Funding Friday...
12 new funding opportunities in Asia-Pacific and Africa!
Happy Friday!!
I hope this email finds you well. As we navigate through the ever-evolving landscape of technology, sustainability, and social impact, it's crucial to stay updated on the latest opportunities that can drive meaningful change. This week, we've curated a selection of thought-provoking initiatives, funding opportunities, and challenges that are shaping the future in diverse sectors.
From UNICEF's equity-free funding for health tech startups to Urban Tech Challengers aiming to revolutionize urban living, there's something for everyone. Whether you're interested in climate adaptation, youth leadership, or financial inclusion, these initiatives offer a wealth of insights and opportunities for engagement.
Here's a sneak peek of what's inside:
🌐 UNICEF's Venture Fund for Health Tech Startups - A golden opportunity for startups leveraging frontier technologies to improve children's well-being.
🏙️ Urban Tech Challengers - Elevating sustainable and resilient cities through innovative solutions.
🇰🇭 UNDP's Open Call in Cambodia - Focusing on climate-adaptive impact ventures that contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals.
✌🏽 USAID Youth Leadership Challenge Fund 2023 - Empowering civil society and media organizations in Nepal.
🛡️ Childhood Foundation's Call to Counter Child Abuse - A global initiative to end sexual abuse and exploitation against children.
Each section also includes thought-provoking questions and insights to stimulate your thinking and potentially guide your next steps.
Have a great weekend!
Jesse Orndorff
What’s funding this week…
🌐 UNICEF Funding Opportunity for Health Tech Startups
📝 UNICEF's Venture Fund is offering up to $100K in equity-free funding for early-stage tech startups focusing on children's health, nutrition, and mental health. The fund is particularly interested in startups leveraging frontier technologies like AI, machine learning, and blockchain. The application deadline is October 20, 2023.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
1️⃣ Equity-Free Funding: What are the advantages and disadvantages of equity-free investments for early-stage startups?
2️⃣ Frontier Technologies: How can emerging technologies like AI and blockchain contribute to children's well-being?
3️⃣ Global Relevance: How does the collaboration between multiple stakeholders, including international agencies and governments, enhance the effectiveness of the program?
🔗 UNICEF Funding Opportunity for Health Tech Startups
🏙️ Urban Tech Challengers - Elevating Urban Innovation
📝 Urban Tech Challengers is a premier platform aimed at discovering and supporting technology startups that focus on creating sustainable, resilient, and future-proof cities. The competition for 2023 is open, and they are looking for startups that offer impactful, equitable, and scalable solutions to urban challenges. The competition has four verticals: Elevating Life & Work Experience, Optimising Urban Operations, Building for the Future, and Enabling Better Infrastructure. Finalists get the opportunity to pitch at the Urban Tech Forward event in Warsaw, Poland, on October 25-26, 2023.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Sustainable Urban Living: How can startups leverage technology to make cities more sustainable and livable?
Optimizing Operations: What are the innovative ways to optimize urban operations like traffic management and building automation?
Future of Construction: How can technology help in creating sustainable construction materials and methods?
Asia-Pacific
🇰🇭 UNDP's Open Call for Climate-Adaptive Impact Ventures in Cambodia
📝 The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Cambodia is inviting nominations for its Growth Stage Impact Ventures (GSIV) programme. The initiative aims to identify enterprises that are making significant contributions to climate adaptation and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Cambodia. The focus is on ventures operating in sectors like Food & Agriculture, Infrastructure, Green Construction & Buildings, Education, Renewable Energy, and Healthcare. Selected ventures will receive capacity-building support and exposure to local and international investors.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Climate Adaptation in Business: How can enterprises integrate climate adaptation into their business models to contribute to Cambodia's SDGs?
Third-Party Nominations: What is the significance of allowing only third-party nominations, and how does it ensure the credibility of the nominated ventures?
Investor Engagement: How can the GSIV programme serve as a platform for impact ventures to engage with investors for scaling their solutions?
