Funding Opportunities For African Businesses

1. 1. Orange Corners Nigeria Incubation Programme 2022 for young Entrepreneurs (40,000 Euros in Funding)

Application for the 7th cohort of the Orange Corners Nigeria Incubation Programme is now open!

Orange Corners is an initiative of the Kingdom of The Netherlands that provides young entrepreneurs across Africa and the Middle East with the necessary training, mentorship, network, funding and facilities to start and grow their businesses. Specific focus is given to entrepreneurs creating innovative and sustainable solutions to local challenges and contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

We partner with various stakeholders, including local, Dutch and international companies, universities, governments and other organisations. By using their local expertise, we can optimally support and strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Are you resident in Lagos? Are you between the ages of 18-35?

The program cost has been covered as scholarships by the government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and their private partners. Therefore, signing up is free.

Their ambition is to develop and strengthen the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Nigeria. This ecosystem should enable youth to develop their business concept and become successful entrepreneurs, by providing them with the necessary opportunities, skills and access to markets.

Requirements

• Be an aspiring entrepreneur from Lagos, Nigeria.
• Be between 18-35 years old.
• Have a validated innovative business concept, not more than <2 years old.
• The product or service responds to a local challenge in Nigeria.
• The product or service relates to the Sustainable Development Goals.

Benefits

• Enterprise Management Training.
• Business Incubation & Advisory Services.
• Funding for prototype development & testing.
• Mentorship & Coaching
• Receive funding of up to 40,000 to develop your business solution

Budding entrepreneurs will be selected based on the:

• Social Impact.
• Clarity of Market.
• Sustainability & Scalability of the business idea.
• Competence of the entrepreneur/team.

Also Read: Funding Opportunities For African Businesses

Application Deadline: October 10, 2022

For more information, Visit; Orange Corners Nigeria Incubation Programme 2022 for young Entrepreneurs (40,000 Euros in Funding) | Opportunities For Africans

2. Explorers Club Discovery Expeditions Grants Program

The Explorers Club is excited to announce a new grant program in partnership with Discovery, Inc.

The Explorers Club Discovery Expeditions grants align with The Club’s mission to foster scientific understanding for the betterment of humanity and all life on Earth and beyond, including their commitment to mitigate climate change, prevent the extinction of species and cultures, and ensure the health of their lands, oceans and all that inhabit them.

What types of expeditions are funded? 

• Fieldwork in the following disciplines will be considered: biological sciences, archaeology, anthropology, paleontology, earth sciences, ecology, and astronomy, as well as exploratory projects that reveal new knowledge about the planet and its inhabitants, including regions undergoing significant environmental or cultural change.
• While there may be lab components of a project, grants will provide funding for projects that are largely based upon a field expedition.
• Fieldwork can be rugged and adventurous, but the program will not consider projects purely focused on adrenaline sports or physical feats.

Funding Information 

• Grants generally range from $25,000 to $40,000.

Eligibility Criteria

• The Explorers Club Expedition grants support researchers and explorers from around the world, while also providing them with a platform to illuminate their findings—and without restrictions on scientific publication or infringement on ownership of research.
• Applicants must be at least 18 years of age.
• The proposed project will also be evaluated on its potential to inform and educate a global audience through inspirational storytelling.

For more information, visit: Explorers Club Discovery Expeditions Grants Program

3. Open Call to Measure Emissions and its Reductions from Agriculture Sector in Nigeria

The Climate & Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) is seeking support to improve Nigeria’s ability to measure emissions and emission reductions from the agriculture sector, especially through an enhanced national greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory and systems for measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) of mitigation actions in the agriculture sector.

