The Global Innovation Fund is a non-profit, impact-first investment fund headquartered in London with offices in Washington, D.C. and Nairobi. We invest in the development, rigorous testing, and scaling up of new products, services, business process, or policy reforms that are more cost-effective than current practice and targeted at improving the lives of the world’s poorest people.
Through our grants and risk capital, we support these breakthrough solutions from for-profit firms, non-profit organisations, researchers, and government agencies to maximise their impact and catalyse meaningful change. Because the best ideas for solving some of the world’s most critical development problems can come from anyone, anywhere, we provide an open window to receive innovative ideas and assess whether they are right for GIF investment.
How we work
Through grants, loans (including convertible debt) and equity investments ranging from $50,000 to $15 million, Global Innovation Fund back innovations with the potential for social impact at a large scale, whether they are new technologies, business models, policy practices, technologies or behavioural insights.
We support innovators at all stages of their life cycle, from start-up and pilot-testing through to larger scale implementation. The innovations we fund can be located in any developing country and can focus on any sector relevant to international development, provided they improve the lives of those living on less than $5 a day.
Applying for Global Innovation Fund
GIF accepts applications on a rolling basis – our window is always open with no deadlines or rounds of funding.
Please carefully review the guidance before deciding whether to invest time in preparing an application. Doing so will increase your chances of success.
Start by reviewing What We Fund to gauge whether there is an initial match between your funding needs and GIFs investment thesis and criteria.
If you believe that you meet our funding criteria then review the Type of Funding and the Stage of Funding section for additional criteria on the type of capital available (grant, debt, equity or a blended approach) and the amount of funding for which you can apply.
