Deadline: 04 January, 2021
Water and Energy for Food (WE4F) has announced a Call for Innovations (CFI) for its Southern and Central Africa Grand Challenge for Development.
WE4F is designed to support the scaling-up of innovations in the water-energy-food nexus across 12 countries in Southern and Central Africa through the combination of either technical assistance, investment facilitation, and/or grantmaking for WE4F innovations.
The aim of the challenge is to support innovative companies and organisations that work in Southern and Central Africa to produce more food while using less water and energy.
Water, energy and food are essential for human well-being, poverty reduction and sustainable development. Global projections indicate that the demand for freshwater, energy and food will increase significantly over the next decades under the pressure of population growth and mobility, economic development, international trade, urbanisation, diversifying diets, cultural and technological changes, and climate change.
Benefits
- Subject to the availability of funds, a cash grant will range from U.S.$40,000 to U.S.$200,000
Eligibility
- The challenge is open to legally incorporated/registered for-profit and not-for-profit organisations or academic institutions which are responsible for generating revenue and maintaining a self-sustaining operational budget
- In addition, these organisations should be able to demonstrate a revenue track record of selling relevant product or service
- WE4F is open to all relevant organisations/companies that are ready to scale
- Organisations must be legally registered in at least one of the 12 target countries in Southern and Central Africa
- If expansion into a new country is a key part of an entrant’s business plan, they must already have partners (e.g., distributors, joint venture partners, potential merger or acquisition targets, NGOs) in place in that country to be considered
- Responses must be written in English
- Awardees must secure matching funds
- Innovations must have a direct linkage between water/energy and the food value chain
- Innovations must directly or indirectly benefit the poor
- Entrants must contribute to gender equality and strive for a positive impact on the environment while avoiding negative environmental effects and local market distortions
To submit and for more information, click here.
Photo source: WE4F
