The Circular Innovation Challenge 2026 is seeking innovative businesses in Southern Africa with solutions that are beyond the ideation stage and ready to move into testing, implementation or scaling.
The challenge is focused on circular solutions that:
- Reduce waste.
- Keep materials in use.
- Regenerate nature.
- Create social and economic value.
- Support jobs and wellbeing.
Solutions are expected to contribute to a transition from a linear to a circular economy.
WHO CAN APPLY?
Individuals
For individual entrants:
- Must be a resident of Southern Africa.
- Must be 18 years or older.
The competition defines Southern Africa for this purpose as:
Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Eswatini, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Businesses
For businesses:
- The business must be registered in Southern Africa.
- A subsidiary of an international business may enter, provided the local Southern African business is the entrant.
- The solution must be beyond ideation and ready to move into a pilot or implementation phase.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Applicants should enter where:
Circularity
The business contributes to circularity as defined by the challenge.
Market Readiness
The product, technology, service or business model must be:
- Currently available, or soon to be available, on the market.
- Beyond the ideation stage.
- Ready for pilot or implementation.
Innovation
The solution must be:
Clearly innovative and not yet mainstream.
Impact
Applicants should be looking to grow their:
- Economic impact.
- Social impact.
- Environmental impact.
Intellectual Property
The applicant's intellectual property rights must reside in or be owned by the company.
Team & Strategic Alignment
The V&A Waterfront's strategic pillars of:
- Inclusivity
- Opportunity
- Sustainability
should be evident in the way the team is constituted and the way the organisation approaches its work.
WHAT COUNTS AS CIRCULAR INNOVATION?
The challenge defines circular innovation around three core principles:
1. Design waste and pollution out of the system
2. Keep materials at their highest value
3. Regenerate nature
The challenge is looking for products, technologies and services that help move systems away from linear production and consumption towards more circular and regenerative models.
THE 10 R'S OF CIRCULARITY
The challenge references the 10 Rs as a useful framework for understanding circular-economy opportunities:
- Refuse
- Rethink / Redesign
- Reduce
- Reuse
- Repair
- Refurbish
- Remanufacture
- Repurpose
- Recycle
- Recover
This provides applicants with a useful way to explain where their solution creates circular value across the product lifecycle.
SECTORS
The challenge welcomes circular solutions across a broad range of sectors, including:
- Agriculture
- Construction
- Energy
- Manufacturing
- Packaging
- Technology
- Food Systems
- Fashion & Textiles
- Waste & Resource Management
The list is not presented as exhaustive.
PRACTICAL CIRCULARITY AREAS
The challenge provides examples of circular opportunities that include:
Waste & Resource Efficiency
- Recovery and recycling of materials.
- Take-back programmes.
- Reuse.
- Repair.
- Remanufacturing.
- Technologies such as blackwater recycling.
Ecosystem Development
- Closed-loop systems.
- Shared infrastructure.
- Collaboration between business, government, NGOs and academia.
- Behaviour change relating to consumption.
Consumer Engagement
- Educating consumers.
- Enabling sustainable choices.
- Increasing awareness, demand and adoption of circular products and services.
- Making circularity visible and experiential.
Innovation & Business Models
- Testing new materials and technologies.
- Research and product development.
- Circular business models such as:
- Product-as-a-service.
- Leasing.
- Shared platforms.
WHAT THE WINNER RECEIVES
The winner receives a package combining capital, technical support, pilot testing and market exposure.
Cash Investment
R250,000 cash investment into the business.
Tailor-Made Training & Mentorship
Up to:
R100,000
in tailor-made training or mentorship based on the business's needs.
V&A Waterfront Pilot Opportunity
The winner may have the opportunity to test their product, innovation or service within the V&A Waterfront precinct.
SOLVE@Waterfront will work with the winner to determine whether the solution is suitable for testing and, if suitable, support implementation and the establishment of appropriate monitoring and evaluation structures.
Potential Exposure
The challenge states that the V&A Waterfront precinct receives more than 26 million visits annually, comprising:
- 56% Capetonian.
- 14% domestic.
- 30% international.
This provides the winner with a potentially significant real-world environment in which to test and showcase an appropriate solution.
Business Network
SOLVE@Waterfront will facilitate relevant introductions to a network of related businesses and organisations.
Profile & Visibility
The winner will receive a profile on partners':
- Websites.
- Social media channels.
SUPPORT FOR FINALISTS
Finalists receive support before the final judging.
Pre-Mentoring
Finalists receive one-to-one mentoring from SOLVE members to improve and adapt their pitch.
Pitching Opportunity
Finalists participate in a dedicated pitching session at the annual Market Systems Symposium hosted by The Vikãra Institute in Cape Town on:
21 October 2026.
They will present their innovation to an audience working in the circular-economy space, including potential collaborators.
Travel & Accommodation
For eligible finalists from outside Cape Town:
- Travel subsidy towards travel costs.
- Two nights' accommodation with breakfast included.
The detailed competition rules further specify that sponsors cover certain travel costs for one representative per finalist, including return flights from airports within the listed Southern African countries to Cape Town and return transfers between Cape Town International Airport and the V&A Waterfront.
JUDGING CRITERIA
The judging process looks at three broad areas.
1. Impact & Vision
Judges consider:
- How much impact the circular innovation could create.
- Whether environmental and/or social impact is embedded in the long-term goals.
- Potential for employment and job creation.
- Potential to improve working conditions.
2. Business Model
Judges consider:
- Product-market fit.
- Market potential.
- Innovation approach.
- Current traction and/or growth strategy.
- Scalability.
3. Technology
Judges consider:
- Ownership of intellectual property rights.
- Reliability of the technology where software or hardware is involved.
- Innovation.
- Adaptability.
- Scalability.
SELECTION PROCESS
The competition has several judging stages.
Round 1
Entries are assessed by the core SOLVE project team against the programme's desired outcomes and criteria.
Round 2
Eligible and successful entrants proceed to a second round of voting by the organising team.
Additional information may be requested from entrants, including digitally or by telephone.
Final Judging
Top-scoring entries are submitted to a judging panel made up of representatives of the sponsoring organisations and subject-matter experts.
Shortlisted candidates are then required to pitch their innovations in person to the judging panel and an international audience at the Market Systems Symposium in Cape Town.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Applicants retain ownership of their intellectual property.
The terms specifically state that:
Intellectual property remains yours at all times.
The winner agrees to work with the SOLVE team to determine whether the innovation is suitable for testing at the V&A Waterfront and, where appropriate, establish a testing and monitoring framework.
The organisers and participating entrants will sign an NDA to protect the intellectual property of both parties.
APPLICATION PROCESS
All entries and supporting documents must be submitted:
Online through the SOLVE@Waterfront application platform
The applicant should ensure that:
- The Terms and Conditions have been read and understood.
- The application aligns with the challenge objectives and criteria.
- Eligibility requirements are met.
APPLICATION DEADLINE
20 September 2026
The competition materials state that entries close at midnight on Sunday, 20 September 2026, South African time.
Click HERE to visit the official website.