Funding Information

• Estimated project cost: USD 150,000

Expected Outcomes

• The government increases its capacity for GHG inventory compilation
• The government adopts the evaluation of mitigation options in the agriculture sector and integrates the recommendations in its NDC implementation plan

Outputs

The project should deliver at a minimum:

• GHG and short-lived climate pollutant (SLCP) emissions estimates from the agriculture sector, including methane and black carbon from the livestock (enteric methane & manure), paddy rice and open agricultural burning, for an appropriate time series
• GHG and SLCP emissions projections into the future for a baseline scenario for the agriculture sector
• GHG inventory compilation training, including guidance and tools on using IPCC Tier 2 methods, and action planning to strengthen institutional and individual technical capacities of representatives from the Federal Ministry of Environment and Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and other national institutions to apply tools to assess agricultural GHG and SLCP emissions and update over time
• An evaluation of mitigation options in the agriculture sector to quantify their GHG emission reduction potential to provide recommendations as to the specific policies and measures that can achieve Nigeria’s NDC commitments.

 Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for consideration, project proposals must meet the following requirements:

• Are complete and submitted before the deadline
• Are submitted by a non-governmental organization (NGO), intergovernmental organization (IGO), or other not-for-profit entity
• Requested funding falls within the indicated cost range and the project duration is less than 24 months
• Budget criteria are met and spending caps on expenses are respected

Deadline: 19-Oct-22

For more information, visit: Open Call to Measure Emissions and its Reductions from Agriculture Sector in Nigeria

4. UBA Foundation 2022 National Essay Competition for Nigerian senior secondary students (10.5 million Naira in educational grant)

The UBA National Essay Competition, targeted at senior secondary students in Nigeria is organized annually, as part of UBA Foundation’s education initiative which is aimed at promoting the reading culture and encouraging healthy and intellectual competition amongst secondary school students in Nigeria and across Africa.

Essay Topic: “ASUU Strikes have often cost Nigerian student’s time. Advise the Nigerian government on how they can reach an agreement with ASUU to improve tertiary education in the country.”

Requirements:

• Must be a secondary school student
• Must submit a scanned copy of your handwritten essay (750 words MAX)
• Must submit a passport photograph
• Must submit a copy of a birth certificate, National ID or Passport

 Awards:

– The first prize for the UBA National Essay Competition is a N5 million educational grant to any African University of their choice, while the second and third prizes are N3 million and N2.5 million in educational grants to African Universities, respectively

 Selection Procedure

Entries received for the competition will be reviewed by a distinguished panel of judges made up of professors from reputable Nigerian Universities, who will then shortlist 12 essays for further assessment

Following this, a second round of competition will involve the 12 finalists who will write a second supervised essay from which three best essays will be selected as the overall winners from the 12 finalists emerged from the first round of the competition.

How to Apply

• Applicant must submit their valid contact information (Name, Age, School, Address of school, Telephone Number, Residential Address, and Email Address).
• Applicants must upload a scanned copy of their original birth certificates or international passport data page.
• Applicants must upload a handwritten essay on the portal.

Application Deadline: Friday, October 14th, 2022

For more Information, visit: National Essay Competition

5. Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council (N5,000,000 in funding)

In its bid to develop and resource science research and innovation, the Lagos State Science Research & Innovation Council is calling for fund-ready STEM Applications.

The Fifth Cohort of the Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council application is now open! Successful participants are eligible to receive funding of N5,000,000 subject to Terms & Conditions.

Thematic areas:

– Transportation

– Agriculture

– Manufacturing

– Circular Economy

– Clean Energy

– Cloud Computing

Application Deadline: September 30, 2022

For More Information, visit: https://lasricportal.lagosstate.gov.ng/

6. Call for Proposals: Transformative Action in the Household Energy Sector

The Climate & Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) is seeking proposals for its Transformative Action in the Household Energy Sector to reduce black carbon and methane emissions from cooking, heating, and lighting in low- and middle-income countries.

This call for proposals is seeking projects that help drive transformative action in the sector and support achievement of the CCAC’s goals.

