Category Archives: business funding

GLOBAL IMPACT CASH GRANT PROGRAM

LOCATION: Multiple Regions

Cisco welcomes applications for Global Impact Cash Grants from social impact partners around the world who share our vision and offer an innovative approach to a critical social challenge.

ELIGIBILITY:

Organizations within the United States must be recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as tax exempt under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) and classified by the IRS as a public charity.

Organizations from outside the United States must provide information and documents to determine whether the organization is the equivalent of a U.S. public charity.

Organizations to be funded must serve an audience greater than 65 percent economically underserved relative to the average standards of the target geography.

Organizations and programs must focus on at least one of our social investment areas: crisis response, education, economic empowerment, and/or climate impact and regeneration.

For education, crisis response, and economic empowerment proposals, we will also consider proposals that address environmental sustainability within the context of that investment area. For example, we would consider funding an economic empowerment program that specifically focuses on creating green jobs.

An organization’s overhead is not to exceed 25 percent. (Organizations are occasionally exempt from this requirement; however, they must be exceptionally aligned with Cisco’s values and criteria, and they must clearly explain and justify their overhead costs. Exemptions to the requirement on overhead expenses are determined on a case-by-case basis.) Cisco Foundation does not tend to make grants to colleges and universities. In the case that such a grant may be made, Cisco Foundation does not support additional institutional overhead rates for colleges and universities.

BENEFIT:

The maximum request amount for first-time grant recipients is US$75,000

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DEVELOPPP VENTURES IDEAS COMPETITION

Application Deadline: June 30, 2024

LOCATION: Multiple Regions

The current develoPPP Ventures call for applications (May 15 to June 30) takes place in NigeriaKenyaTanzaniaRwanda and South Africa.The application and selection process is supported by a team of local experts who will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

ELIGIBILITY:

Your company is registered in the target country or plans to register there prior to the co-financed growth investment

You are pursuing an innovative business model and are already generating initial revenues (proof of concept)

Your business model has high development relevance and scalability and contributes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Each application will first be evaluated on the basis of consistent and transparent criteria. If your application is successful in the competition, you will be given the opportunity to pitch to the decision-making committee of DEG Impulse and GIZ. The best candidates will then undergo an on-site review (due diligence), which, if successful, will be followed by a funding contract.

The complete conditions of participation for develoPPP Ventures can be found here: Download conditions of participation

BENEFIT:

DEG Impulse and GIZ provide grant co-financing of EUR 100,000 (and a top-up for successful Ventures in a potential second phase)

The company must receive matching funds equaling the amount of the grant financing in the form of cash injection from other investors. Matching funds can be considered if received up to 6 months prior to the application and still available for the develoPPP Ventures investment. The external capital must have been received at the latest by the time of disbursement of the develoPPP Ventures funds.
Companies should therefore be in advanced discussions with investors around securing financing within the next six months.

The use of funds takes place in the develoPPP Ventures target country, in which the company is registered (conclusion of contract will only be possible with a locally registered entity)

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