We support individuals who have been living and working in Germany for some time and wish to start a business in their country of origin. Not just any kind of business, but a business that contributes to sustainable development in the country of origin.

Applicants should already have a specific business idea in mind and intend to set up their own business in their country of origin within the coming months. We currently support start-ups in the following countries: 

• Cameroon
• Colombia
• Ecuador
• Ghana
• India
• Serbia
• Tunisia
• Vietnam

Together with our experienced partners we offer advice and assistance to support entrepreneurs in starting their business –  from preparation to implementation. Our support starts in Germany and continues in the country of origin. The support we provide can vary considerably according to the business idea, the entrepreneur and the target country – it is tailored to your success. All ‘Business Ideas for Development’ laureates receive the following:

• Individual support and coaching in Germany and in your country of origin
• Financial assistance of EUR 7,000 to pay for market research and specific measures and services to start your business 
• Additional financial assistance to carry out your market research
• Support in finding investors and other useful business contacts
• Networking with other business founders, business networks and business incubators

To find out if a business idea will really work in a certain target market and if it can grow sustainably in the long run, you need good local information and contacts. You need to talk to potential customers, competitors, suppliers, business partners, banks and perhaps even with the regulatory authorities. We advise entrepreneurs on conducting local market research and assist them on-site, e.g. by putting them in touch with important contact persons.

A business plan provides a framework for the efficient implementation of a business idea. It is mainly designed for the founder’s own purposes, since it helps to structure ideas and thoughts and makes them understandable to others. It also helps to identify potential risks and weaknesses before getting started, thus reducing the chance of failure. Together with the financial plan, the business plan will be central to your efforts to persuade a bank or potential business partners that your business idea is worth backing. We support founders in preparing a sound business plan.

We cannot provide start-up capital. The entrepreneurs we support must secure financing for their projects themselves. However, we do support founders in finding additional funding options. These vary from country to country. In general, they include loans, guarantees or state-backed funding schemes. 

To begin with, we support founders in gaining an overview of their financial situation and making a realistic assessment of their capital requirements. We also assist them with the next step of approaching banks and potential investors – mainly by advising and assisting them in writing a convincing business plan and a solid financing plan, but also by putting them in direct contact with the right people.

All the entrepreneurs we support also receive funding for specific costs and services, as well as the additional advice and assistance listed under the previous question.  

Currently we support start-ups in the following partner countries:

• Cameroon
• Colombia
• Ecuador
• Ghana
• India
• Serbia
• Tunisia
• Vietnam

Generally, start-ups from all sectors and business segments can apply for assistance as part of our annual competition. For us, the decisive factor is the relevance of the idea in terms of its contribution to development: we only support start-ups whose businesses contribute to achieving the sustainable development goals of the agenda 2030. Our current calls for application focusses mainly on business ideas contributing to gender equality, climate change mitigation and the improvement of health care. Our commitment and focus is on international development and our goal is to support start-ups that contribute to sustainable development in our partner countries.

We support start-ups for a period of 12 months. However, some of our competitions have a shorter or longer support period. If this is the case, it will be announced in the respective competition. 

We are currently unable to provide support for businesses after the start-up phase. However, all founders who we have supported in starting their business will remain in our alumnus network and will continue to benefit from opportunities to attend training and networking events.

People interested can submit their application directly to us as part of our annual competition. Dates and deadlines will be communicated on this website and through our network.

If you would like to take part in a call for applications, the first step is to apply in writing by completing our application form and submitting it together with a curriculum vitae, a draft business plan, and the relevant supporting documents via mail. Applicants who convince us in their application and who meet our funding criteria will be invited to a pitch event. The pitch allows applicants to present their business ideas in detail and also to share more on their suitability and entrepreneurial spirit. Only the best business ideas will be selected.