UNDP announced the five organizations and startups that have been selected as the winners of the 2020 BOOST Innovation Challenge Fund. The winning participants are engaged in developing innovative solutions that tackle some of the most pressing development challenges in the region – from providing online healthcare services to building a regional, digital educational platform for computer science.
Winners of the BOOST Innovation Challenge Fund:
The Innovation Challenge Fund was hosted by UNDP and the Slovak Ministry of Finance, a long-standing partner committed to harnessing the potential of the data revolution, new technologies and other innovations for improved governance and sustainable development in the region. The core principle was to support nonprofit organizations, startups, and academic institutions that are pushing the frontier by using innovative approaches in three key areas to support COVID-19 recovery: digitalization, wellbeing, and low-touch economies.
Out of 60 received applications for the Innovation Challenge Fund, 15 were selected to participate in BOOST, which is an intensive six-month online program centered around online learning tracks and mentorship, including 1-on-1 sessions with field experts. UNDP worked closely with Startup Grind and ImpactAim to provide modules on digital transformation and tech, and business and impact, supporting selected applicants based on their needs.
After carefully reviewing the selected projects, the BOOST jury selected the winning solutions, each of which will receive $15,000 to further develop their solutions and enhance regional collaboration in addressing the crisis and other development challenges.
Full list of selected participants that successfully completed the BOOST regional acceleration program:
- PhaseGrowth
- NGO State Watch / Market Research Tool
- DokTok
- COMMON Store
- H2i Balkans
- De Facto Consultancy
- Rights and Freedoms of Turkmen Citizens
- Flourish
- Faculty for Montenegrin Language and Literature – FCJK
- Yesil Science
- Civic Alliance
- Bioscope
- Zombies
- Simple MM
- 4Future.ai
