Bayer Foundation’s Women Empowerment Award Scales Social Startups

“Studies have shown that women play a central role in bringing change and working towards a more equal society. We also see this in our daily work. In the many years of Bayer Foundation’s activities, the positive impact of strong women has been a central theme. They are the change-makers we need. As a basic principle for our activities, we, therefore, have chosen to strengthen and highlight the role of women as leaders in science and as entrepreneurs,” states Monika Lessl, Executive Director of Bayer Foundation.

The Bayer Foundation sees itself as a promoter of innovation and a pioneering spirit at the interface between industry, academia, and civil society. Its objectives include catalyzing the development of breakthroughs in the life sciences and empowering and enabling communities to thrive with social innovation. The Foundation recognizes outstanding achievements in research, education, and entrepreneurship.

The Big Vision: Health for All, Hunger for None

Through supporting female entrepreneurs with groundbreaking ideas, Bayer Foundation specifically recognizes and celebrates their role as game changers driving sustainability and social impact through entrepreneurial innovation.

By supporting social enterprises, Bayer Foundation has built a network of partners that help reach its vision of ‘Health for All, Hunger for None.’ Via this ecosystem, Bayer Foundation addresses some of the world’s most pressing challenges related to health and food insecurity, which affect millions of smallholder families across Sub-Saharan Africa. As a result, Bayer Foundation also works towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, especially zero hunger (#SDG 2) and good health and well-being (#SDG 3) by addressing these challenges.

How the Bayer Foundation Effectively Supports Your Social Enterprise

Through the Women Empowerment Award, Bayer Foundation offers five women a partnership that goes far beyond a one-off cash prize. Winning the award will give you:

25,000 EUR in cash
In-kind contribution that equals 25,000 EUR in the form of a 24-week growth accelerator
Tailored support
Training for scaling
Active investor feedback
An extensive network of Bayer experts who offer coaching in health and nutrition as well as sustainable agriculture-related focus areas

Last but not least, all five winners become part of Bayer Foundation’s exceptional global alumni and partner network, which offers the opportunity to raise capital and exchange knowledge about the experience gained.

Who can Apply for the Women Empowerment Award

Until 28th February 2021 female entrepreneurs in leadership positions in Sub-Saharan Africa are invited to apply for the women empowerment award. Five entrepreneurs with solutions for health, nutrition, and sustainable agriculture-related challenges will be honored with the award. They will be announced at the end of April and officially awarded in a ceremony in May.

Collaborating with the Bayer Foundation brings Significant Progress

Bayer Foundation has a strong track record of supporting female-led social enterprises. One example includes the Kenyan InsurTech startup Pula. Led by Co-CEO Rose Goslinga, Pula bundles insurance products with farm inputs, such as fertilizer, seeds, or credit. This substantially lowers risks for farmers across Sub-Saharan Africa who want to invest in more expensive, higher-yielding inputs. The insurance provides income stability for farmers who are at the mercy of droughts, floods, and pests.

Female leader Rose Goslinga values this collaboration immensely: “Bayer Foundation brings insights and visibility to our work. To make significant progress towards the SDG on combating hunger, we all need to get smarter about how to engage with smallholder farmers and Bayer Foundation and MercyCorps are great partners to learn with and help share those learnings with the broader ecosystem.”