• Could applicants submit a proposal as a consortium, or should there be a “lead” applicant? If consortium allowed, do all the parties of the consortium have to be legally registered in one of the countries indicated in the list or only one party is sufficient?
  • Consortiums are allowed to submit a proposal. Each organization’s role should be clearly defined. There should be a lead applicant that would sign the contract upon award. Where joint partnerships include innovators from low-and middle-income countries, we encourage the partnership to designate the low- and middle-income country partner as the Project Manager. 
  • The organization that submits the application should be a legally registered entity in at least one of the target countries. Or the organization should have at least one local partner that is registered to work in the country(ies) of implementation. This local partner could be a commercial or NGO partner, joint venture partner or candidate for a merger or acquisition. 
• Can I submit a proposal in collaboration with researchers from other countries listed in the call (e.g. India, Thailand & Singapore)? 
  • A private business is eligible to apply or a non-profit or university team that maintain its own budget and is responsible for generating revenue that have as the primary or a major part of their business model an innovative product or service that addresses the water-energy-food nexus companies.
• Is collaboration partner encouraged or preference is for individual applicants? 
  • While there is no requirement for partnerships, collaboration is encouraged especially with local organizations based in any of the 16 target countries. 
• Can nonprofit organizations that raise their revenue through grants and other income generation activities (eg. selling of merchandise etc.) eligible to apply for this grant? Please clarify.
  • WE4F aims to support private sector-led innovations. Besides private companies, the WE4F Asia Hub will support non-profit or academic teams that maintain their own budget and are responsible for generating revenue that have as the primary or a major part of their business model an innovative product or service that addresses the nexus of water-energy-food. If an organization meets these requirements, it is eligible to apply. 
• Can we apply with multiple proposals (with different related entities)? 
  • Applicants may submit up to 3 concept notes.
• Could you please indicate whether there is a preference for innovations focused on smallholder farming or on commercial/industrial farming? 
  • WE4F expects to prioritize support for innovations that target poor women and men smallholder farmers and others working in all parts of the agriculture value chain. Please see Section I – 1C: Target Groups of the WE4F Grand Challenge for more information.
• Could you please indicate how important is the women-led factor for the focus of the innovations proposed? The agriculture sector is generally man-dominated. 
  • Broadly, gender equality is a central theme of WE4F that is of high importance that will be specifically sought after in concept note review. A women-led team can be reflected in the innovator’s leadership team’s (upper management, founders, or key team players) experience in the nexus or relevant sectors. WE4F will give preference to women-owned/women-led organizations and developing country entrepreneurs.
• Could you please elaborate and provide illustrations on the ESG principles (cf. gender mainstreaming, poverty reduction, and environmental sustainability) to be respected as a minimum to be eligible for the support?   
  • As per the guiding principles for ESG adherence in WE4F, we actively incorporate ESG issues into decision-making processes, program operating structure and standard practices. 
  • Innovators must have a basic understanding of ESG issues and show a strong commitment to ESG integration into their business model. WE4F innovators are classified into one of three levels of ESG integration in their business model: beginner, intermediate and advanced. 
• Could you please provide more details on the minimum level of cost contribution expected from the project team (i.e. the matching funds)? 
  • Matching (whether in-kind or cash/cash equivalent) will be based on funding provided by WE4F, not the total project budget and the final amount of matching funds will be determined on a case-by-case basis for each applicant. Providing matching details is not required for the concept note stage.
• What type of activities are funded?  
  • WE4F is looking to provide grants, technical assistance and/or investment facilitation support to commercially proven products, services or business models. Please see Section II Eligibility criteria for more details on what types of products, services or business models are eligible. 
• Would a stage of testing and positioning (of business model) for scale be relevant or should it be at a stage of proven scale with profitable and repeatable business model? 
  • WE4F is looking to support proven innovations: mature products, services and business models that have demonstrated potential for scaling. This does not include supporting ideas for a development project but no track record for successful sales. 
• Can you clarify: Award(s) will range from $25,000 to $200,000 USD? Is this the amount WE4F consider investing? 
  • The award range from $25,000 to  $200,000 USD is the value of the “grant” award that is possible to receive from the WE4F S/SE Asia Hub. In addition, the selected organizations can also receive other forms of technical support which includes technical assistance, enabling environment support and investment facilitation depends on needs and business requirements. Please see Section I – 5B Technical Assistance Support for more detail. 

This Q&A webinar was for candidates during the 2021 Call for Innovations. You can view the Q&A document here.

You can view the slide deck here. 

Thinking about applying to a Call for Innovations in South and Southeast Asia? Then watch this webinar to learn about the program’s environmental requirements and compliance.

This Q&A webinar was for the Semi-finalist candidates during the 2021 Call for Innovations. You can view the Q&A document here.

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