Scope

Project proposals should develop, enable, or implement innovative solutions that will advance one or more goals of the CCAC Engagement Strategy for the Household Energy Sector:

• Goal 1: By 2030, all CCAC State Partners have included household energy in their integrated air quality, climate, and health planning, and substantially increase sustained use of clean/modern fuels and technology, e.g. electricity, solar, ethanol, etc.
• Goal 2: By 2025, all CCAC State Partners will have taken steps to
• Develop, prioritize, and endorse strategies or plans for household energy consistent with their NDCs and related commitments to support global climate goals and national air quality standards
• Design and implement programs to increase awareness on harmful impacts from dirty household energy use, and the benefits of using clean and sustainable energy solutions
• Institutionalize monitoring and reporting systems to track progress
• Increase engagement from the private sector to scale new technology
• Increase financing from domestic resources and climate finance to implement emissions reductions

In line with these goals, the CCAC Household Energy Hub has identified possible topics and areas of action to consider when responding to this call. Proposed solutions may include one or more of the following:

• Phase out kerosene fuel for lighting. Scale up the lessons learned in Lighting Africa to build a similar effort across Asia. Using best practices from the systematic ban on leaded gasoline, work to systematically remove subsidizes for kerosene and enact bans by 2030.
• Improve clean fuel mix to increase electricity and decrease charcoal and wood. Recognizing that the World Health Organization defines clean fuels for health results as solar, electric, biogas, natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and alcohol fuels including ethanol, as well as environmental sustainability considerations, work to significantly increase the percentage of clean fuels for household energy use at the national and regional level by 2030.

 Funding Information

Funding: The total amount available for this call is US$7 million to cater to the needs of each of the 7 CCAC Hub to implement their respective Engagement Strategy

Project Duration: up to 2 years

Expected Outcomes

• Project proposals are required to demonstrate how they will contribute to catalysing emissions reductions in the sector, several countries, a region, or globally.
• Project proposals should have at least one clearly defined outcome, such as:
• Catalysed funding for solutions at scale
• Scalable and/or replicable regulatory and enforcement regimes (e.g., informed by model regulations)
• Commitments by big emitters to reduce emissions
• Adopted sectoral models and strategies for mitigation
• Global or regional roadmaps for the sector
• Public-private partnerships

Eligibility Criteria

Only not-for-profit organisations (NGOs, IGOs) and governments can apply.

Deadline: 26 October, 2022

Also Read: Funding Opportunities for Businesses: GSMA Innovation Fund for Climate Resilience and Adaptation

For more information, visit https://www.ccacoalition.org/en/content/transformative-action-household-energy-sector-hhe-22-001

7.African Visionary Fund launches 3rd Grant Cycle for African-founded, African-based and African-led Organisations

African Visionary Fund is pleased to announce its Grant Cycle 3 for African-founded, African-based and African-led Organisations.

AVFund is sector-agnostic and highly focused on accelerating impact. AVFund therefore partners with grantees across sub-Saharan Africa in the areas of Health, Education, Human Rights, Livelihoods, Technology, and Emerging Sectors with the goal of having a balanced and diverse portfolio of locally-led organisations across sectors. AVFund evaluates all potential partners using criteria including Basic Eligibility, Characteristics of EarlyStage and Growth-Stage Organizations, and Factors of Organizational Resilience.

Application System

The new inclusive application system focuses on equity, ease of use, and overall reach. its design efforts foregrounded African Visionaries’ input, desires, and experiences.

• Equity:  The AVFund is committed to contributing to the equity-centered transformation of how African organizations are funded.
• Ease of Use:  AVFund is constantly evolving and re-designing its selection process to make it more efficient, seamless, and less cumbersome for applicants.
• Reach:  Our online application system makes our grantmaking process more open and inclusive by reaching a broader pipeline of organizations outside our immediate networks.

 Eligibility Criteria

• AVF invites you to apply to receive funding from the African Visionary Fund if your organization meets the following requirements:
• African-founded, African-based and African-led
• Serves communities in Sub-Saharan Africa only
• Registered in its country of operations
• Growing Board: Transitioning from founding to governing board
• Paid staff
• Perform external audits every year for the past two years
• Basic financial management systems and processes in place

 Other factors for consideration:

• Early-stage and growth-stage:
• Annual budget between $200,000 – $1.2 M
• Minimum 3 years of operation
• Clear and defined model and articulation of the “why”
• Able to communicate and measure the impact of their work
• organizational Resilience
• Systems changes focus and understanding of the ecosystem
• Leadership has lived experience of the problem the organization is trying to solve
• Evidence of clear strategic direction
• Community-driven: Deeply rooted and invested in served communities
• Learning orientation: Leadership displays self-awareness and humility
• Commitment to gender equity

Deadline: 21^st September, 2022

For more information, visit AVFund Grant Cycle 3 is Now Open!

