Deadline:30TH March, 2026
Are you ready to pilot a solution that addresses the needs of smallholder farmers, rural communities, and indigenous populations? Join the Moonshots for Development Open Innovation Challenge, an initiative powered by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the IDB Lab, the CGIAR Accelerate for Impact Platform (A4IP), the European Space Agency (ESA), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the International Innovation Hub (IIH) and the European Institute of Innovation for Sustainability (EIIS).
Through this challenge, they are looking for solutions that build resilient food systems across four challenge tracks: (1) Insurance, (2) Agroecology, (3) Digital Extension, and (4) Fragility, with particular interest in solutions that use AI and geospatial analysis to create positive impact for smallholder farmers and/or rural communities.
They are excited by solutions that center the rural communities, ensuring the impact of these solutions is accessible to smallholder farmers and rural households. In cases where solutions are engaging end-users directly, technology should be context appropriate, accounting for issues like internet connectivity and feature phone prevalence.
Benefits
Offering up to $360,000 in funding and support to teams and paving the way for groundbreaking success. Teams chosen for this remarkable opportunity will embark on an innovation journey that will take their ideas to the next level:
-
Begin with the Phase 0 virtual bootcamp, a dynamic launchpad designed to propel business model development, enriched by a month of personalized mentorship that will set the foundation for success in later stages.
-
Select teams progress to Phase 1, where startups can secure up to $10,000 USD. This phase offers bespoke coaching tailored to your unique business needs, with exclusive access to M4D’s invaluable resources and networks.
-
Top teams advance to Phase 2, with up to $100,000 USD in funding, along with comprehensive pilot and implementation support to bring your vision to life.
-
Finalists in Phase 3 have the potential to earn up to $250,000 USD and receive unparalleled support to scale your enterprise to new heights.
2025-2026 M4D Challenge Tracks
The Open Innovation Challenge invites innovators to pilot solutions aligned with four thematic tracks that address critical levers for building resilient food systems.
Insurance Solutions for Resilient Food Systems
M4D seeks innovations that expand access to and effectiveness of insurance solutions for smallholder farmers and rural enterprises. Solutions should strengthen climate, crop, or livestock insurance products, or promote digital platforms that lower costs and improve trust, transparency, and uptake of insurance products. Solutions must credibly improve the resilience of food systems.
- Track 2
Reducing the Drivers of Fragility
M4D seeks innovations that strengthen the resilience of rural communities and institutions facing fragile situations — where people experience high vulnerability to natural and human-made shocks, weak governance, and limited institutional capacity. Solutions under this track should demonstrate how they actively identify and address priority drivers of fragility affecting smallholder farmers and rural communities; promote prevention and resilience, tackling root causes rather than symptoms; apply a “do no harm” approach, ensuring inclusiveness and sensitivity to conflict and vulnerability; and adapt to fragile contexts, maintaining engagement even when situations evolve. Solutions may be piloted or scaled in fragile contexts or situations, and applicants should articulate how their innovation contributes to reducing fragility in their target area.
Digital Extension for Accountable Service Delivery
M4D seeks digital tools that enhance the accountability, efficiency, and reach of agricultural and rural advisory services. Solutions might include data-driven extension platforms, or automated decision-support systems that improve timeliness, transparency, and inclusion in service delivery. Pilots must demonstrate an ability to strengthen local institutions and their service delivery to smallholder farmers.
Agroecology for Productive, Climate-Resilient Systems
M4D seeks innovations that advance agroecological transitions by bridging sustainable production practices, ecosystem services, and inclusive market access to strengthen rural livelihoods, resilience, and food security and nutrition.
Solutions may include digital and financial innovations that enable agroecological practices at scale; new approaches to technical assistance, knowledge sharing, and co-creation with producers; the production and use of bio-inputs and biocontrols; adapted small-scale mechanization; integrated soil fertility management and soil restoration; improved access to and management of adapted genetic materials; circular and efficient resource use; applications of geospatial analysis, remote sensing, and Earth observation data tailored to smallholder and diversified production systems; and solutions that foster agroecological production, certification, traceability, and value addition through local and territorial market systems.
