SDG Impact Accelerator Team and Project Partners Came Together with Startups on a Live Webinar

Running the second phase to create innovative solutions to development problems, this time on financial inclusion and digital agriculture solutions in Bangladesh and Uganda respectively, the SDG impact accelerator program has collected applications from startups all around the world since November 20, 2020.

Just before the closing of the applications on January 31st, the SDGia team and representatives of partners came together at a live webinar on 27 January during which the SDGia Team shared details of the program and answered the questions that the interested startups posed.

Opening remarks by partners included Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UNDP Turkey, UNTB for LDCs, Startup Bangladesh, Ministry of Science, Technology and Information in Uganda.

The Accelerator Program co-leads, Memet Unsal and Ece İdil Kasap, underlined that in total both calls received 1.000+ applications from 68 different countries. They also highlighted that the implementation part of the SDGia constitutes its uniqueness by providing the selected teams the opportunity to implement their solutions with the support of global and local partners.

Some of the most asked questions included but not limited to;

• Whether the selected teams would need to reside or travel to Bangladesh or Uganda, and the answer is no since most of the program would be online. The program takes short term field visits in the agenda however these visits will be planned according to the Covid-19 situation.
• The possibility to apply with a minimum viable product (MVP) or an advanced product, and the answer is yes, the startups with advanced solutions can make the implementation easier compared to less developed solutions. The applicants are expected to have their MVP ready to take place in the program. Local startups at idea stage may have the opportunity to take place on the program.
• The$15K fund being a grant or an investment, and the answer to that it’s a grant and it’s equity free.