Call for Proposals: Remittance Innovation Champions 2022 South Africa

IFAD’s Financing Facility for Remittances (FFR) reduces poverty and promotes development by leveraging remittances and migrant capital in rural areas of developing countries. The Platform for Remittances, Investments and Migrants’ Entrepreneurship in Africa (PRIME Africa), co-financed by the European Union, aims to reduce inequality and enhance financial inclusion in Africa by reducing remittance costs and maximizing their impact.

The Remittance Innovation Champions 2022 South Africa (RIC22-SA) seeks to finance private sector initiatives that develop or scale-up innovative and cost-effective international remittance services to and from South Africa for marginalized populations, particularly women and the rural poor.

To be considered, initiatives must support at least one of the below objectives:

1. Expand formal channels for and access to international remittances
2. Accelerate digitalization of international remittances
3. Reduce international remittance transaction costs and increase access to transparent and gender-responsive low-cost services
4. Leverage remittances to deepen financial inclusion and resilience

FFR welcomes strategic partnerships linking for-profit entities with non-profit organizations, formal financial intermediaries, money transfer operators, microfinance institutions, financial cooperatives, postal networks, philanthropic organizations, investment funds, local and national governments, among others.

The application process comprises four phases:

1. Pre-selection: Initial pitch call
2. Final selection: Final pitch call
3. Project design
4. Approval and disbursement

Deadline for submission of Annex 1 and Annex 2 for Phase 1 is 21 October 2022 at 17:00 (GMT+2).

See below the guidelines for RIC22-SA and the two Annexes for Phase 1.