African Climate Innovation Challenge (ACIC) 2025 for Innovative Startups (Up to USD10,000 Prize Money)

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Applications are open for African Climate Innovation Challenge (ACIC) 2025. The African Climate Innovation Challenge (ACIC) is a challenge contest jointly developed and implemented by 3 E’s 4 Africa, Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO), and Start.Up Lounge Africa.

The project focuses on young Africans’ innovative start-ups, encouraging and empowering them to create a local impact in their communities through training and grant support. The ACIC is a challenge contest centered around young African start-ups in climate change and sustainable development to develop innovative, green business ideas and help them to upscale their business to make more impact.

Young Africans apply to the ACIC with their business start-ups. The best 10 concepts are selected as the ACIC Cohort. They will go through an online curriculum, consisting of training and digital workshops. This allows them to work on and develop their start-ups further. Topics covered include climate change, how to fundraise, brand creation & marketing and business creation/management. The top 6 projects will be invited to Ghana as finalists where they will pitch their project to a panel of jury members. After the pitch event, the jury will select the winners. Each winner will receive considerable prize money dedicated to supporting them in the direct upscale of their business.

African Climate Innovation Challenge (ACIC) Objectives

Empower youth and local communities in Africa by providing them not only with social entrepreneurship skills but also with the tools, knowledge, and funding they need to create local impact.
Help African communities build resilience and adapt to the adverse effects of climate change locally.
Addressing and solving sustainability-related challenges through entrepreneurship and innovation in Africa.

Benefits

Up to USD 10,000 in prize money for winning startups to directly implement their innovative start-up ideas in their communities.
Tailor-made curriculum for all participants to further develop their startups.
Pitch your startup and solutions at a gathering of major climate stakeholders and an international audience.

What innovations/solutions qualify for the ACIC?

Any innovative business solution that strives to help local communities mitigate or adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and promote sustainability in general. For example:

A business idea that proposes a solution or enables farmers to deal with harsh weather conditions (e.g. longer drought periods) would qualify as a climate change adaptation solution;
A business idea that proposes a solution or enables people in your community to reduce CO2 or methane emissions would qualify as a climate change mitigation solution.

Eligibility Criteria for African Climate Innovation Challenge (ACIC)

Before applying, make sure your team is willing and able to commit to the requirements of ACIC.
Be sure that your startup is registered in your country.
Your startup should be a team of at least 2 people. Applications from startups with less than 2 people will not be considered.
Although not required, we specifically want to encourage female-led teams and teams with 40% – 50% female participants to apply.
All the members of your team must be of African descent and based in Africa.
Your startup must be focused around climate change mitigation and/or climate change adaptation.
Your start-up should be atleast at the prototype or MVP stage. We will not consider projects still at the early or ideation stage
All members of your team must be between 18 and 35 years old.
All members of the team must have a good mastery of either English or French