GIZ Accelerator Program for Climate Change Innovations 2022 €10,000 grant

Applications are invited for the GIZ Accelerator Program for Climate Change Innovations 2022. The GIZ Accelerator program for Climate Change Innovations is looking for early-stage companies in Benin, Cameroon, and Niger that deliver digital solutions to combat climate change.

They are looking for innovative and impactful tech-based solutions to either tackle the adverse effects or minimize the negative impact of climate change. In each of the three countries, a maximum of three early-stage companies will be selected to join the program, making a cohort of nine companies in total. After a needs assessment, these companies will receive tailor-made technical support, coordinated by GIZ’s in-country partners Etrilabs (Benin), ActivSpaces (Cameroon), and CIPMEN (Niger).

Benefits

The major component of this program will be the mentorship and technical project support with

1. The involvement of an experienced business mentor for a period of 6 months
2. Learning best practices from business experts to grow your business and your team
3. The selected companies will be exposed to corporate partners and investors to attract potential business opportunities and investments.
4. Collaboration with the in-country GIZ’s Digital Transformation Centers will help the founders to further grow their business and scale at local and regional levels.
5. Finalists will have ample opportunities to network with local and regional startup founders.
6. During a closing program event, €10,000 Euro in grant funding will be shared across the 3 finalists per country.

Eligibility

1. Open to climate-focused technology startups meeting the following criteria:
2. Officially incorporated, registered with the local chamber of commerce in the country or in the process of being registered;
3. Delivering a technology and/or digital solution to accelerate the deployment of climate solutions at scale;
4. Existing solution on the market (at least proof of concept, minimum viable product) on one of the above mentioned themes which has the capacity to scale;
5. The product or service attracts its first customers and shows initial interest from clients (BtoB or BtoC) or investors/donors;
6. Founder and its core team members must be available and committed to join all program elements (including monitoring and evaluation questionnaires);
7. At least one of the founders is originated from Benin, Cameroon, Niger;
8. Although this is not a selection criteria, attention will be given to teams committed to promote diversity and inclusion in their venture.

Application

Application closes on March 25, 2022. The program will run from April 25 to November 1, 2022.