Five African projects got at least $10,000 from HRF’s Bitcoin Development Fund

The Human Rights Foundation (HRF), on May 9, announced the recipients of the latest round of Bitcoin Development Fund grants. HRF gifted $455,000 in bitcoin to 12 individuals and projects. Five of these projects are based in Africa and will be among the latest beneficiaries of the fund.

Quick facts

• HRF is a nonprofit devoted to fighting human rights violations through purpose-built campaigns.
• HRF launched the Bitcoin Development Fund in 2020 to support builders working to make Bitcoin more decentralized and, as such, a financial tool for human rights activists, civil society organizations and journalists.

Key quote

• The press release stated:

“HRF’s 12 grants focus on improving Bitcoin scaling, privacy, decentralization, supporting global education, censorship-resistant communication, and building communities worldwide. Areas of focus include Africa and Asia.”

The African recipient

• Five African individuals and companies were part of the fund’s latest round of disbursements, a press release from the HRF stated.
• Meron Estefanos, a Swedish-Eritrean journalist, got a $50,000 allocation to aid the creation of Bitcoin Innovation Hub Uganda, a community expected to serve as a Bitcoin awareness and learning center for Ugandans.
• Bitcoin Senegal’s Nourou received $10,000 to upscale the group’s activities of hosting meetups, creating educational content and onboarding local merchants to bitcoin use as well as to fund the creation of a new website and sponsor a ‘Bitcoin Tour’ among others.
• Charlene Fadirepo’s Bitcoin in Africa Show got $10,000. Fadirepo facilitates education and discussions on the world’s first cryptocurrency across Africa. The grant is to support existing podcasts and drive community development.
• Bitcoin Dada’s Lorraine Marcel got a $10,000 allocation to support the project’s work of educating African women on bitcoin.
• The World Liberty Congress got $25,000 that supported the organization’s Freedom Academy program in Zambia.

Other recipients

• Other beneficiaries include Utreexo, BOB Space BKK, Snort.Social, 0xB10C, Raspiblitz, Cashu and Blixt Wallet. They received amounts ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 in bitcoin.

Before now

• In February, the fund awarded $475,000 in grants to ten organizations in Africa and Southeast Asia.
• Previous African recipients of HRF’s Bitcoin Development Fund include projects such as the fellowship program, Qala, the African Bitcoin Conference and the Nigerian-based Bitcoin micropayments platform, EasePay.