# Department for International Development

> Department for International Development is a VC fund backing Information Technology. See 17 investments, round sizes, portfolio and contact details. Updated…

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: London, United Kingdom
- Total investments: 17
- Last investment: Jul 2020
- Lead investor: 53%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/department-for-international-development-dfid/
- X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/dfid_uk
- Website: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-international-development
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ukdfid

Department for International Development is a VC fund in London focused on Information Technology and Employment. The Department for International Development (DFID) leads the UK’s work to end extreme poverty. They are ending the need for aid by creating jobs, unlocking the potential of girls and women and helping to save lives when humanitarian emergencies hit.

## Contacts

5 contacts available for Department for International Development. Shizune tracks 1 team members at Department for International Development. Sign up free to unlock them: https://app.shizune.co/sign-up/investor-profiles/find-team-emails/department-for-international-development-dfid?utm_source=investor_profile

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Information Technology | 3 | 18% |
| Employment | 2 | 12% |
| Non Profit | 2 | 12% |
| Artificial Intelligence | 2 | 12% |
| CRM | 1 | 6% |

48 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Grant | 16 | 94% |
| Seed | 1 | 6% |

### Country

| Country | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| United Kingdom | 6 | 35% |
| Kenya | 4 | 24% |
| United States | 2 | 12% |
| Rwanda | 1 | 6% |
| Belgium | 1 | 6% |

8 countries tracked in total.

## Team

| Name | Title | Investments | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Tizzita Tefera | Youth Advisory for the UK Government in Ethiopia | 0 | — |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Round size | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| MYEO, Myanmar Youth Empowerment Opportunities | MYEO, Myanmar Youth Empowerment Opportunities, is a tech-enabled education social enterprise. Our mission is to equip all of Myanmar’s new graduates with the skills to be valuable members of the workforce and community. A large youth population is one of Myanmar’s major strengths, according to the Asian Development Bank. The country may benefitfrom a “demographic dividend” with a large share of the population engaged in productive work and supporting a smaller share of older and non-working people. In fact, 33% of Myanmar's population is aged 15 to 35 years old, +18 million people. However, youths in Myanmar are in a vulnerable employment situation, either unemployed or underemployed. At the same time, organizations in Myanmar urge more qualified employees. Despite the challenges in work conditions for youth and low skilled workforce, Myanmar presents an encouraging opportunity on the adoption of mobile technology: +27 million people in the country use Facebook or Messenger. To seize that opportunity, MYEO has created a mobile-based online solution that nurtures youth employability and paves the way to build a high-skilled workforce for organizations in Myanmar. MYEO has a team of +30 people, with experience in technology, education, marketing and data analysis. Since 2014, the startup has been impacting the lives of thousands of youths in Myanmar, including +12,000 youths trained exclusively online, +50,000 youths using MYEO's learning chatbots and +150,000 youths engaging with MYEO's Facebook community. | $50K | Grant | Jul 01, 2020 |  |
| Mologic | two quirky scientists vowed to make the world a better place. After learning their trades in some of the world’s biggest scientific organisations, Paul and Mark Davis (father and son team with a striking resemblance to Pinky and the Brain established Mologic to do as much good as possible in healthcare and education. They want to improve patientcare and quality of life, and break new ground in exciting fields of research (unlike Pinky and the Brain who wanted to take over the world). | $1.3M | Grant | Mar 09, 2020 |  |
| GSMA | The GSMA is a trade group that represents network operators using GSM technology for their networks.Spanning 219 countries, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world’s mobile operators; and 200 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including: handset makers, software companies, equipment providers, Internet companies, and mediaorganizations.Groupe Speciale Mobile (GSM) was formed in 1982 by the Confederation of European Posts and Telecommunications (CEPT) to design a pan-European mobile technology. The first GSM call was made in 1991 by Radiolinja in Finland. In 1998 Global GSM subscribers exceeded 100 million.The GSMA produces industry-leading events such as the Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Congress.GSMA is headquartered in London. | $49.8M | Grant | Aug 09, 2019 |  |
| TakaTaka Solutions | TakaTaka Solutions is a social waste management company. Its goal is to provide affordable and environmentally friendly waste management services to all income areas. | $95K | Grant | May 03, 2019 |  |
| Buildher | BuildHer is an NGO that empowers disadvantaged young women with accredited construction skills & training leading to employment & equality. | $95K | Grant | May 03, 2019 |  |
| Ten Senses Africa | Ten Senses Africa focuses on organic, fair trade and ethical business practices to develop a sustainable social enterprise. | $95K | Grant | May 03, 2019 |  |
| Iristick | Iristick creates industrial smart glasses to support enterprises in their digital transformation. Iristick empowers the frontline workers of Industry 4.0 in three domains: remote assistance, digital work instructions and pick-by-vision logistics. Iristick smart eyewear is currently being used and tested by customers in maintenance, after-salessupport, logistics, shop floor activities, quality control, telemedicine and education. Iristick, based in Antwerp, Belgium, supports customers globally. Winner of a Red Dot Award, H2020 European Commission Innovation Grant (N°811820) and holder of multiple patents. | $327K | Grant | Dec 27, 2018 |  |
| Boostme360 | BoostMe360 is an Online portal for entry-level job-seekers | $1.1M | Grant | Oct 30, 2018 |  |
| AgDevCo | AgDevCo is a social impact investor and agribusiness project developer, incorporated as a non-for-profit distribution, limited companyin. | $72M | Grant | Sep 03, 2018 |  |
| Ampersand | Ampersand catalyzes and power mass-market electric mobility. By supplying the battery swap network and operating system the company makes sustainable mobility rapidly accessible and affordable for developing markets, to improve livelihoods and the environment. With over a million km already covered by e-motorcycles in Africa using our plug-and-playpowertrain and energy network. | $131K | Grant | Jul 19, 2018 |  |

10 of 17 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/bill-melinda-gates-foundation) — VC Fund, 2 deals together
- Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [Humanity United](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/humanity-united) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [Shell Foundation](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/shell-foundation) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- The Government Offices of Sweden — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [United States Agency for International Development](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/usaid) — VC Fund, 1 deal together

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## FAQ

### What does Department for International Development invest in?

Department for International Development invests primarily in Information Technology, Employment and Non Profit startups, most often at Grant and Seed stage. Most of the 17 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United Kingdom. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### How do I contact Department for International Development?

Public channels for Department for International Development include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.

### Who are the partners at Department for International Development?

The team at Department for International Development includes Tizzita Tefera (Youth Advisory for the UK Government in Ethiopia). The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

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