Deadline: 31-Oct-20
The Prospero Zambia is accepting applications for the Innovation Partnerships in Business Services.
Prospero’s Business Services sector works with intervention partners to address identified market constraints that inhibit sector growth and competitiveness.
These constraints include:
- Capital: Businesses lack access to affordable capital which allows them to participate in the market.
- Connections: Poor business linkages is one of the reasons that businesses struggle to move to the next level of growth.
- Capacity: SMEs often lack governance, financial management and marketing capabilities and are therefore unable to transact with larger companies.
- Compliance: Businesses do not always understand the market rules that are necessary for full participation.
- Culture: Large companies generally prefer to maintain their existing supplier relationships and, as a result, end up overlooking up-and-coming businesses with great potential for growth.
Funding Information
- Technical Assistance only: £5,000 to £50,000
- Business Innovation (this can include some technical assistance): £5,000 to £100,000
Eligibility Criteria
Registered and tax-compliant for-profit organizations are eligible to apply. Individuals are not eligible.
All applicants must meet three basic conditions:
- Zambian registered legal entity: All applicants must be registered with the appropriate authority as a legal entity in Zambia.
- Tax registered and compliant: All applicants must be able to demonstrate that they are registered for tax and are in compliance with tax obligations.
- Authorized business activity: All applicants must possess any relevant sector licenses or permits for their proposed business project.
- Post-revenue: All applicants must be post-revenue and have a minimum trading history of 2 years.
The following questions may be useful in helping to develop your investment concept:
- How can rural communities have greater access to green energy sources and associated technology?
- How will the proposed project commercialise distribution of products and/or services in rural areas?
- How will the proposed project create jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities for individuals in rural areas?
- How will the proposed project increase access to mobile phones, computers, financial services (including mobile money), MFIs, and banks.
Criteria
Prospero provides financial and/or technical assistance support to private sector companies willing to co-invest in innovative and scalable solutions that:
- address key sector constraints and can attract commercial investment.
- improve climate resilience and encourages business growth through inclusive business models (focus on women and youth) within each of the three sub-sectors.
- promote partnerships between existing and new business organisations and hubs in specific geographic areas to achieve scalable business growth and create a competitive business environment with significant development impact.
- create and/or sustain quality jobs and income opportunities for low-income Zambians and/or marginalized populations (women, youth, people with disabilities and rural populations).
For more information, visit https://prospero.co.zm/call-for-concepts/call-business-services/