The Challenge also encourages crosscutting approaches that strengthen the effectiveness and scalability of solutions:
Geospatial Analysis
The M4D Alliance has special interest in innovations that leverage Geospatial Analysis to advance solutions related to the challenges described above: insurance, agroecology, digital extension, and fragility.
AI for Good
Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to enhance efficiency, accuracy, and responsiveness of solutions across all tracks. Applicants are encouraged to consider solutions that embed AI to accelerate data interpretation, enhance prediction & modeling, personalize advisory services, or otherwise enable proposed solutions.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the Moonshots for Development Open Innovation Challenge, applicants MUST:
-
Be committed: The proposal should include at least one team member in a key leadership role. A team lead (CEO, CTO, founder, etc.) must commit to full participation in the program, which will include a virtual bootcamp and one month of tailored mentorship sessions. Applicants will commit to applying for subsequent stages of the program, if given the opportunity, and to learning and adaptation via stage-gate reviews, life-cycle analysis, and a scaling strategy coordinated with M4D and partner programmes.
-
Align with M4D Priorities: Presented innovations should strengthen local institutions & community governance for accountable service delivery and social cohesion, improve food & nutrition security via resilient, inclusive food systems and last-mile market/extension access, advance sustainable natural resource management & climate adaptation, including anticipatory action, and/or empower women, youth and vulnerable groups with gender-transformative, youth-inclusive approaches that make them agents of resilience.
-
Demonstrate a dedication to positive impact and your selected innovation track: Applicants should be able to show impact aligned with at least one Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), directly address challenges faced by smallholder farmers, enhance rural resilience and/or promote rural development, and align with one of the following innovation tracks: (1) Insurance, (2) Agroecology, (3) Digital Extension, and (4) Fragility, with particular interest in solutions that use AI and geospatial analysis to create positive impact for smallholder farmers and/or rural communities.
-
Be a legally registered enterprise: The enterprise should be legally established or formally registered, have a validated business model, and a functional product or service already deployed in a live environment.
What type of entities can apply to the challenge?
The Challenge welcomes legally established for-profit and non-profit organizations with validated business models, led by senior decision-makers and offering a functional product or service already operating in a live or commercial setting. Applicants should demonstrate organizational capacity for piloting, coordination, and learning, and a clear commitment to inclusion- particularly in reaching women and youth.
Organization types can include:
-
Sole Proprietorship: Your business is owned and run by one individual, with no legal distinction between the owner and the business.
-
Partnership: Your business is owned and operated by two or more individuals, who share in the profits and losses.
-
Corporation: A legal entity separate from its owners, offering limited liability protection.
-
Limited Liability Corporation – LLC: A structure that protects your personal assets, like a corporation, but with tax flexibility and management ease of a partnership.
-
Other: If you aren’t sure where your team fits, reach out to our team ([email protected]) who can help guide your application process.
Application Process
All applications must be submitted via VentureWell’s online application platform. All deadlines end at 11:59pm Eastern Time on the deadline date unless otherwise indicated.
To access an existing account or create a new one click here. Then sign in, go to “Open Opportunities” and click on Moonshots for Development (M4D) Open Innovation Challenge 2025/26 to begin your application.
You may start, save, stop, and return to your application at any time before submitting. We recommend that you start your application at least 1 week before the deadline to leave ample time to edit, proofread, and gather supporting documentation.
Required Components:
In addition to all required text fields, which will require you to answer questions about yourself, your organization, and your solution and how it aligns with the M4D Open Innovation Challenge, we will also ask you to include these components:
-
Resumes (Required): PDF file upload or link to a PDF containing up to four resumes for key personnel who would implement the proposed solution. You can upload or link the file, you do not need to do both.
-
Pitch Deck (Required): A file upload or a link to a file that explains your proposed solution. PDF format is preferred, but Powerpoint and Apple Keynote files can be submitted. You can upload or link the file, you do not need to do both.
-
Pitch Video (Required): A video upload or a link to a video that introduces yourself and your solution in 2 minutes or less. You can upload or link the file, you do not need to do both.
-
To add a video link, you could create the video using a platform like YouTube, Vimeo, Instagram, Facebook, etc. and then share the link. Make sure the sharing settings allow for public viewing so we can access the file.
-
For more information.