8. 8. Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge for Africa ($100,000 in Grants)

The Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge (YouthADAPT Challenge) invites young entrepreneurs and Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in Africa to submit innovative solutions and business ideas that can drive climate change adaptation and resilience across Africa.

The Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge (YouthADAPT Challenge) is an annual competition and awards program for youth-led enterprises (50% women-led) jointly organised by the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Climate Investment Funds (CIF) as part of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program YouthADAPT Flagship Program.

This challenge seeks to boost sustainable job creation through support for entrepreneurship and youth-led innovation in climate change adaptation and resilience across Africa.

Benefits

In this edition of the challenge, 20 innovators will emerge as winners at an award show and will have access to post-award support in the forms of:-

• 100,000 USD grant for each winner.
• Capacity Building and Training.
• Mentorship and Coaching.

 What are they looking for?

The YouthADAPT Challenge is open to solutions (products, services, tools) targeted at climate change adaptation and increasing resilience. Admissible solutions can represent:

• An adaptation solutions business that has not been scaled and is not in widespread use.
• An existing resilience and adaptation solutions business or product.
• A commercially viable means to raise awareness or scale uptake of specific adaptation solutions.

Eligibility Criteria

 Youth-led, with applicants aged between 18 and 35.

Delivering climate adaptation or resilience solutions addressing real-life challenges.

Legally registered and operating in Africa.

Able to show revenues for at least two years.

Deadline Date: 4^th October,2022

For more information: https://www.youthadapt.africa/challenge/apply

9. What Works 2 announces Open Call for 3-year Scale-up Grant

What Works to Prevent Violence: Impact at Scale Programme is seeking full proposals from programme implementers in the global south to apply for a 3-year grant to scale up evidence-based violence and against women and girls’ prevention programming.

Building on the success of its predecessor, which showed that violence against women and girls (VAWG) is preventable, What Works 2 is a seven-year UK aid funded programme to scale up evidence-based, practice-informed violence prevention approaches.

Contributing progress towards the elimination of VAWG, What Works 2 seeks to achieve a measurable reduction in VAWG in development and humanitarian contexts, including for the most marginalised women and girls in all their diversities.

The What Works 2 Programme seeks to expand the global knowledge and evidence base on what works to prevent VAWG and how to achieve this at scale. It also aims to support women’s rights organisations (WROs) to be recognised as essential actors in VAWG prevention and improve access to funding to uphold the rights, agency and voices of women and girls in all their diversity.

Types of Scale

• Quantitative scale: increasing geographic spread or beneficiaries in same location.
• Functional scale: expanding the scope of an activity.
• Organisational scale: involving other organisations or creating new ones, or being taken on by governments / multilaterals / other donors investing.
• Political scale: expansion by influencing political interests to affect institutional gains that allow interventions to be scaled up and sustained.

Types of Violence

The primary focus for the funding is VAWG, with a secondary focus on VAC. Given the high prevalence and the robust evidence base on what works, prevention of intimate partner violence (IPV) and non-partner sexual violence are priorities for What Works 2. In addition, the funding seeks to address multiple forms of VAWG and the interrelationship between different forms, including conflict related sexual violence (CRSV) and violence in and around schools, workplaces, and public spaces. They particularly encourage proposals that seek to impact on more than one type of violence, recognizing that these often co-occur.

Funding Information

In funding Window 1, What Works 2 will award one 3 year GBP 4 million scale-up grant through an open competition call to organisations or consortia designed to achieve a measurable reduction in VAWG in development and humanitarian contexts, including for the most marginalised women and girls.

What they are looking to fund?

