UNICEF 2024 Gender-Responsive Innovation Challenge

Published: 08 May 2024

The UNICEF Venture Fund is committed to diversity and inclusion in its approach to early-stage investing and catalyzing novel innovations developed by startups leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), data science (DS), drones, blockchain, or extended reality (XR).  These innovations aim to address the unmet needs of marginalized and underserved children and their families.

The challenge

Recognizing structural and systemic barriers in the technology sector which lead to the dominance of certain types of solutions and founders, the UNICEF Venture Fund is seeking to facilitate an inclusive and gender-responsive innovation in three key areas: 

Area 1: Investing in diverse and underrepresented founders (especially women founders)

Area 2: Increasing the availability of digital products and services that can solve the specific unmet needs of vulnerable and underrepresented populations (such as children, women, people living with disabilities and refugees)

Area 3: Facilitating inclusive user design in the development of innovation to

The GRIC is an opportunity to recognise companies leading the way for developing gender-responsive solutions and/or businesses in Africa. Its primary objective is to identify, recognise and invest in companies facilitating  outcomes that can help close the gender gap. 

 

UNICEF Gender-Responsive Innovation Challenge

Application Deadline	May 24, 2024
Funding Type	Partially Funded
Type	Entrepreneurs
Sponsor	United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF)
Gender	Men and Women

Benefits of UNICEF Gender-Responsive Innovation Challenge

Companies will receive mentorship and technical assistance from Venture Fund experts to enhance their investment readiness and potential for future funding from the Venture Fund. It will comprise:

• 10 hours of technical mentoring consisting of Open Source, business development, frontier technology, software development, diversity, equity, and inclusion mentorship,
• Additional support to understand and navigate the Venture Fund sourcing and selection process.

Requirements for UNICEF Gender-Responsive Innovation Challenge

• Applications must be submitted in English. 
• Women-led and women-founded startups are encouraged to apply.
• Youth-led startups (led by individuals younger than 35 years old) are encouraged to apply.

Selection Process

Selection Criteria

• The Venture Fund will select five outstanding companies in gender-responsive innovation which will receive an award:
• The selection committee comprised of GITEX Africa and UNICEF Venture Fund will evaluate the nominated companies according to the defined criteria to assess and select the winners of the challenge

Application Deadline

May 24, 2024

How to Apply

Interested and qualified? Go to United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) on form.jotform.com to apply