The KijaniSpace Innovation Program is an innovation support programme under the Horizon Europe project “Empowering Climate-Smart Agriculture with Copernicus and IoT Innovations for Smallholder Farmers in Africa.”

The programme aims to support innovative SMEs and start-ups in the Lake Victoria region that are developing agriculture-related products, services or applications. Selected businesses will improve their existing solutions by integrating Copernicus Earth Observation data, satellite imagery and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies through the KijaniSpace Space-IoT Box.

Who Can Apply

The programme is open to SMEs and start-ups that:

• Are legally registered and operating in Kenya, Uganda or Tanzania.
• Have a physical address in one of these countries.
• Have an existing agriculture-related product, service or application.
• Address crop farming, fish farming or another relevant climate-smart agriculture use case.
• Apply as a single organisation.
• Submit only one proposal per applicant or team. 

Innovation Focus Areas

Applicants are expected to improve an existing solution through the use of Earth Observation and IoT technologies.

Potential innovation areas include:

• Weather and climate monitoring using IoT sensors and remote sensing.
• Water quality monitoring for fish farming.
• Fish farming decision-support services.
• Crop monitoring and crop phenology.
• Farm input planning, irrigation support and farm management.
• Crop disease risk monitoring and alerts.
• Seasonal planning and agroclimatic zoning.
• Precision agriculture using satellite imagery and IoT data.
• Hydrological flow assessment using IoT observations and satellite imagery.

Applicants may also propose other relevant climate-smart agriculture solutions that can benefit from the Space-IoT Box.

Support Available

Up to five SMEs or start-ups will be selected. Participants will receive:

• Access to Space-IoT Box resources, tools, datasets and documentation.
• Technical training on Copernicus, Earth Observation and IoT.
• Business development and entrepreneurial support.
• Product and market validation support.
• Pitch and investment-readiness support.
• Expert mentorship throughout the innovation experiment.
• An opportunity to showcase the innovation in Kenya.
• Financial support of up to EUR 5,000 per selected SME or start-up for eligible costs related to the approved innovation experiment. 

What the Funding Can Support

The financial support may be used for eligible activities directly connected to the approved innovation experiment, including:

• Testing and improving the existing product, service or application.
• Developing new features or services using Copernicus and IoT technologies.
• Data collection, user feedback and stakeholder validation.
• Technical documentation and validation evidence.
• Participation in programme meetings, hackathons, showcase activities and Demo Day.
• Communication and dissemination activities related to the funded experiment. 

Programme Development Support

The programme combines technical and business development support. Training covers areas such as Space-IoT Box resources, Copernicus and Earth Observation for agriculture, IoT data collection and integration, business models, value propositions, market positioning, growth and sustainability planning.

During implementation, each selected SME will receive support from an Earth Observation/IoT expert. The programme aims for innovation experiments to reach Technology Readiness Level 7 (TRL 7), meaning a working prototype of the improved product, service or application should be demonstrated in a real or realistic operating environment.

Applicant Requirements

Applicants must provide:

• Certificate of Incorporation or Registration.
• CVs of team members involved in the programme.
• A proposal PDF describing the SME, existing product and proposed innovation experiment.

The proposal should cover the problem being addressed, target users or customers, the climate-smart agriculture connection, existing solution, proposed experiment, planned use of Space-IoT Box resources, expected improvements, activities, outputs, budget and support required.

Evaluation Criteria

Eligible applications will be assessed across three areas:

• Excellence – 30 points: Quality of the proposal, understanding of the call, relevance of Copernicus services and Space-IoT Box tools.
• Impact – 30 points: Contribution to climate-smart agriculture, value for users and stakeholders, and dissemination and exploitation potential.
• Implementation – 30 points: Feasibility, implementation plan, team capacity, budget realism and ability to complete the experiment. 

Programme Timeline

The programme schedule includes:

Application period: 15 September 2026 – 8 January 2027
Open call and dissemination: 15 September – 16 November 2026
Application screening and selection: 17 November – 11 December 2026
Onboarding and agreement signing: 14 December 2026 – 8 January 2027
Training and business development: 11 January – 26 February 2027
Experiment planning and implementation: 11 January – 19 May 2027
Final showcase and programme closure: 7 June – 30 June 2027.

Application deadline: 16 November 2026. The call specifies that applications must be submitted through the official online submission form, in English.

Countries

Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.

Additional Participation Requirements

Selected beneficiaries will need to sign a dedicated Sub-Grant Agreement with the KijaniSpace project coordinator. Participants are also expected to submit monthly progress reports, provide documentation of technical outputs and validation results, and participate in the final showcase in Kenya.

Click HERE to visit the official website.