Deadline: 30-Sep-20
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Uganda in collaboration with Stanbic Uganda Holdings Limited (SUHL) hereby invites you to submit proposals to an Open Innovation Challenge Fund Call for the Youth4Business Innovation and Entrepreneurship Facility.
The Innovation Challenge Fund Call is intended to provide competitive matching grant awards as well as mentoring, capacity building, and entrepreneurship development training to youth-owned and youth-focused Micro, Small-Scale, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) legally recognized under the Laws of Uganda, operating in the targeted sector of Development Minerals in Uganda with a product or service on the market. Development Minerals include construction materials (stone aggregate, clay, sand), industrial minerals (limestone, salt), dimension stones (marble, slate), and semi-precious stones.
The Call targets MSMEs in the Development Minerals sector looking to pilot and or scale their inclusive business models and solutions – inclusive business models and solutions are enterprises that include low-income people as customers, as owners, employees, producers, and entrepreneurs at various points within the value chain.
Funding Information
- Successful Applicants can receive from USD 10,000 up to a maximum of USD 40,000 in cash and/or in-kind support (goods and services) through this Innovation Challenge Fund.
- Successful Applicants might also receive 12 months of tailored business development services and enterprise development training from the Stanbic Business Incubator and mentorship from the UNDP Accelerator lab to foster the nexus between business development services and development solutions.
Eligibility Criteria
- Must be a firm/joint venture that is legally recognized under the Laws of Uganda with a business license readily available for verification.
- Must be an established operational firm/ joint venture in business for at least 12 months ending 31 March 2020.
- Must be a firm operating in the Development Minerals subsector, with a product or service on the market; or a not-for-profit social enterprise founded/ owned by youth with a financially viable and sustainable business model; and able to demonstrate a track record of at least twelve months of business operations ending 31 March 2020.
- Be financially viable, socially responsible, environmentally friendly, and culturally sensitive firm willing and able to match the grant award with own resources of at least 20% of the grant award in-cash and the rest in-kind.
- Must demonstrate capacity and dedication to implement their innovation and or scale their business and demonstrate sound financial performance and practices.
For more information, visit https://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=69975