The Joint Innovation Facility (JIF) is a new Africa-Europe initiative designed to accelerate innovation and to foster meaningful collaboration across ecosystems on the African continent and between Africa and Europe, to scale up transformative solutions that address shared challenges—particularly those related to the digital transformation and the green transition.

Launched under the Africa-Europe Digital Innovation Bridge (AEDIB 2.0) – a forthcoming project under the EU’s Global Gateway Africa-Europe Investment package – JIF is co-developed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and the European Union (EU). It is jointly implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Finnish Public Management Institute (HAUS), leveraging their combined experience in international cooperation, innovation support and experience in strengthening innovation ecosystems.

Eligible countries for JIF: The African partner must be from one of the 14 African project priority countries, which are Benin, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.
What are they looking at?

They are inviting joint project proposals from innovation consortia that:

• Consist of at least two partners forming a consortium collaborating across borders (Africa-EU or Different countries from Sub-Saharan Africa), led by an African entity.
• Are eager to advance digitally enabled innovations (with a preference for frontier technologies (e.g. AI-based, IoT, etc) in climate – mitigation, adaptation and resilience.
• Present tested solutions with proven or high potential for scaling and replication.
• Are grounded in local context, commercially viable, and regionally embedded.
• Are led by committed and capable teams, with a track record and technical skills required to scale the innovation.
• Prioritize gender responsiveness.
• Require strategic funding to accelerate their next phase of growth.

The offer

Selected projects will benefit from

Non-dilutive funding of 100.000 – 250.000 EUR through a milestone-based grant structure;

• Tailored support through the JIF Project Studio, including:

1. 1. Mentorship from seasoned experts and investors
   2. Access to toolkits, investment readiness support, and technical advisory
   3. Networking and peer learning opportunities across Africa and Europe.

Focus Areas

The proposed solution must demonstrate a measurable positive impact in at least one of the following areas:

• Climate mitigation
• Climate adaptation and resilience

Key sectors

Blue Tech, Mobility, Energy & Smart Cities

Who Can Apply?

They  invite joint collaboration projects led by African partners, consisting of:

• Small Growing Businesses (SGBs) and startups
• Larger companies
• Applied research organisations
• Digital Innovation hubs and Innovation Support Organisations
• Civil Society Organisations
• Startups (PreSeed or Seed stage)
• Public Sector Partners
  Application deadline: 16 September 2025 at 00:59 EAT

Application Link: https://project-spark.info/joint-innovation-facility-application-form/