SMAU Stockholm 2026 | Interview with Sanna Bedi, UNICEF Venture Fund

At SMAU Stockholm 2026 we interviewed Sanna Bedi, Innovation Specialist, UNICEF Venture Fund and we asked her how does UNICEF Venture Fund supports innovation and build ecosystems in emerging markets and how do they drive funding and support for women-led startups within these ecosystems: “UNICEF Office of Innovation is based in Stockholm, Sweden, and we invest in and support early-stage startups that innovate for children. We do that by providing up to one hundred thousand dollars in seed funding to startups from emerging markets. These are usually startups registered as for-profit companies, based across the developing world, that are building or leveraging technology to innovate and deliver solutions for children. This can include high cutting-edge innovations such as AI and blockchain, used to drive impact and improve the lives of children. So far, the UNICEF Venture Fund has invested about 47% of its total portfolio in female-led and female-founded companies. In comparison, industry standards show that only around 2% — or even less — of venture capital funding goes to female-led companies. What we are doing is systematically trying to identify female founders and entrepreneurs, and ensuring that we are challenging and changing the flow of funding so that these entrepreneurs actually have a chance to grow and scale their innovations by disrupting the market and the way funding flows. What we also do is ensure that we don’t just provide funding — we also provide significant tailored mentorship and support. This means that these companies receive best-in-class guidance and acceleration support, ranging from business mentorship and strategy to follow-on fundraising. We make sure that we are not the only fund at the end of the pipeline, but that these startups continue to have access to more funding and more opportunities even after they graduate from the Venture Fund".