Deadline: 7-Oct-22
The Financing Facility for Remittances (FFR) of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is pleased to announce the Remittance Innovation Champions 2022 – South Africa (RIC22-SA) Call for Proposals.
The FFR works to reduce poverty and promote development by leveraging both international and domestic remittances and migrant capital in rural areas of developing countries. Besides increasing private consumption and investment, enhancing financial and digital inclusion, and local and national economic growth, remittances contribute to achieving the SDGs of receiving families.
Objectives
- To be considered, initiatives must support at least one of the objectives:
- Expand formal channels for and access to international remittances.
- Accelerate digitalization of international remittances .
- Reduce international remittance transaction costs and increase access to transparent and gender-responsive low-cost services.
- Leverage remittances to deepen financial inclusion and resilience.
FFR welcomes strategic partnerships linking for-profit entities with non-profit organizations, formal financial intermediaries, money transfer operators, microfinance institutions, financial cooperatives, postal networks, philanthropic organizations, investment funds, local and national governments, among others.
Priorities
- Through PRIME Africa, IFAD will finance initiatives that will support at least one of the following objectives, and projects that include a clear focus on cost reduction will be prioritized:
- Expand formal channels for international remittances: Promote greater access and use of formal international remittance transfers from and to South Africa.
- Accelerate digitization of international remittances: Accelerate the use of digital products and the digital payments ecosystem to support international remittances from and to South Africa.
- Reduce international remittance transaction costs: Contribute to reducing international remittance transfer costs from and to South Africa and increase access to and use of transparent and gender responsive low-cost services.
- Leverage remittances to deepen financial inclusion: Use international remittances from and to South Africa as a conduit for increasing financial inclusion and resilience of remittance senders and recipients.
Funding Information
- Maximum IFAD grant amount: the Remittance Innovation Champions 2022 (RIC22-SA) will finance grants from €150,000 up to €300,000.
- Co-financing: applicants to the RIC22-SA are required to provide a minimum of in-cash cofinancing equivalent to:
- 10% of the grant amount requested in the case of a non-profit applicant. At least 50% in cash.
- 30% of the grant amount requested in the case of a for-profit entity. At least 50% in cash.
- Project Duration: the implementation period should not exceed 18 months, with committed results demonstrated within this period.
Eligibility Criteria
- Private sector entities including:
- For-profit businesses;
- Non-profit, nongovernmental organizations.
- These include: formal financial intermediaries, MTOs, MNOs, MFIs, FinTechs, financial cooperatives, diaspora networks, banks, Telcos and investment funds, among others. Strategic partnerships linking for-profit entities with nonprofit and public sector entities (central banks, financial sector regulators) are welcomed.
- Requirements for applicants are as follows:
- Must be a legal organization registered in an IFAD Member State (alternatively, at least one of the parties involved in the proposal must be registered in a Member State).
- Must show it has the license required to offer services in compliance with regulations in jurisdictions where it will operate.
- May be a private:
- For-profit entity or
- Non-profit institution such as a nongovernmental organization
- May partner with other eligible institutions and apply jointly, specifying roles and responsibilities of each
- Must have the capacity to enter into financial and legal agreements with IFAD, and comply with the procurement guidelines of IFAD.
- May not act as an intermediary, but be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the proposed project
- Must present audited financial statements in accordance with international standards for the two previous years.
For more information, visit https://www.ifad.org/en/web/latest/-/call-for-proposals-remittance-innovation-champions-2022-south-africa