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Apply for Innovation Boost Grant in Mauritius

Deadline: 28-Apr-23

The Mauritius Research and Innovation Council (MRIC), operating under the aegis of the Ministry of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation, is inviting proposals for the implementation of short- term priority projects emanating from Les Assises de la Recherche et de l’Innovation and National Roadmap for Research and Innovation.

Aim

The Call for Proposals for the Innovation Boost Grant is aimed at supporting shortterm innovative projects in specific thematic areas. The ultimate objective of any proposed project should be the development or improvement of products, processes or techniques that will benefit the economy or provide potential solutions to the identified national challenges.

Thematic Areas

The projects, identified under thematic areas, in the National Roadmap for Research and Innovation, that will be considered for funding under this Call are as follows:

Financial Innovation

  • Application Programming Interface (API) providers
  • Payment Infrastructure
  • Telematics Insurance

Blue and Green Innovation

  • Use of IoT to monitor livestock
  • Development of smart greenhouse horticulture structures ideal for the Mauritian tropical climate
  • Improved post-harvest techniques and development of intelligent storage facilities

Travel, Tourism and Entertainment Innovation

  • Development of a digital app for tourist nature-based activities
  • Understanding the needs, attitudes, and behaviours of tourists in the aftermath of Covid19
  • Investigating the skills gap between tourism/hospitality graduates and industry expectations

Health & Wellness Innovation

  • Setting up of a Sports & Nutrition Innovation Centre
  • Valorisation of Indigenous plants in the Health & Wellness sector
  • Application of emerging technologies in the Health & Wellness

Sector Social and Grassroots Innovation

  • Social Innovation Lab
  • Online Repository of S&G practitioners with up-to-date sector specific S&G solutions/best practices to facilitate scouting and application
  • Regular Research and Innovation Grant Development Course

IT and Emerging Technologies Innovation

  • Immersive Digital Adventure using Metaverse to improve on user experience
  • Inciting and incentivising the younger Mauritian generation to latest technologies by adopting the learning by doing methodology
  • Create an online platform dedicated to providing the public with all the necessary resources such as free online courses or the link to tutorials

Rodrigues Innovation (RodInov)

  • Rodrigues Teenage Pregnancy Project
  • Rodrigues Blue School Project
  • Rodrigues Centre for Marine and Coastal Resources Management
Funding Information
  • A grant of up to maximum MUR 1 Million will be awarded to successful applicants.
  • The maximum amount that may be awarded for an approved project is MUR 1 million over a period of maximum 12 months.
  • While this is a 100% grant to be awarded for approved projects, applicants are advised to demonstrate their contribution to the project. The applicant’s contribution can be in-cash and/or in-kind.
Eligibility Criteria
  • The main applicant must be one of the following:
    • A Company (including MSMEs, large enterprises) registered with the Registrar of Companies in the Republic of Mauritius for at least one year;
    • An Organisation/Association including Non-Governmental Organisations registered with the Registrar of Associations in the Republic of Mauritius for at least one year;
    • An Academic Institution (recognised/ accredited tertiary education institutions or Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions) registered with the Higher Education Commission for at least one year;
    • A Public/Private Research Institution in the Republic of Mauritius in existence for at least one year;
    • Government Institution or Parastatal Bodies.
    • The Project Leader must be employed by the enterprise, company or institution submitting the project proposal.
    • No awards will be made to applicants who are already recipients of full project funding from other agencies for the same activities of a same or similar project.
    • An institution is not allowed to submit more than two (2) applications at the same time for funding considerations, under a Research and Innovation Grant Scheme or a specific Call for Proposals.
    • For Rodrigues Innovation (RodInov) projects, the main applicant must be an entity operating in Rodrigues.
Evaluation Criteria

The criteria for assessment of project proposals include, where applicable, the following:

  • Innovativeness of the technology/ product/process/service;
  • Feasibility of initiative in terms of budgeting, objectives and activities;
  • Competence, capability and readiness of the team or entity to carry out the initiative and commercialise the opportunity;
  • Matching grants or part-funding is encouraged;
  • Alignment with national priority areas;
  • Attractiveness of the product or service in the targeted market;
  • Potential impact of the innovation on the economy and society; and
  • Alignment with sustainable development goals is encouraged.

For more information, visit MRIC.