🔗 UNDP Open Call for Nominations
✌🏽USAID Civil Society & Media Activity Youth Leadership Challenge Fund 2023
📝 The USAID Civil Society & Media Activity Youth Leadership Challenge Fund 2023 is a five-year program (2022-2027) led by The Asia Foundation in Nepal. The program aims to support independent civil society and media organizations that are led by and for women, youth, and marginalized communities. The focus is on advancing public interest, fundamental freedoms, and accountability. The program is particularly concentrated in Lumbini and Madhesh Provinces of Nepal. Organizations from these provinces can apply for grants up to USD $40,000.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Youth Civic Engagement: How can this fund help in developing a new generation of youth who are actively participating in democratic governance?
Local Focus: What is the significance of concentrating the program's efforts in Lumbini and Madhesh Provinces?
Inclusivity: How does the program ensure that it is led by and for women, youth, and marginalized communities?
🛡️ Call for Project Proposals to Counter Child Abuse
📝 Childhood Foundation is inviting applications for projects aimed at ending sexual abuse, exploitation, and violence against children. The initiative focuses on various thematic areas such as child online safety, early interventions, and child-focused responses to abuse. The eligible countries for this grant include Brazil, Cambodia, Germany, Moldova, Sweden, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, and the United States.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Child Online Safety: How can technology be leveraged to create a safer online environment for children?
Early Interventions: What role do early interventions play in preventing child abuse and exploitation?
Legal Process: How can the legal process be made less traumatizing for children who have been victims of abuse?
🎨 Project 560: Neighbourhood Engagements by India Foundation for the Arts
📝 The India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) is inviting proposals for its "Neighbourhood Engagements" under Project 560. The project aims to explore the memories, experiences, and imaginations of neighborhoods in Bangalore. The engagements could range from storytelling sessions, music, street performances, to temporary/permanent installations and more. The project seeks to make neighborhoods more visible and express the joys and challenges of communal living through arts and culture. The budget for each project can go up to a maximum of Rs 35,000, and activities must take place between November 2023 and March 2024.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Community Engagement: How can arts and culture be effectively used to engage communities and make neighborhoods more visible?
Diversity in Storytelling: What kinds of stories, experiences, and memories are often overlooked in typical neighborhood narratives, and how can this project bring them to the forefront?
Virtual vs Physical Format: The project encourages physical formats with virtual elements if necessary. What are the pros and cons of this approach, especially in the current social climate?
🔗 Project 560: Neighbourhood Engagements
🤝 Women Rise
📝 Together Women Rise offers a Featured Grants Program aimed at empowering and supporting women and girls in low-income and marginalized countries, primarily in the Global South. The organization features a different project each month and provides extensive learning materials on the project and the issue being addressed. The grant term is 24 months, and the grant size ranges from $35,000 to $50,000, paid over a two-year period. Organizations with budgets of $100,000 and above may apply, and they can receive only one Featured Grant per four-year period.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Eligibility Criteria: What are the key eligibility requirements that organizations need to meet to apply for a Featured Grant?
Grant Utilization: How can organizations effectively utilize the grant amount for maximum impact?
Sustainability: What measures should organizations take to ensure the sustainability of the projects funded by the grant?
🔗 Together Women Rise - Featured Grant Guidelines
🌱 Startup Srujan Seed Support by i-Hub Gujarat
📝 The Government of Gujarat, through its Education Department, has extended the Student Startup and Innovation Policy (SSIP 2.0) with a corpus of INR 500 Crores to support early-stage student innovators and startups. i-Hub Gujarat runs the Startup Srujan Seed Support (S4) initiative, which aims to provide grants ranging from INR 2.5 to 10 Lakhs to help innovators and startups take their Proof of Concept (PoC) to the Product/Market Stage. The program is open to any innovator or startup up to the age of 35 years who is based in Gujarat.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Eligibility Criteria: What makes this program unique in terms of its eligibility criteria, which includes school students, dropouts, and alumni?
