Call for Applications // Accelerating Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus Startups in the Niger Basin

The world is currently facing a great challenge: to ensure the supply of water, energy, and food for all while natural resources are limited due to increasing needs related to rapid population and economic growth, accelerated urbanization, and changing lifestyles.

Are you a startup/company that brings a solution to problems like how to feed and provide energy, water, or food in a sustainable way to every person on earth without harming the water and environmental systems we depend on? Then this call for applications is for you!

2iE is launching a call for startup on behalf of GIZ and the European Union and he German Ministry for International Cooperation and Development the NEXUS Water-Energy-Food Security (WEF) Program, in the 9-member countries of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria).

The objective is to identify and speed up high-impact WEF (or similar) startups and support the fundraising for them.

TARGETED STARTUPS

The Competition is open to any startup that is formally and actively operating in one of the Niger Basin Authority´s (NBA) member countries and meets the requirements below:

• Be established after January 1, 2018;
• Be (the main promoter) a citizen or resident of an NBA Member Country;
• Have a startup created with (or with the potential to create) at least, two of the three sectors (water, energy, food) without negatively impacting the third dimension positive synergies between, OR your startup limits negative impacts on, at least, two of the three sectors (water, energy, food) ;
• Your startup has been in operation (turnover) for more than 2 years.

BENEFITS

• Free and full participation in the boot camp in May 2022 at the 2iE Institute ;
• Fast-tracking (technical and commercial support) of your startup over 8 months to scale up ;
• Mentoring and networking with impact investors to support your scaling up ;
• Provision of a direct seed fund of 25,000,000 FCFA for the best startup resulting from the accelerator program.

SCREENING PROCESS

The screening process will be as follows:

• Call for applications
• Analysis and checking of the eligibility of applications
• Analysis of eligible applications
• Virtual visit of the company/online interview
• Pitch during the boot camp

APPLICATION FILE

The application file must include the following documents:

• Promoters’ CVs and valid identity documents;
• The legal references of the startup (Number of registrar company, RCCM, IFU, or other as referred to in the country);
• An Executive summary of the startup;
• One to two letters of recommendation from a key stakeholder of your startup (e.g. customers, suppliers, partners...);
• And any appendix you deem useful.

HOW TO APPLY

The rules and regulations of this competition and the application form are available on the 2iE website https://www.2ie-edu.org/programme-nexus-eau-energie-et-securite-alimentaire/

The complete application file must be submitted BEFORE APRIL 11, 2022 AT 11:59 PM UNIVERSAL TIME via https://form.jotform.com/220602205782043

Applications from female lead startup promoters are strongly encouraged.

CONTACT 

• Email: Incubateur2iE@2ie-edu.org
• Web: Www.2ie-edu.org
• +226 68 24 48 40 (Whatsapp)
• Rue de la Science - 01 BP 594 Ouagadougou 01.

Related articles

• The Nexus Regional Dialogue in the Niger Basin
• Nexus Blog // Food Security and Women Empowerment Through Solar-Powered Irrigation in Niger
• Project // Water & Energy For Food (WE4F): A Grand Challenge For Development