Opportunities

The 2026 Zayed Sustainability Prize has officially opened its global call for applications, inviting innovators, entrepreneurs, NGOs, academic institutions, and impact-driven enterprises to apply for one of the world’s most prestigious sustainability awards.

The Prize recognises and funds scalable

The National Cleantech Innovation Challenge (NCIC) – Eastern Cape Waste-to-Value Challenge seeks innovative, technically viable solutions that convert low-value waste streams into high-value products with proven market demand and job creation potential.

This challenge addresses the Eastern Cape’s

The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation (DRK Foundation) provides early-stage capital and intensive capacity-building support to bold social enterprises tackling the world’s most pressing social and environmental challenges.

DRK funds mission-driven organisations that serve vulnerable, marginalized, or

The National Cleantech Innovation Challenge (NCIC) Gauteng – Smart Mobility Cleantech Challenge 2026 is a flagship initiative under South Africa’s Just Transition to the Future programme. Hosted by the Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct, this challenge seeks scalable, post-proof-of-concept

The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India, in partnership with the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), has announced two major funding opportunities aimed at accelerating biotechnology innovation and commercialization in India:

1. DBT–BIRAC Joint Call for

The SASUF–NRF Seed Grants fund 2‑year collaborative research projects that link academia, industry and society in South Africa and Sweden, with a strong focus on real‑world impact and researcher mobility.

The SASUF–NRF Seed Grants are part of the SASUF+ (2025–2028) phase and are implemented jointly

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

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

EIC Advanced Innovation Challenges – Pilot introduce a two‑stage, ARPA‑inspired support model to speed up high‑risk, demand‑driven deep tech innovation from solution concept to real‑world validation with users.​

Opportunity overview

The EIC Advanced Innovation Challenges (AIC) – Pilot aim to close the

EIC Transition is a Research and Innovation Action that funds the maturation of promising EU‑funded research results from lab‑scale proof of concept (completed TRL 3–4) towards TRL 5–6 and market‑ready business models.​

Opportunity overview

EIC Transition supports projects that build on results from

EIC Pathfinder Challenges 2026 support portfolios of ambitious research and innovation projects that aim to realise cutting‑edge technological solutions grounded in high‑risk/high‑gain research, each aligned to a specific challenge area. Unlike the open Pathfinder call, Challenges are thematic, with

The Spaza Shop Support Fund, supported by the Department of Small Business Development (DSBD) and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) and administered through the National Empowerment Fund (NEF) and partners, is designed to support township and rural community convenience