Applications for the GSMA's Humanitarian Innovation Fund, which has distributed over £5 million since 2017, are now open to start-ups, SMEs and social enterprises
11 December 2023, London: The GSMA has today announced the launch of its newest GSMA Innovation Fund, in partnership with the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), to address humanitarian challenges.
The Fund provides grant funding of up to £250,000 and additional non-financial and technical assistance to test and support new solutions that use digital technologies - especially mobile - to address humanitarian challenges in low- and middle-income countries. Humanitarian challenges include, but are not limited to, food insecurity, displacement, and natural hazards such as floods, earthquakes and typhoons.
In addition, the Fund is interested in solutions that improve preparedness and response to humanitarian challenges using frontier tech, such as AI and the IoT; that respond to the needs of crisis-affected populations, including internally displaced persons and refugees, through access to humanitarian assistance, services and life-saving information; or existing innovations that can be adapted or replicated in a new context to respond to a humanitarian challenge.
While the GSMA's Innovation Fund has typically supported non-profit and non-government organisations, this year's Fund is focused specifically on for-profit small and growing enterprises - including start-ups. The specific focus on for-profit enterprises will help the GSMA support a new range of humanitarian innovations, leverage its unique expertise in enabling public and private partnerships, and generate insights and evidence from these innovations to benefit crisis-affected communities, the humanitarian sector, and digital and mobile industry stakeholders.
Organisations not eligible to apply for this year's Fund include non-profit and non-government organisations, mobile network operators, universities and other academic institutions, and start-up accelerators and incubators. However, applicants are encouraged to have partnerships with these bodies when it strengthens the value proposition of their application.
Applications now open
Applications for the GSMA Innovation Fund are now open and can be submitted here by completing a short online Pitch', describing how a project meets the funding criteria. All applications must be submitted in English by no later than 23:59 GMT on Monday 12th February 2024.
A higher priority will be given to applicants whose organisations are female-founded and/or female-led; whose projects have a strong presence in their country of implementation and a commitment to supporting/upskilling local staff; who have partnerships with relevant local stakeholders to deliver the project on the ground; and who have a clear understanding of how their solutions improve preparedness or response capacity to humanitarian challenges, and have proactively taken steps to set targets to measure the impact of their project.
The Fund is only open to applicants whose projects are implemented in countries that are eligible to receive official development assistance in Africa, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, the Pacific, the Caribbean and Latin America.
Max Cuvellier Giacomelli, Head of Mobile Development at the GSMA, said: With over 350 million people worldwide requiring humanitarian assistance, there is an urgent need to support the funding and development of innovations that improve the preparedness and early warning capacity of affected communities. Research has shown that the most effective solutions are often designed by those closest to the issue, and the GSMA's Innovation Fund aims to support the enterprises working on the ground to minimise the impact of any potential crises.
Professor Charlotte Watts, Chief Scientific Adviser and Director for Research and Evidence at the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, said: We look forward to supporting a new cohort of innovators who are committed to addressing difficult humanitarian challenges. Through our partnership with the GSMA we have already supported a number of innovative solutions to development challenges. I am confident that this latest round will produce innovative models and technologies that can build greater resilience to and enable swifter action in response to the many crises that the world faces today.
The GSMA's Humanitarian Innovation Fund has now provided funding and technical support to 29 innovative solutions and distributed over £5 million since 2017. For more information on the GSMA's Innovation Fund, please see here.
-END-
About GSMA
The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovation foundational to positive business environments and societal change. Our vision is to unlock the full power of connectivity so that people, industry, and society thrive. Representing mobile operators and organisations across the mobile ecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA delivers for its members across three broad pillars: Connectivity for Good, Industry Services and Solutions, and Outreach. This activity includes advancing policy, tackling today's biggest societal challenges, underpinning the technology and interoperability that make mobile work, and providing the world's largest platform to convene the mobile ecosystem at the MWC and M360 series of events.
We invite you to find out more at gsma.com
Media Contacts
GSMA Press Office
pressoffice@gsma.com
Like what you read? Share.
Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
Click to share on X (Opens in new window)
Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
Like what you read? Share.
Most recent headlines
31/01/2025
Zeam Media, a provider of broadcast OTT technology as well as the hyperlocal streaming platform Zeam, announced today that it is again collaborating with John S...
31/01/2025
Sonnet Announces Secure Mounting Bracket for All-New 2024 Apple Mac mini Compute...
31/01/2025
Kalamazoo College Uses Blackmagic Design for Campuswide Productions
Brie Clayton January 31, 2025
0 Comments
Blackmagic Design cameras and switchers u...
31/01/2025
Tiger's 1st Pro AV Sale of 2025 Features 700 Plus Lots of High Quality Gear
Brie Clayton January 31, 2025
0 Comments
Excess inventory from full-se...
31/01/2025
Camera Corps Streamlines Live HDR Sports Production with AJA Gear
Brie Clayton January 31, 2025
0 Comments
High dynamic range (HDR) has transformed th...
31/01/2025
CHARLOTTE, N.C., and BRISTOL, Conn. The Atlantic Coast Conference and ESPN have announced that the sports programmer has exercised its option to extend its TV r...
31/01/2025
The URSA Cine 12K LF Body excludes shoulder mounts, handles, some lens mounts, battery plates, power supply, lenses and the high capacity 8TB media module
By J...
31/01/2025
EDEN aims to provide continuous power when operating in remote locations, and can be recharged using solar power
By Matthew Corrigan
Published: January 31, 2...
31/01/2025
MIAMI Telemundo has laid out plans for extensive Spanish-language coverage of the Super Bowl on Feb. 9 that includes a large slate of programming across the net...