Funding Range: With a funding range of INR 2.5 to 10 Lakhs, how can startups effectively utilize these funds for maximum impact?
Focus on Youth: How does the age limit of 35 years for applicants influence the kind of innovations that will be supported?
🔗 Startup Srujan Seed Support by i-Hub Gujarat
Africa
🌍 2023 MEST Africa Challenge
📝 The MEST Africa Challenge is a Pan-African pitch competition aimed at early-stage technology startups based in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Kenya, and South Africa. The competition offers a grand prize of $50,000 in equity investment and the opportunity to be part of MEST Africa's supportive community. The challenge targets startups in various sectors including Agritech, Fintech, HealthTech, and more. Eligibility criteria include having a minimum of $5k in monthly recurring revenue and being operational for 3 years or less.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Eligibility Criteria: What makes a startup eligible for this competition, and how can startups prepare themselves to meet these criteria?
Diverse Sectors: The challenge is open to startups in various sectors like Agritech, Fintech, and HealthTech. How can startups from different sectors benefit from this competition?
Equity Investment: With a grand prize of $50,000 in equity, what impact can this have on the winning startup, and how should they plan to utilize it?
🌿 DSAIL Tech4Wildlife Workshop - DeKUT & Fauna & Flora Collaboration
📝 The DSAIL Tech4Wildlife Workshop is a two-day event aimed at showcasing the applications of AI in wildlife conservation. The workshop is organized in collaboration with Fauna & Flora and will be held at DeKUT on 14th and 15th September. The first day focuses on building a Raspberry Pi-based camera trap for wildlife detection, while the second day is dedicated to developing a low-cost river water level data acquisition system using LoRaWAN technology.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
AI in Conservation: How can AI technologies like image classification and object detection aid in wildlife conservation?
Low-Cost Solutions: What are the advantages of using low-cost technologies like Raspberry Pi and LoRaWAN in conservation efforts?
Gender Equality in STEM: How can initiatives like GeJuSTA help in addressing the underrepresentation of women and lack of gender analysis in STEM research?
🔗 Register for DSAIL Tech4Wildlife Workshop (Note: Replace with the actual registration link)
⛰️ Green Innovation Acceleration Programme (DGIx)
📝 The Digital Green Innovation Acceleration Programme (DGIx) is a collaboration between the WFP Innovation Accelerator, the Smart Development Fund (#SDF), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and the European Union (EU). The program seeks high-impact digital ventures and projects that address pressing environmental challenges in selected countries. The initiative emphasizes the synergy between digitalization and sustainability, aiming to leverage technology and data to drive sustainable solutions, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Digitalization and Sustainability: How can the twin transition strategy, which combines digitalization and sustainability, drive impactful solutions for environmental challenges?
Role of Technology in Climate Action: How can digital tools be effectively utilized to address climate change and biodiversity loss?
Collaboration for Impact: How does the collaboration between multiple stakeholders, including international agencies and governments, enhance the effectiveness of the program?
🔗 Digital Green Innovation Acceleration Programme (DGIx)
🌾 Malawi Fintech Challenge - UNCDF
📝 The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) is inviting expressions of interest for the Malawi Fintech Challenge. The challenge aims to identify implementing partners who can offer fintech solutions to enhance financial inclusion for smallholder farmers and MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises). The selected partners will leverage fintech to offer affordable and accessible financial services, thereby improving their own organizational efficiency and the financial ecosystem for smallholder farmers and MSMEs.
🤔 Thought-Provoking Questions and Insights
Innovative Solutions: How can fintech solutions creatively address the financial inclusion gaps for smallholder farmers and MSMEs?
Financial Inclusion: What strategies can be employed to ensure that financial services are accessible, affordable, and safe for marginalized groups such as women?
Organizational Efficiency: How can implementing partners leverage fintech to enhance their own organizational performance and sustainability?