• Take effective VAWG prevention interventions (or elements of interventions) and expand them in the original setting (e.g. taking an existing project to a larger scale, such as from district to province); or adapt and replicate them in new contexts/countries.
• Deepen impact by implementing a comprehensive multi-sectoral package of effective interventions in a particular context such as district or sub-district (e.g. combining schools, livelihoods and workplace-based interventions) including integrating violence reduction and gender equality into local systems.
• Mainstream VAWG/violence against children (VAC) prevention and gender equality into large scale sector programmes (e.g. education, social protection, livelihoods, health delivery) to optimize their impact on reducing VAWG.

Geographical Scope

Projects should be located within Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Middle East and North Africa.

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants are willing to participate in the co-design of research in collaboration with the What Works 2 Research Consortium. Applicants are willing to participate in an evaluation process.
• Applicants are located within the three priority regions: sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Middle East and North Africa.
• Funding organisations are not eligible.
• Organisations are only eligible to apply for one What Works 2 Research Consortium. Applicants are willing to participate in an evaluation process.
• Applicants are located within the three priority regions: sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Middle East and North Africa.
• Funding organisations are not eligible.
• Organisations are only eligible to apply for one What Works 2 project in each funding cycle.
• The scale-up grant is open to applicants either as a single organisation or in consortia. Where an application is submitted by a consortium, the following requirements apply:
• Applicants could include a mix of WROs who are programme implementers, as well as INGOs, NGOs and SMEs.
• Applicants in consortia must ensure that members include at least one WRO from the Global South, which will lead/co-lead the project’s design, implementation, learning, and policy influencing and benefit from technical and organizational capacity strengthening opportunities related to the grant.
• Applicants are willing to work flexibly with What Works 2 on project design, adaptation, and assessments.

What Works 2 understands women-led, WROs to be organisations that:

• Have majority women at every level, including at the board level and across all decision-making levels.
• Have a deliberate mandate to protect and promote the rights of women and girls.
• Centre women and girls in all their diversity.
• Acknowledge individual and structural gender inequality and gender norms as a core driver of VAWG.

Also Read: Funding Opportunities for Businesses: UNLEASH Plus Incubation Programme

Deadline: 23 September 2022

For more information, visit  https://ww2preventvawg.org/apply

10. McKinsey African Leaders on the Move Event 2022 for young Africans.

McKinsey invites individuals who are passionate about Africa to apply to African Leaders on the Move to learn more about our offices, roles, and work in the region.

McKinsey has six offices in Africa – Johannesburg, Lagos, Luanda, Casablanca, Nairobi, Addis Ababa. McKinsey serves many leading African organizations across sectors including energy and materials, financial services, consumer goods and retail, telecommunications, infrastructure and logistics, as well as the public and social sectors.

EVENT DETAILS

McKinsey will host three similar ALM events in the United States. McKinsey encourages you to select a location that will be most suitable for you. Applicants should be in the US at the time of the event.

Dates and locations

Atlanta, GA: Wednesday, November 2

Boston, MA: Monday, November 7

Washington, DC: Wednesday, November 9

Eligibility

• McKinsey welcome applicants from various academic and professional backgrounds interested in pursuing an exciting career in consulting and passionate about working in Africa. Undergraduates, post-graduates, and professionals with up to eight years of experience are invited to apply.
• This event is non-evaluative. It is an opportunity for you to get to know us and learn more about working with McKinsey in Africa.

 Expectations

Attendees will have the opportunity to do the following:

• interact with McKinsey leaders as they talk about their entrepreneurial journeys, personal experiences, and expertise
• participate in insightful discussions on various topics as you learn about McKinsey Africa
• learn about the potential opportunities offered in Africa
• engage in social activities and connect with McKinsey colleagues and fellow participants

How to apply

To be considered for the African Leaders on the Move event, we ask that you submit the following:

• Your CV in English (2 pages maximum). Your CV should include details of your education and grades, work experience, and extracurricular activities and achievements.
• Africa office location preference. We advise you to make your choice based on geographic ties—that is, you have studied or lived in the country. You should be fluent in the local language and meet work eligibility requirements of the country where the office you apply to is located.
• No cover letter is needed.
• No business experience is required.

Those selected to attend will be notified via email.

Application Deadline: October 21, 2022

For More Information: African Leaders on the Move | Careers