31/01/2025
ATLANTA TNT Sports is launching a new NASCAR Driver Cam experience exclusively on Warner Bros. Discovery's Max streaming service that will offer motorsports...
31/01/2025
LOS ANGELES The real-time CG animation company Mindshow has unveiled its virtual production platform and announced the appointment of former Hulu executive Davi...
31/01/2025
CHARLOTTE, N.C. & BRISTOL, Conn. The ACC and ESPN have announced that ESPN has exercised its option to extend its rights to ACC games through through the 2035-3...
31/01/2025
ATLANTA Gray Media said it has revised its group-wide policy regarding the role of generative AI to acknowledge the technology's potential but underscored t...
31/01/2025
Leadership is developing at Shotoku Broadcast Systems. The international manufacturer of high-quality, easy-to-use, and reliable robotic and manual camera suppo...
31/01/2025
QuickLink, providers of industry-leading video production and contribution solutions, has today announced that it has teamed up with Zoom Communications, Inc. t...
31/01/2025
Ross Video is strengthening its presence in the corporate market across EMEA with the appointment of Nancy Diaz Curiel as Regional Sales Director, Corporate - E...
31/01/2025
Clear-Com is pleased to announce that DIAS Company has been designated as an official authorized service center for Clear-Com products in Kazakhstan, as well as...
31/01/2025
Mediagenix, a leader in software solutions for content strategy, value management, and scheduling, has today announced a successful deployment for France s lead...
31/01/2025
Disguise, the industry-leading platform sitting at the forefront of live and immersive experiences, will showcase a wide array of customer projects, live produc...
31/01/2025
Broadpeak , a leading provider of content delivery network (CDN) and video streaming solutions for content providers and pay-TV operators worldwide, announced t...
31/01/2025
ThinkAnalytics today announced that DISH Network, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar, has selected the Think360 content discovery platform, along w...
31/01/2025
Dr. Rhoda Bernard Earns Fulbright Specialist Award to Dublin City University The leader of Berklee's Institute for Accessible Arts Education, Dr. Bernard ...
31/01/2025
Why Alissia's Grammy Nomination Signals a Needed Shift As only the ninth woman nominated for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical-a category that no woman ...
31/01/2025
We've reached the end of January, and what a start to 2025 it's been! MP...
31/01/2025
FOX Sports' 2025 NASCAR Season Gets Underway With Cook Out Clash at Bowman G...
31/01/2025
Unrivaled Deploys Conventional Sound Elements for an Unconventional Sport We're trying to create the ambiance of a championship game every game night' ...
31/01/2025
TNT Sports, Max To Offer NASCAR Drive Cam for all 38 2025 Race Weekends 1080p Driver Cam Feeds to also provide team radio feeds, statistics, and telemetry data ...
31/01/2025
The New Studio Show: How Fox Sports Takes XR and Virtual Production to New Heigh...
31/01/2025
Ratings Roundup: Bills-Chiefs Fuels Most Watched AFC Championship on Record; Wem...
31/01/2025
Behind the Mic: FOX Sports' Tom Brady Gets Set for First Super Bowl Call; Re...
31/01/2025
Sky Original podcast Smart TV with Alison Hammond confirmed to launch on Wednesd...
31/01/2025
Back to All News
Middle-Class Ambitions Meets High-Stakes Crime: Dabba Cartel&...
31/01/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the Official Trailer for Aitana: MetamorphosisPlay Video
Play Video
Entertainment
31 January 2025
GlobalSpain
Link copied...
31/01/2025
Back to All News
Caught, Netflixs New Argentinian Thriller, Premieres on March 26Play Video
Play Video
Entertainment
31 January 2025
GlobalArgentina
Link ...
31/01/2025
The recently released DeepSeek-R1 model family has brought a new wave of excitement to the AI community, allowing enthusiasts and developers to run state-of-the...
31/01/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Thales will be present at Aero India 2025 (3.3 i...
31/01/2025
Watch our promo: RT Supporting the Arts | What's on
This February, RT is delighted to support Dublin International Film Festival, along with 17 other ama...
30/01/2025
Steven Yeun and Kristen Stewart at the Love Me premiere (photo by George Pimentl...
30/01/2025
The supply capability of SGL Carbon, a leading international supplier of carbon-...
30/01/2025
Highlights*
2024 orders of $24.2 billion; book-to-bill of 1.14x
2024 revenue o...
30/01/2025
BOSTON - November 7, 2024 - Brightcove (NASDAQ: BCOV), the world's most trus...
30/01/2025
BOSTON - January 16, 2025 - Brightcove (NASDAQ: BCOV), the world's most trus...
30/01/2025
NEW YORK, Jan. 29, 2025 - Black audiences spend 32 hours on apps and websites on...
30/01/2025
Auckland - January 30, 2025 - Data released today by Nielsen Ad Intel and Nielse...
30/01/2025
class=attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail f-align-center alt= decoding=async data-lazy-srcset=https://www.antonbauer.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/David-Pasko-...
30/01/2025
WUPPERTAL, Germany Riedel Communications has announced the acquisition of MECSware, a leading specialist in Private 5G technologies, and the launch of the priva...
30/01/2025
When it comes to current TV-viewing trends, viewers worldwide prefer scripted content to unscripted content, according to a new study from BB Media. But which p...
30/01/2025
COLOGNE, Germany RTW today made available its V 1.3 software for its TouchControl 5 hardware meter, offering support for dialog-gated loudness measurement....
30/01/2025
Ateliere Expands Live Production Workflows with Rapid Integration API for Techno...
Applications for the GSMA's Humanitarian Innovation Fund, which has distributed over £5 million since 2017, are now open to start-ups, SMEs and social enterprises 
