Swisscontact in Kosovo has opened the call for applications for the Innovation Fund, within the Fostering Employment and Growth Opportunities (FEGO) project. The overall objective of the Project is job creation and income generation in Kosovo, in the furniture, apparel, and rural tourism sectors, to contribute to addressing high unemployment and poverty rates in the country, especially amongst youth and women. The FEGO project is financed by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency and implemented by Swisscontact. This is a four-year project, starting from January 2022.
Innovation Fund
The Innovation Fund is an instrument to boost sustainable growth of private sector employment creation for the youth and fund interventions identified by the FEGO team that test new, innovative, and risky ideas, but offer an opportunity for a market shift, leading to significant growth of the private sector and promising job creation. The IF is closely linked to the intervention identification, design, and deal-making stages in the FEGO priority sectors and is designed as an integral and coherent instrument of the Project and not as a separate standing activity.
The overall goal of the IF is to intervene in the areas that support employability and employment. The IF finances in the areas of interventions are listed below:
Grant Criteria
The IF awards grants to initiatives, projects, or activities that come from all eligible individuals or organizations that are innovative, impactful, and have the potential to contribute to employment.
The size of individual grants that will be supported by the FEGO project is 5,000 euros and the maximum is 30,000 euros (only the amount supported by the project). The project follows the co-financing rule and requires a minimum of 50% financial participation from the applicant.
Eligibility
The IF will encourage proposals from all types of individuals, groups, or organizations that contribute toward the FEGO objectives and lead to increased economic incentives in Kosovo. Following is the list of, but not limited to, eligible organizations that can apply for matching grants from the IF:
Please send the Expression of Interest for your ideas, with a maximum of one page, to [email protected]. Eligible applicants will be asked to fill out the ‘Innovation Fund Concept Note’ which is received by the FEGO team for the initial assessment. If the idea matches the criteria set by the project, you will be contacted for further information regarding the application process. Initiatives, projects or activities that create and contribute to economic opportunities and support the employment of young women and men in Kosovo are highly encouraged to apply.
Download the Innovation Fund Application Form below
FEGO - Innovation Fund Expression of Interest FormThe project Fostering Employment and Growth Opportunities (FEGO) aims to boost inclusive market systems development in Kosovo to generate self-employment in the apparel, furniture, and rural tourism sectors. Funded by SIDA, implemented by Swisscontact.
