Deadline: 23-Jan-23

The Swiss Re Foundation is inviting applications from social entrepreneurs working to make healthcare financially more accessible in low and middle-income countries.

The Swiss Re Foundation Entrepreneurs for Resilience Award recognises initiatives by female and male entrepreneurs that take innovative approaches to build resilient societies in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The Swiss Re Foundation aims to make basic healthcare accessible to at least 1 million more people by 2024. This call for applications is an invitation to female and male social entrepreneurs working in LMICs to make healthcare financially more accessible in low-income communities. The 2023 Entrepreneurs for Resilience Award focuses on innovative solutions that increase financial access to healthcare in low-income communities.

Key Areas of Support

• The 2023 Entrepreneurs for Resilience Award focuses on innovative, market-based solutions that increase financial access to healthcare in low-income communities, and that:
  • increase household resources available for healthcare, such as:
    • savings solutions that make it easier and cheaper for people to allocate resources to healthcare and/or
    • payment solutions that make healthcare more affordable and/or better adapted to cash flow constraints or that boost compliance with chronic disease treatment: and/or
    • credit solutions that allow people to pay for more expensive treatments: and/or
    • solutions that facilitate remittances from friends and family abroad to enable healthcare access and/or
    • mechanisms incentivise to and/or scale preventative healthcare provision and uptake
  • reduce health shocks that can lead to poverty or economic vulnerability after a disease or an accident, such as:
    • microinsurance schemes that increase health insurance access and/or uptake
    • financial schemes that pool resources for healthcare, optimising and improving access to affordable care for the group as a whole
    • other “safety nets” and risk mitigation mechanisms
• They encourage enterprises that fall within the scope above and that meet the following criteria to apply.

Award Details

• A total grant of USD 700 000 for the three finalists. This amount is divided among the winner (which may receive up to USD 350 000) and the two runners-up and paid in instalments over two to three years.
• Non-financial support such as coaching and technical advice from Swiss Re employees and experts, tailored to each finalist’s needs.
• Members of the general public are invited to vote for their favourite finalist. The recipient of the most votes wins the People’s Choice Award and receives a special prize.

Geographical Location: Applicants must operate in countries that are defined as low-income or lower-middle-income by the World Bank.

Target Groups

• At least 30% of the people served by applicants must come from poor to very poor communities. Applicants should have a deep understanding of the specific circumstances of the people – both women and men – they serve (eg barriers to using financial instruments to better manage their healthcare).
• They will prioritise enterprises that are gender-inclusive.

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must demonstrate high levels of social impact and are ideally able to measure it in a reliable manner (eg, improved health indicators or/and reduced out-of-pocket expenses).
• Applicants must be formally established, serve at least 20 000 people and have the potential to reach at least 100 000 people in the coming three years. They should also be on a clear path to financial sustainability yet still require grants (or other support) to improve their business model, reach low-income households and/or attain full financial sustainability.
• Applicants must use digital technology or have highly digitalised processes to deliver value to underserved populations at scale.
• Applicants must have a solid management team where responsibilites are distributed and well defined. They should also have a diverse, well-structured workforce.
• Applicants must comply with the legal framework of the country or countries in which they operate and are registered and must be allowed to receive grant funding from a Swiss non-governmental organisation such as the Swiss Re Foundation.

For more information, visit Swiss Re Foundation.