Climate-Smart Impact Investment Fund: Extending capital to SMEs in emerging markets | Climate Finance, South Africa 2019
Published: 24 November 2019 Maggie Sloan
The solution for an Impact Investment Fund for Climate-Smart Entrepreneurial Solutions brings together networks of active impact investors and potential future investors to deliver equity to climate-smart SMEs in their efforts to reach commercial scale. Read more
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Green Lend: Inclusive credit risk assessment across value chains | Climate Finance, South Africa 2019
Published: 24 November 2019 Maggie Sloan
This credit risk assessment mechanism aims to increase lending to climate-smart SMEs through risk scorecard development that incorporates alternative data across enterprise value chains. Read more
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Malawi Waste Management Consortium: Building markets for waste innovation value chains | Policy, Malawi 2019
Published: 13 November 2019 Alina Weiss, Maggie Sloan, Marlena Kiefl
The Malawi Waste Management Consortium supports the development of waste management markets and the alignment of policy around green and inclusive development approaches with entrepreneurial waste management solutions. The consortium aims to improve access to information on the current government policy for waste management and guidance for aspiring waste innovators by establishing a consortium of waste management experts and ecosystem actors and developing a digital platform and online marketplace for waste innovation. Read more
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Off-grid renewable energy private-public partnership model: Improving market access and affordable technology financing | Policy, Malawi 2019
Published: 13 November 2019 Alina Weiss, Maggie Sloan, Marlena Kiefl
his private-public partnership model furthers the electrification of (rural) Malawi by engaging technology suppliers, financiers and government around eco-inclusive enterprises offering off-grid renewable energy solutions and delivering capacity building for integrated distribution networks and targeted clean energy financing solutions. Read more
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Agriculture Insurance and Climate-Related Risk Assessment: Stimulating Climate-Smart Agriculture Markets | Policy, Malawi 2019
Published: 13 November 2019 Alina Weiss, Maggie Sloan, Marlena Kiefl
The policy instrument for stimulating markets for climate-smart agriculture value chains, combining agriculture insurance and climate-related risk assessment, will build decentralised capacity-building networks (supported by public and financial sector partners). This instrument aims to raise awareness and reduce the climate-related vulnerabilities of smallholder farmers and agribusinesses by developing and delivering risk management and adaptation solutions which are catered to these enterprises and the localised enterprise ecosystems in which they operate. Read more
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Extending Business Development Services Beyond Metro Cities - Training the Trainers
Published: 01 November 2019 Amar Munnolimath, Camilla Shearman
SEED’s two-pronged approach to supporting enterprises through direct support and ecosystem building activities is founded on the belief that enterprises rely on both internal and external success factors to grow their solutions. Read more
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Looking Beyond the Known: Changing Mindsets through Design-Led Entrepreneurial Solutions
Published: 31 October 2019 Maggie Sloan
Ms Kasturi, Founder of Daily Dump (SEED Low Carbon Award Winner 2018), was welcomed as keynote speaker during the BEYOND THE KNOWN: Practitioners’ Exchange to Discover New Ways to Promote Entrepreneurship & Support MSME Development from 15-16th October at the GIZ Representation in Berlin. Read more
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Three policy recommendations for building robust climate change adaptation markets in South Africa
Published: 28 October 2019 Camilla Shearman, Christine Meyer, Sonya Ong
With lessons drawn from an 8-month policy prototyping labs cycle in South Africa and over fifteen years of enterprise support, this policy brief presents three recommendations for policymakers to improve SMME access and contribution to climate change adaptation markets. These recommendations include (1) increasing availability of and access to market information, (2) creating support pipelines between public and private stakeholders, and (3) leveraging intermediaries as key contributors to the implementation and evaluation of market access policies. Read more
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Meet the SEED Awards 2019 Winners & Finalists
Published: 24 October 2019
Tackling poverty and climate change, generating employment opportunities and contributing to economic development, this year’s 14 SEED Award winners were selected from over nine hundred applicants and were recognised for solutions to major local and global challenges. Read more
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The SEED Awards 2019 highlight the contribution of green and social enterprises to advancing the Sustainable Development Goals
Published: 24 October 2019
Lilongwe, Malawi, Berlin, Germany, 24 October 2019 - Tackling poverty and climate change, generating employment opportunities and contributing to economic development, this year’s 14 SEED Award winners were selected from over 900 applicants and were recognised for solutions to major local and global challenges. Read more
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Cooperative-to-Cooperative Platform: Expanding networks for community-led business development | Policy, Malawi 2019
Published: 21 October 2019 Alina Weiss, Maggie Sloan, Marlena Kiefl
The cooperative-to-cooperative platform for climate-smart agriculture is a digital platform offering combined performance indexing, knowledge sharing, and matchmaking between cooperative unions and cooperatives across Malawi. The platform supports the further coordination of cooperatives and public sector initiatives in Malawi. Read more
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Leveraging eco-inclusive entrepreneurship for localised development solutions | Policy Brief Malawi
Published: 21 October 2019 Camilla Shearman, Christine Meyer, Maggie Sloan, Marlena Kiefl
