Deadline Date: March 16, 2026
The SWITCH to Circular Economy in East and Southern Africa (SWITCH-2-CE in ESA) programme has launched a Call for Projects to strengthen access to finance and technical assistance for circular economy businesses in the plastics, packaging, and e-waste value chains across East and Southern Africa.
The programme aims to foster an inclusive transition to a circular economy across the region by supporting policy reform, skills development, and private sector investment, with a focus on plastics and packaging and electronics value chains. It seeks to establish an enabling and inclusive policy framework at national and regional levels, enhance the participation of formal and informal workers and SMEs including women and youth in circular economy models, and improve access to and use of financing by circular economy businesses, particularly women-owned and women-led enterprises. Under this Call for Projects, the priorities include strengthening the technical, operational, and financial capacity of circular economy start-ups and MSMEs; providing flexible and targeted grant funding to develop, test, validate, or scale circular economy products and services; enhancing access to follow-on financing, partnerships, and market linkages; and promoting inclusive entrepreneurship through gender-responsive and youth-focused approaches.
The SWITCH-2-CE in ESA programme is a regional initiative co-financed by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and jointly implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Expertise France. The programme is designed to address critical barriers that limit the scale-up of circular economy solutions, particularly the limited access to appropriate financing and insufficient technical and managerial support for early-stage and growing businesses.
This Call for Projects is implemented under Specific Objective 3, focusing on improving access to finance for circular economy enterprises. A dedicated Facility has been established as a catalytic instrument combining grant funding and targeted technical assistance to support start-ups and MSMEs at different stages of development. Expertise France is responsible for implementing financing and technical assistance mechanisms targeting seed and early growth-stage enterprises.
The Call is structured into two complementary lots. Lot 1 – Innovation focuses on early or pre-seed stage circular economy solutions requiring support to develop, test, and validate innovative business models and products. Lot 2 – Scaling targets post-revenue growth or seed-stage start-ups and MSMEs that aim to consolidate, scale operations, and move toward financial sustainability and investment readiness.
The total available amount for this Call for Projects is €6,000,000, including management fees and related expenses. Of this amount, €1,000,000 is allocated to Lot 1 – Innovation, with grants ranging from €200,000 to €500,000. Lot 2 – Scaling has an allocation of €5,000,000, with grants ranging from €500,000 to €2,500,000.
Eligible applicants must be legal entities established in one of the targeted East and Southern Africa countries, including Kenya, or entities established outside these countries provided they apply in partnership with at least one local organisation. Applicants must operate as Entrepreneurial Support Organisations such as incubators, accelerators, venture builders, or grant-managing organisations, and must demonstrate operational and financial capacity to manage grant funds and deliver technical assistance to multiple beneficiaries. They must also have proven experience in managing donor-funded programmes and structured business support initiatives relevant to the lot applied for, as well as demonstrated experience in supporting women-owned and women-led enterprises through gender-responsive approaches.
Through this Call, the programme seeks to mobilise experienced Entrepreneurial Support Organisations capable of delivering structured support programmes that combine financial assistance with tailored technical support. The initiative aims to build a strong pipeline of innovative, scalable, and sustainable circular economy businesses that can contribute to environmental sustainability, economic development, and inclusive growth across East and Southern Africa.
For more information, visit Expertise France SAS.
