WFP Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme (US$30,000 equity-free grant for winners): APPLY NOW!

WFP Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme: Building resilience through innovation

About the Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme

The global challenge of hunger and malnutrition is felt most acutely in fragile and conflict-affected settings (FCAs), where over 1.5 billion people face unprecedented threats to food security and livelihoods. The CGIAR, in partnership with the World Food Progamme (WFP)  Innovation Accelerator, are launching the “Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme” to seek and scale high-impact innovations that bolster food, land, and water systems (FLWS) in these vulnerable regions.

We are calling on innovators, entrepreneurs and changemakers to come forward with groundbreaking solutions that can drive resilience, ensure food and nutrition security, enhance climate adaptability and promote social cohesion and sustainability among communities battered by conflict and fragility.

The WFP Innovation Accelerator and CGIAR will support selected teams through a comprehensive programme designed to accelerate the development of promising solutions and prepare them for scaling. Alongside financial, technical and business support, this includes the provision of scientific advisory, aimed to improve the innovator’s ability to create life-changing sustainability impact. Our focus is on sourcing and nurturing solutions that are not only innovative but also sustainable and scalable, with the potential to create lasting positive change in some of the world’s most challenging environments.

We encourage organizations to submit their innovative solutions that help end hunger, reinforce communities against unexpected disruptions, ensure consistent access to nutritious food, foster inclusive economic opportunities, engage youth and enhance the resilience of food systems amidst the challenges of climate change.

Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme Application Deadline: 16 February 2024, 11:59 pm (CET)  | 

What we offer

This collaboration between CGIAR & the WFP Innovation Accelerator, specifically through the CGIAR Initiative on Fragility, Conflict, and Migration, marks a significant union of efforts. The WFP Innovation Accelerator, with its track record of organizing 55 innovation bootcamps, supporting over 487 teams and field testing more than 100 solutions, has positively impacted 37 million people in 2022 alone. Merging this with CGIAR’s dedicated research agenda, which aims to deliver science and innovation that advance the transformation of food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis, our collaboration will enhance climate resilience, gender equity and social inclusion. Together, we aim to address the complex challenges associated with the climate crisis aiming to provide sustainable solutions for the most vulnerable populations. 

What we offer to boost innovations:

• Six-month Sprint acceleration programme combining business-oriented training, mentoring, and science-based technical assistance from the WFP Innovation Accelerator
• Access to the research network of CGIAR, the world’s largest publicly funded research-for-development organization
• In-country strategy workshop to kick off implementation 
• US$30,000 equity-free grant for each of the winning innovations with a proven sustainable business model and scaling plan
• Exposure to national and international funders
• Post-acceleration support 

What we’re looking for

For this Innovation Challenge, CGIAR and the WFP Innovation Accelerator are on the lookout for both low and high-tech solutions specifically tailored to meet the distinct challenges present in Fragile and Conflict-Affected Settings (FCAs) specifically in Jordan, Kenya, Nigeria and Yemen. We also encourage strong “wildcard” entries. We aim to identify and support exceptional innovations from around the world that hold the potential to address these challenges on a significant scale. WFP’s and CGIAR’s current innovation priorities per country are listed below:

Jordan

Water and resilience in refugee and host communities

Examples may include water purification systems for refugee and remote communities, irrigation systems, soil health monitoring technology, urban agriculture, or vertical farming that enhance water access and resilience.

Kenya

Digital solutions for climate security and migration

Examples may include forecasting for environmental disasters, conflict prediction and mitigation technology, communication resources for refugees or mapping technology to identify displacement patterns.

Nigeria

Resilient food systems and nutrition

Examples may include cold-storge solutions to prevent post-harvest loss, food fortification, mobile platforms for smallholder farmers, agricultural technology for resource management or technologies that increase shelf life.

Yemen

Water and resilience in conflict-affected areas

Examples may include water purification systems, agricultural technology that mitigates the impact of disrupted agricultural production or off-grid water systems that can be applied in conflict-affected settings.

How we will evaluate innovations

Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme Eligibility criteria

• Your organization must be an established legal entity (for-profit, not-for-profit, social business, NGO, INGO). 
• Your organization should have a presence or willingness to build a presence in one of the four countries of implementation (Jordan, Kenya, Nigeria or  Yemen). This could take the form of a country office or other permanent presence, subsidiary, long-term operations or partnerships in the country.
• Your innovation addresses one or more of the priority innovation areas related to pressing challenges faced in the humanitarian space of the country of implementation. 
• Your innovation should have reached the minimum viable product stage and is gearing up for scale. 
• Your innovation should have a clear pathway to scale and a potential plan to implement during the six-month Sprint with the available funding. 
• Applicants are expected to have strong intentions to collaborate with relevant humanitarian stakeholders, build relationships with CGIAR country offices, and connect with the innovation ecosystems.
• The applicants should demonstrate a clear need for research and development for the conceptual and commercial development of their innovation.

Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme Evaluation criteria

Your application will be evaluated according to the following criteria*: 

• Level of innovation/innovativeness: The solution is novel, innovative and has a strong social impact regarding the mentioned themes.
• Relevance to the context: The solution addresses at least one of the priority areas, is suitable to at least one of the four country contexts, and provides concrete solutions to end-users/target beneficiaries.
• Sustainability and scalability of the solution: The solution presents a clear business model and sustainable revenue model.
• Quality of the team: Proven competence, technical coherence, commitment, motivation, entrepreneurial mindset, diverse and inclusive team.
• Clearly defined needs: The solution has an area of expansion or improvement, which can be saturated through venture and capacity building as well as research and development.

*We reserve the right to adjust eligibility criteria based on the changing context as new information becomes available.

How to Apply for the Stability-and-Peace Accelerator Programme

• Refer to the full criteria in the Call for Applications.
• To submit your application, please complete the Application Form before 16 February 2024, 11:59 pm (CET). 
• We will review and select successful applications in April/May 2024. While we value all applications, we are only able to contact shortlisted applicants. 
• For more information, please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions.

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