In a global context of commitments to sustainable development and the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change, Malawi has set out ambitious agendas to increase resilience to climate change and move towards a green and inclusive economy. Translating these ambitious agendas into impact at the community level requires concerted efforts in the decentralisation of policy initiatives and capacity building of local actors. SMMEs play a key role in aligning local markets to national development goals, and can have a transformational impact on the achievement of these goals. Drawing on discussions from the SEED policy dialogue and labs process in Malawi, this policy brief presents recommendations to policy makers for leveraging the potential of SMMEs to transform the agriculture, waste, and clean energy sectors in Malawi, and across Southern Africa. Read more
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Incentivising activity in the biomass sector | Policy, South Africa 2019
Published: 21 October 2019 Camilla Shearman, Julia Haack
This policy prototype looks to the biomass-to-energy value chain to pilot a mechanism that will catalyse sound decision-making in the biomass sector, leading to the implementation of sustainable invasive alien clearing, harvesting and biomass utilisation projects that connect to well-supported energy markets. In order to address the challenges that small and medium businesses in this sector currently face, the prototype involves setting up a knowledge-sharing platform to provide value chain specific information, biomass to energy case studies, and information on how to navigate regulatory frameworks, policy and fiscal incentives. Read more
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Commercialisation of climate change adaptation innovations | Policy, South Africa 2019
Published: 21 October 2019 Camilla Shearman, Julia Haack
The proposed independent institution brings public and private stakeholders together with a focus of providing support for the commercialisation of climate change adaptation technologies. The convening independent institution would host a platform of support services including funding, market information, and opportunities for pre-commercial procurement. The solution will therefore act as a “one stop shop” for SMEs during commercialisation. Read more
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Building a conducive environment for SME labour absorption | Policy, South Africa 2019
Published: 21 October 2019 Camilla Shearman, Julia Haack
This policy instrument targets the strengthening of an enabling environment to promote SME growth and related labour absorption. This is to be achieved through increasing access to incentives for SMEs, as well as targeting size- and sector-based programmes to encourage growth. The thought group will act as an information platform for intermediaries and policy makers to unblock barriers facing SMEs when it comes to job creation, as well as to target programmes and investments based on sector. A focus on green jobs will help to define green sectors with high potential for job creation and encourage SME growth and job creation within these sectors . Read more
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BDS+ Special Focus 5: Business Development Services+, not just for business people. Who else could benefit?
Published: 11 October 2019 Linde Wolters, Sonya Ong
Often when we think about business development services, we think about consultants who help businesses grow and scale. We asked some of our past BDS ToT participants which other actors would benefit from BDS ToT and here is what they suggested. Read more
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BDS+ Special Focus 4: Networking & Partnerships - Possibilities at the SEED BDS+ ToTs
Published: 04 October 2019 Linde Wolters, Sonya Ong
At SEED ToTs, participants – BDS consultants, incubators and accelerators – enjoy peer-learning and have the opportunity to network and build partnerships. When we asked several BDS ToT participants what their main takeaways were from the workshops, many mentioned the networking possibilities and new partnerships formed. Read more
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BDS+ Special Focus 3: BDS Providers & Challenges in the eco-system
Published: 27 September 2019 Linde Wolters, Sonya Ong
BDS providers provide crucial help eco-inclusive, micro, small, and medium enterprises to overcome day to day challenges around fundraising, direction or finding talent. Are you a BDS provider? Read on to find out if you share similar challenges with others. Read more
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BDS+ Special Focus 2: Experiences & Takeaways from BDS+ ToT workshops
Published: 20 September 2019 Linde Wolters, Sonya Ong
We caught up with a number of BDS providers from Ghana to Indonesia to see how BDS providers experienced the training. What were their biggest takeaways? Read more
Building healthier communities with Khainza Energy
Published: 18 September 2019 Linde Wolters, Sonya Ong
“Khainza” is a reference to a small person with high energy and ability. It is also Arthur Woniala, the founder's, mother’s maiden name. Khainza Energy is committed to providing clean, safe, and affordable cooking fuel solutions to Ugandans. We caught up with Arthur to hear how SEED Support has helped change his business & what Khainza is up to these days. Read more
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BDS+ Special Focus 1: SEED Tools & Enterprises’ Triple Bottom Line
Published: 13 September 2019 Linde Wolters
Are you a business coach or do you work for an incubator or business support organisation in Asia or Africa? Here are three reasons to focus on the social and environmental impact of the start-ups you work with. Read more
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BDS+ Training of Trainers: Special Focus
Published: 11 September 2019 Linde Wolters, Sonya Ong
BDS providers offer valuable support for SMEs, often behind the scenes. In this five-part special focus blog series, we caught up with a number of BDS providers from Ghana, Indonesia, India, Thailand, and Uganda. Read more
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Adidas, Orlando Pirates create EcoBricks for Mandela Day
BizCommunity Source: BizCommunity
Adidas and Orlando Pirates Football Club gave back on Mandela Day by learning about the importance of adopting sustainable practices and by creating EcoBricks using non-recyclable plastic waste, in partnership with SEED Award Winner EcoBrick Exchange. Read more
Coffee helps protect Uganda's endangered mountain gorillas
Deutsche Welle Source: Deutsche Welle
Gorilla Conservation Coffee is featured in this story by Deutsche Welle focusing on how coffee offers a more sustainable living for poor communities in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Read more
Ghanaian agri-tech startup Farmerline secures AfDB grant funding
Tom Jackson Source: Disrupt Africa
Ghanaian agri-tech startup Farmerline is set to receive grant funding from the African Development Bank’s $23 million Agriculture Fast Track Fund. Read more
