Equity-Free Funding Opportunity for Fem Tech Solutions

Challenge

• Technology is advancing rapidly, but at a pace that risks widening gaps between those who benefit and those who don’t.  Where solutions are available, they are often inaccessible either by design or intent because the needs of diverse groups of people are not considered, and licensing and business models exclude a vast network of innovators that can adapt them to benefit disadvantaged and marginalised groups. 
• The need is clear: 
  • 31% of women worldwide are not in education, employment, or training. 
  • 740 million women in developing economies remain unbanked, making up 55% of the total unbanked adult population. 
  • Only 2% of global medical research funding is allocated to pregnancy, childbirth, and female reproductive health. 
  • Over 21 million adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries become pregnant each year.  
• Generally, fem tech refers to technological solutions that improve the health and wellness of women and girls. At a time when they continue to face systemic barriers to quality healthcare, financial services, and economic opportunities – now as ever, cutting edge solutions must be identified, adapted and scaled to meet their needs.   
• The UNICEF Venture Fund will identify solutions that go beyond healthcare—ones that empower women and girls holistically. This means addressing their specific needs in ways that recognize the circumstances that affect them disproportionately or differently while tackling the social and economic drivers that shape their participation, agency, and well-being.  
• The latest landscape reviews estimate that 75 per cent of fem tech companies are currently based in the US or Europe. Projected to be valued by at least US$97 billion 2030, the sector is regarded as undervalued and under-invested but holding vast potential to bridge equity gaps globally. The latest landscape reviews estimate that 75 per cent of FemTech companies are currently based in the US or Europe. The UNICEF Venture Fund recognizes that this market requires strategic investment and coordination to address commercial barriers for solutions and ensure that new innovations that meet the needs of women and girls are accessible to the most vulnerable and marginalized. 

Key Areas

• They are seeking early-stage, for-profit startups that use frontier technologies in three key areas: 
  • To improve health outcomes for women and girls i.e 
    • Digital health solutions for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment 
    • AI-driven or data-powered platforms for maternal, reproductive, and adolescent health 
    • On-demand referral services for access to healthcare and culturally relevant information 
  • Address unique challenges faced by women and girls  i.e  
    • Closing the gender data gap to drive inclusive decision-making 
    • Improving accessibility of platforms for underserved communities, including persons with disabilities 
    • Designing solutions that address gender-specific challenges in different cultural and economic contexts 
  • Empower women and girls socially and economically i.e.  
    • Expanding financial inclusion and access to economic opportunities 
    • Enabling safe access to education, training, and skill-building 
    • Supporting agency, decision-making power, and workforce participation 

Funding Information

• The Fund is offering up to US$100K in equity-free funding to early-stage, for-profit startups leveraging frontier technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), data science, and blockchain for social impact

Eligibility Criteria

• UNICEF is looking to provide investment-style funding to early-stage technology startups. Only entities that fulfill these mandatory requirements will be considered eligible:
  • Registered as a private company at the time of the Innovation Fund award (projected: 3 months from submission of EOI)
  • A private company registered in a UNICEF programme country
  • Working on open source technology solutions (or willing to be open source) under the following licenses or their equivalent:
    • for software, a GNU General Public license, MIT or BSD,
    • for hardware, a CERN, MIT or TAPR open license and
    • for design or content, a CC-BY license
  • An existing prototype of the open source solution with promising results from initial pilots
  • Solution has the potential to positively impact the lives of the most vulnerable children
  • Generating publicly exposed real-time data that is measurable
  • UNICEF’s Innovation Principles