Application Deadline: 10 August 2018 at 18:00 BST.
The GSMA Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation Fund : Funding of up to £300,000 per project is available, as well as mentoring, networking, project support and promotion. This funding round will test new technical solutions, catalyse ideas to improve or transform institutional systems, and enable solutions to empower, assist or protect individuals and communities affected by complex emergencies and forced displacement. Project impact should be delivered in Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, or Latin America.
All grant funded projects are expected to provide examples of best practice and lessons learnt on how mobile technology can address 5 key themes
within humanitarian contexts:
1. Mobile Enabled Utilities
2. Gender & Inclusivity
3. Mobile Financial Services
4. Digital Identity
5. Food Security, Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Change
Requirements:
Applicants must:
• Be able to provide formal evidence of a partnership (e.g. contract/MoU) with one or more eligible organisation(s) where the collaborating partners will be involved in implementing the grant project.
• Clearly demonstrate how the proposed project meets one of the Fund’s five focus areas
• Have a minimum viable product / solution (grant funding cannot be spent on Research and Development at ideation stage.
• Have the necessary rights / permissions required to operate in the selected implementation area as relevant (i.e. refugee settlements)
• Commit to providing the required match funding for the selected grant type
• Be in satisfactory financial health, have adequate financial systems and human resource capacity to implement the grant project. GSMA may require the applicant to undergo a preselection assurance review. Such review, if required will be conducted by an independent organisation chosen by GSMA.
SMA operates a risk based due diligence process and in accordance with that, applicants may be requested to provide additional due diligence materials which may include (but is not limited to) background information for key individuals, operating history and references.
• Communicate regularly with GSMA and Fund Manager staff during the grant period and submit regular project (monthly) and financial (quarterly) reports. (Reporting will be required on an irregular basis up to 2 years following the grant).
• Be able to fully abide by the contracting terms outlined by GSMA in document here.
• Have a track record of delivering relevant projects, and demonstrate their commit to adhering to the Principles for Digital Development and the Humanitarian Principles in the outline of their proposal.
Eligible organisations and lead applicants:
• Eligible organisations must be legally registered and have the right to operate in country(ies) of operation. Lead applicants are responsible for: starting an application, adding and removing collaborators to the application, assigning questions to collaborators, answering questions relevant to you, reviewing content entered by collaborators, submitting the application before the deadline, signing the contract with GSMA Foundation if a grant is awarded.
• In order to be eligible for a M4H Fund grant, the primary applicant (i.e. the organization that will sign the Grant Agreement with the GSMA) must be a mobile network operators (MNO), non-governmental organization (NGO), humanitarian agency or a private company.
• The following organisations cannot serve as lead applicants but are encouraged to join eligible partnerships as an implementing partner:
- United Nations agencies
- Academic institutions
- Government bodies
The Fund is open to eligible global or national organisations and companies whose projects are implemented in the following regions:
• Sub-Saharan Africa
• Asia and the Pacific
• Middle East and North Africa
• Latin America
Benefits:
The support package includes:
•Grant funding between £100,000 and £300,000.
• The funding requires between 30% and 50% match funding (see 8) dependant on the requested amount (see section 8).
• Mentoring on the use of mobile technology (note: for highly technical projects the Fund may be able to seek advice or facilitate with GSMA’s technology teams).
• Working Groups (a programme of expert-led sessions and targeted networking) as well as regular and bespoke project support from the GSMA.
• Grantees will benefit from enhanced visibility through the programme’s insight publications, learnings through exchange with other grantees and exchange opportunities with the programme’s networks and events.
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the GSMA Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation Fund 2018