South Africa

The Local AIMday Grants support the organisation of Academic Industry Meeting Days (AIMdays) within the South Africa–Sweden University Forum (SASUF) network. AIMday is a structured dialogue format where researchers meet with industry, government and civil society to discuss concrete, real‑world challenges and explore opportunities for collaboration.

The Million Lives Collective (MLC) has launched a Call for African Urban Innovations to identify and spotlight impactful, scale‑ready solutions that are shaping smart, healthy, equitable and resilient cities across Sub‑Saharan Africa. The call targets innovators, entrepreneurs and changemakers whose solutions address pressing urban challenges for low‑income residents and have a credible pathway to reach one million or more urban Africans living on less than USD 5.50 per day.

The 2026 Western Cape Economy Innovation Awards are now open for nominations, celebrating innovations that strengthen the Western Cape economy and create jobs across the private sector, academia, non-profits and the public sector.

Africa: The Big Deal, in partnership with FMO Ventures, has launched the “Data for Founders” initiative to support 100 early‑stage start‑ups across Africa with free access to high‑quality fundraising data and expertise. The programme gives selected ventures two years of free access to Africa: The Big Deal’s comprehensive funding deals database (4,200+ deals worth over USD 20 billion, covering all transactions above USD 100,000 across equity, debt, grants and exits), alongside practical guidance on using data to design a data‑driven fundraising strategy.

The Climate Finance Accelerator South Africa (CFA‑SA) is accepting applications for its 2026 cohort, offering intensive, tailored support to help South African low‑carbon projects become more bankable and investor‑ready.

The Technology Innovation Agency (TIA), South Africa, and BioCubaFarma (BCF), Cuba, have extended their joint Expression of Interest (EOI): South Africa–Cuba Biotechnology Collaboration to Friday, 27 February 2026. This EOI seeks South African partners to collaborate with Cuban institutions on technology transfer, joint development, and joint ventures for innovative biotech products, with a strong focus on therapies for neurodegenerative and chronic diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Dementia, lung cancer, and Alzheimer’s Disease.

The Technology Innovation Agency (TIA), South Africa, and BioCubaFarma (BCF), Cuba, invite South African biotechnology companies, research institutions, universities, and healthcare innovators to express interest in collaborative R&D, technology transfer, and joint ventures for innovative biotech products.

INTA’s 2026 Open Innovation Challenge (OIC) is a global pitch competition for start-ups and scale-ups from any country, held at the INTA 2026 Annual Meeting at ExCeL London, offering visibility, expert feedback, and access to the international IP and branding community.

Opportunity overview