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1 — Background Orange Corners Innovation Fund Grant Programme 2024–2030

Background

The Netherlands wants to help accelerate sustainable development, including economic development and employment. It does this among other things by promoting entrepreneurship the world over, especially among young people in developing countries. Youth employment and young entrepreneurs are special priorities in the development policy of the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation (hereafter: the Minister)

2 https://www.government.nl/binaries/government/documenten/policy-notes/2022/10/10/policy-document-for-foreign-trade-and-development-cooperation-do-what-we-do-best/178.047+Beleidsnotitie_BHOS-18.10.pdf.

and in the Youth at Heart

3 www.youthatheart.nl.

strategy. Young entrepreneurs have the energy and inventiveness required to develop solutions to local challenges, which can stimulate employment and innovation. This is also recognised in Resolution 73/225 (‘Entrepreneurship for sustainable development’),

4 https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/1660776.

adopted by the UN General Assembly on 20 December 2018. The Resolution emphasises the pivotal role of entrepreneurship in achieving sustainable development and recognises that entrepreneurship drives economic growth by creating jobs, promoting decent work and sustainable agriculture, and fostering innovation.

Startups in Africa, the Middle East and Asia need support for both knowledge and finance to develop and scale up innovations. Especially in the pre-commercial phase of the innovation process (ideation, research and development, and proof of concept), in which an idea is tested and a prototype developed, only limited funding is available. In this phase it is often impossible for entrepreneurs in developing countries to attract the capital they need, due partly to an unattractive risk profile and the high interest rates that local banks charge for loans. Companies must be supported so as to bridge this pioneer gap and enable them to grow.

The Netherlands’ extensive experience in the field of entrepreneurship means it is well placed to help address these challenges and support young entrepreneurs in establishing and developing their own businesses.

The Orange Corners Innovation Fund (OCIF) Grant Programme was launched to supplement the Orange Corners Incubation and Acceleration programmes (OCIAC),

5 https://orangecorners.com.

which give young entrepreneurs access to training, networks and facilities to launch their business or scale it up. OCIF began as a pilot project in 2019 and has been a grant programme since 2021. The provision of flexible financing at an early stage has proven to foster company growth and increase employment. Because of this positive impact, the Minister would like to prolong the initiative, drawing on the lessons learned in its initial years. In particular, more attention will be paid to improving the investment-readiness of participating businesses and to obtaining commercial or other follow-up funding.

The grant programme focuses on supporting startups in the initial phase of their innovation process. It is aimed at the countries where an OCIAC is active, as well as Tunisia. OCIF grants will be awarded to applicants (fund managers) to establish a fund to provide startups with financial support for their capacity and knowledge building. The approach in each of the target locations will be tailored to the specific wishes and needs of the participating startups.

Regeling
Orange Corners Innovation Fund Grant Programme 2024–2030
Soort
Ministeriële regeling
Geldend vanaf
19-09-2023
BWB-id
BWBR0048627
Versie
2023-09-19_0

In de hele regeling · Officiële tekst op wetten.overheid.nl