At Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona 2023, the GSMA, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) announced the GSMA Innovation Fund for Climate Resilience and Adaptation 2.0. We are delighted to announce that the fund is now open for applications.

Building on the previous GSMA Innovation Fund for Climate Resilience and Adaptation, the objective of this new Fund is to pilot and scale-up digital technology innovations that make a positive socio-economic and environmental impact in areas with communities most vulnerable to current or future climate risks.

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time, affecting both humanity and the world’s biodiversity. It is elevating sea levels, increasing the frequency and severity of extreme weather events such as droughts and floods, displacing millions of people, presenting new obstacles to livelihoods and access to basic services, and fragmenting habitats and changing natural ecosystems.

In this context, the need for innovative solutions and collective action is critical. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are the least prepared for climate shocks and will continue to be disproportionately impacted by them. Digital technology – particularly mobile – can help create a more resilient future where communities and ecosystems can not only adapt to and survive climate shocks and stresses but are also equipped with the tools and resources they need to thrive.

Building on the success of previous funds, the GSMA Innovation Fund for Climate Resilience and Adaptation 2.0 will be open to start-ups, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) or social enterprises in Africa, South and South East Asia, the Pacific Islands, the Caribbean and selected countries in Europe and Latin America. For this Fund we are interested in solutions that use digital technology, especially mobile, to improve resilience and adaptation to climate change, with a higher priority given to applications focusing on one or more of the following:

1. Improving resilience and adaptation of vulnerable populations and ecosystems based in coastal areas, small islands, or urban settings.
2. Tackling challenges posed by increasingly frequent extreme weather events such as extreme drought, flooding, high winds, wildfire and higher risks of landslips and erosion etc. (with the exclusion of early warning systems).
3. Nature-based solutions such as regenerative agriculture, or sustainable forests, coastal areas and wetlands that strengthen biodiversity.
4. Sustainable consumption and production, by way of reducing food waste, increasing sustainability and biodiversity of fisheries, and managing air pollution.

We are particularly keen to receive applications from local teams, female-founded and -led organisations, and applicants that actively focus on the needs of female end users.

Thanks to our partnership with FCDO and Sida, selected organisations will be eligible to a full support package including grant funding between GBP 100,000 and GBP 250,000; tailored technical assistance; facilitation of relationships with mobile operators and public sector organisations; peer learning opportunities; and opportunity to increase their visibility to potential investors and partners through GSMA’s events, publications, and social media. For a full view of eligibility criteria, package components and application process, please read our Terms and Conditions.

Mobile and other digital technologies can help create a more resilient future, where communities not only survive climate shocks, but thrive in spite of them. Building on our longstanding partnership with the GSMA, FCDO is delighted to support the second phase of this fund, that will partner with start-ups and small and growing enterprises, that are seeking to use digital and mobile technologies, to ensure greater resilience and adaptation for low-income and vulnerable populations.”

– Professor Charlotte Watts, CMG FMedSci, Chief Scientific Advisor and Director for Research and Evidence, FCDO

There is strong evidence that mobile and digital technologies can support the resilience of people in poverty to meet the repeated shocks caused by climate change. From the first round of the GSMA Innovation Fund we have seen innovative mobile solutions that strengthens the financial capacity of farmers and help them increase the productivity, with prospects of scaling up their businesses successfully. In this second round of the Innovation Fund there is an increased emphasis on nature-based solutions and biodiversity which is crucial to strengthen climate resilience. Sida therefore finds this new round of innovation fund for climate resilience by our partner, GSMA to be very relevant.”

– Maria van Berlekom, Unit for Global Cooperation on Environment, Sida

For more information about the Fund requirements and application process, please visit our Climate Fund page:

The GSMA Innovation Fund for Climate Resilience and Adaptation 2.0 is funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and is supported by the GSMA and its members.