Background
Following the success of of the initial calls for proposals in 2022 and 2023, the SDG Impact Finance Initiative (“the Initiative”) will announce a third call for proposals in 2024 targeting a new set of UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDG Impact Finance Initiative’s Innovation Window awards grants for innovative impact finance solutions that will mobilize private capital for sustainable development in emerging and frontier markets. The Initiative is funded by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), the Swiss Development Cooperation Agency (SDC), the UBS Optimus Foundation, and the Credit Suisse Foundation.
The SDG Impact Finance Initiative aims to accelerate advancements in the impact investing market by supporting the launch of innovative solutions that address market failures, deploy financial products that are under-supplied or supplied at insufficient volumes, and mobilize funding into new sectors and regions.
It aims to achieve three key objectives:
- Support the design and development of innovative impact finance solutions;
- Scale impact investing solutions by mobilizing private capital at scale; and
- Strengthen the impact investing ecosystem, improve overall frameworks, and promote quality impact management practices to enhance impact investment flows.
Under the calls for proposals, with support from Convergence, the Initiative will award grant funding for feasibility studies, proof of concept activities and expansion of existing solutions.
Key highlights of the call for proposals
- Funding types: Both grants and conditionally repayable grants will be awarded to support the design, launch or scaling of solutions. Conditionally repayable grants and their repayment terms will be considered for Proof of Concept and Expansion applications on a case-by-case basis. Repayment is expected only if the solution successfully launches and meets key milestones such as financial close. See “Which type of grant should I apply for?” for additional details.
- Geographical focus: Solutions can target any developing country or countries eligible to receive official development assistance (ODA) according to the OECD-DAC List of ODA Recipients. We highly encourage solutions that target low-income and least developed countries.
- Developing country applicants and partnerships: We highly encourage applications that fall into any of these categories:
- Applications from local organizations based in developing countries
- Applications from a consortium of organizations from both developing and developed countries
- Applications that strongly focus on building long-term partnerships with developing country actors
