world i.e. France, Italy, Europe, Middle-East, Africa, and Asia Pacific, today based out of Singapore.

In my late forties, I started reflecting on how to give back and make impact locally in Madagascar…

… I was indeed tired of hearing about Madagascar being amongst the 10 poorest countries in the world, despite being blessed by having a rather unique wealth of natural resources.

… I was tired of contributing only to others’ successes i.e. companies’ or countries’, but not also to the country and people who most need talents or role models like me.

Now in my early fifties, I decided to be both a startup incubator and a business angel, dedicating intellectual, relationship and financial resources to young Malagasy entrepreneurs in all industries, Tech-enabled. Why Tech? Simply because this whole world is acceleratedly becoming digital, and the digitization (or digital transformation) of a country is an exponentially massive lever for its development. In living in Asia, I truly see how Asian countries economically thrive thanks to their strategic focus on technology and digital innovation.

I therefore founded “Zafy Tody”, a Tech startup incubator launched in Antananarivo, Madagascar in 2019: “Zafy” in Malagasy means “grand-children” and “Tody” “well arrived” or also “achieved”, “accomplished”, which ultimately means reaching success, making impact.

I am doing so without expecting anything in return, focusing on a batch of 5 to 10 startups per year, locally in Madagascar.

Zafy Tody aspires for excellence and is therefore quite selective in the startups who will benefit from its yearly incubation program. It will still extend its ongoing training sessions to other Malagasy entrepreneurs: trainings in Digital Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Communications, Service Quality, Tech Development, Legal areas, etc.

Zafy Tody’s contribution is clearly just a drop in the ocean of hope and life aspirations of our young Malagasy entrepreneurs. Its co-founder and local operations manager, Manambina Vandewalle Ramaroson, and I have a bigger ambition: we wish to see Zafy Tody becoming a catalyst in the startup ecosystem, as per the old African saying “Il faut tout un village pour élever un enfant” (It takes a whole village to raise a child), starting with our own incubated startups, who commit to themselves coach and fund at least one of the future selected startups once consistently making profit. We also hope to see a support system and community gravitating around Zafy Tody (mentors, trainers, Tech developers, and maybe even sponsors).

I have a dream… that one day, the next Mark Zuckerberg or Elon Musk be Black African, and why not Malagasy 

Andréa Zafitody Li-Sai Chimento