Deadline: November 25, 2022
Applications for the AFAWA Women Entrepreneurship Enablers Programme 2022 are now open. The African Development Bank Group’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative is launching its second call for proposals for the programme, targeting women’s business associations, incubators, accelerators, women-led cooperatives, and civil society organizations that promote the development of women entrepreneurs on the continent.
The programme supports projects that enhance the viability and sustainability of formal women-led small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and enables them to access financing opportunities to grow their businesses.
Grant
- AFAWA is offering grants of up to $250,000 to organizations helping prepare African women-led businesses to drive the continent’s economies.
Eligibility
- Applications are welcome from all 54 Africa countries, transitional/fragile, Sahel and North African countries are strongly encouraged to submit proposals.
- The projects should be implemented in more than 2 countries;
- The project duration should not exceed 2 (two) years;
- Recipients and project sponsors should be Africa-based or provide evidence of partnership with African entities and show that the proposed activities, operations, and projects will be implemented in Africa;
- Applicants must be legally constituted institutions that have been in existence for at least three years with strong financial and procurement procedures;
- Collaboration between two or several applicant enablers is encouraged;
- Partnerships are strongly encouraged particularly with one or multiple financial organizations and with both public and private sectors;
- Previous experience in managing external funding and executing projects from donors is required.
Expectations
Submitted proposals will:
- Demonstrate innovative approaches to build a supportive ecosystem for women’s entrepreneurship aimed at improving access to finance for WSMEs and accelerate business growth;
- Develop innovative ways to disseminate advisory services and technical assistance addressing capacity constraints, and skills enhancement for WSMEs to support access to funding;
- Develop a comprehensive and sustainable capacity-building program to enable access to finance in partnership with financial institutions;
- Enhance visibility and digital presence for WSMEs;
- Enhance access to mentorship and role models for WSMEs.
Selection Criteria
Proposals received will be assessed based on the following considerations:
- Clarity and Viability – 15%
- Track Record and Leverage – 35%
- Project Impact – 30%
- Monitoring-Evaluation-Scaling – 20%
Application
- Proposals should be submitted through the application platform and include the Application proposal template;
- Application proposals can be submitted either in English or French and they should not exceed 10 pages including cover page and any annex. NB: Any proposal of more than 10 pages will not be assessed.
- Application proposals should be submitted via the platform with the subject title “Name of lead organization_Name of project”, by Midnight GMT on Friday, 25 November, 2022.
For more information, visit AFAWA.
