Current Programs
Across our focus sectors, we build programs to incubate social enterprises that lie at the intersection of unique innovation, potential for high impact and the ability for sustainable scale.
Across our focus sectors, we build programs to incubate social enterprises that lie at the intersection of unique innovation, potential for high impact and the ability for sustainable scale.
Innovators for Bharat: Climate Resilient Agricultural Livelihoods is a program to provide incubation support to startups to create pan-India impact on agricultural livelihoods and make smallholder farmers resilient to climate change. The program aims to accelerate startups sustainably by providing them with equity seed funding, grant capital support, incubation support and ecosystem advocacy.
12, September , '23 - 11 October '23
Incase of any queries please write to shivang@villgro.org
Science and technology-based innovations are essential to positive social and environmental impact. However, for startups building such solutions, access to finance is a significant challenge. Lack of access to finance not only impedes their ability to scale, but also limits the positive impact they can create. Caspian Debt (A B-Corp certified lender) and Villgro jointly created a program to enable fast-track access to non-dilutive small ticket financing for early-stage, technology-driven social enterprises. We aim to solve problems around accessibility to debt funding and to help enterprises build a strong credit history.
21, September , '23 - 23 October '23
Incase of any queries please write to yukta@villgro.org
The Empower programme, in partnership with UNDP, will support women entrepreneurs with technical knowledge on business acceleration and guidance on digital transformation tools. Administered virtually, the project will benefit potential and existing women entrepreneurs across India. The main mode of intervention would be through structured webinars and online training sessions. By equipping women with these skills, Empower aims to enable them to thrive in their entrepreneurial endeavors, drive growth, and expand their businesses successfully.
19 July, '23 - 17 September, '23
4 Weeks
Incase of any queries please write to inclusion@villgro.org with the subject ‘EMPOWER’
TVARAN is a market access program by Villgro and an initiative by Cisco Corporate Social Responsibility. The program intends to support the growth and expansion of Women-led social enterprises in Climate Action. Applicants will be invited to share their Go-To-Market plans, basis which 5 women entrepreneurs will be selected for market connects, pilot/trial facilitation, technical assistance and mentorship jointly by Villgro and Cisco Corporate Social Responsibility. The 6-month acceleration phase will begin in February 2023 and will accelerate the market presence of innovations in renewable energy, water & waste management, and climate-smart agriculture, amongst others.
19 Oct, '22 - 22 Nov, '22
21 Nov, '22 - 15 Jan, '23
1 Feb, '23 - 31 July, '23
TVARAN Entrepreneurs will receive:
If you have any queries, write to Kalyani Krishna, Senior Associate – Diversity & Inclusion, Villgro : kalyani@villgro.org
The 'Sustainable Mobility Challenge' is a multi-pronged program targeting startups at different stages of maturity who are focussed on solving problems related to sustainable mobility. In a rapidly urbanizing country like India, although there is an increased focus on public infrastructure, there is a large gap when it comes to sustainable, convenient and cost-effective modes of transportation for large sections of society. At Villgro we believe that data and data-related technology can bridge this gap and hence are focused on creating a cohort of tech startups to bring about a socially impactful change in the mobility sector.
Early-stage, Market-ready and Revenue stage, For-profit enterprises that are working on areas of sustainable mobility as per the below sub-categories are encouraged to apply:
23rd Aug - 15 Nov, 2022
Selected startups receive the following benefits:
If you have any queries, write to Gowtham Sundararaju, Manager – Climate Action: gowtham@villgro.org
The Climate Smart Agriculture Program aims to support startups working to mitigate the environmental footprint of Indian Agriculture by using technology to reduce the use of inputs, water and emissions from agricultural activities while increasing productivity.
Early-stage Pilot ready for-profit startups focusing on the below problem areas can apply
17th Aug - 15th Nov, 2022
15th Nov - 20th Nov, 2022
30th Dec 2022
Selected startups receive the following benefits:
If you have any queries, write to Krithika R – Analyst, Agriculture at krithika@villgro.org
NIDHI Social Accelerator supported by NSTEDB DST aims to identify and select 15 startups creating innovative solutions in Agribusiness, Healthcare & Climate Action. In doing so, NIDHI Social Accelerator's vision is to enable startups to achieve their goal — of a developed, refined and strengthened go-to-market & finance strategy within a total 6 months period.
5th May- 31st May, 2022
1st June - 10th June, 2022
18th June - 22th June, 2022
23th June - 30th June, 2022
1st July to 31st December, 2022
You can direct any program related inquiries to info@villgro.org or mohammad@villgro.org
The Program, supported by USAID's MOMENTUM Country and Global Leadership: India-Yash, envisions creating a strong ecosystem of mid to late-stage investment-ready enterprises, addressing critical challenges in the Sexual and Reproductive Health space.
14th April-15th May, 2022
16th May-5th June, 2022
6th June-15th June, 2022
16th June, 2022-30th June, 2022
If you have queries on the selection process, support to incubatees, partnerships, investment and financing opportunities for the cohort enterprises, please email us at yep@villgro.org
TANSEED is a Grant Program by Tamil Nadu Startup And Innovation Mission (TANSIM), which serves as the policy implementation agency under the MSME Department, Government of Tamil Nadu. TANSIM has empanelled Villgro as its implementation partner to discover & support innovative enterprises working in the sectors of Agriculture, Climate Action & Livelihood, and also to provide incubation support to startups. TANSEED, shall support early stage financing requirements of the Startups in the form of grants to fill the gap in fund requirement for research & innovations, anything from mind to marketplace (which may also be patentable).
25th February-11th March, 2022
12th March-16th March, 2022
17th March - 19th March, 2022
20th March - 31st March, 2022
April-June 2022
June-December 2022
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in collaboration with AFD (Agence Française de Développement), have launched the Swachhata Startup Challenge to nurture the evolving ecosystem of the Indian waste sector. The goal is to support 10 startups working at the nexus of technology and social innovation to solve India’s waste management challenges by improving efficiency of waste management, increasing social impact, improving transparency of waste value chain and reducing the use of single use plastic.
27 January - 31 March, 2022
1 April - 30 April, 2022
1 May - 30 May, 2022
June 2022
Sectors: Agriculture, Healthcare, Climate Action
Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) aims to provide financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry and commercialization. The Seed Fund will be disbursed to eligible startups through eligible incubators such as Villgro.
In case you have any queries, write to Devansh Peshin, at devansh@villgro.org
Sectors: Agriculture, Healthcare, Energy & Cleantech
Invention Based Enterprises create lasting solutions that have the potential to address challenges at different scales. Because these enterprises are developing unique, physical products, they often require a longer time to market. They require specific expertise in prototyping, manufacturing and go-to-market strategies. Villgro works to help scale such businesses and strengthen support systems that allow them to thrive.
Villgro builds a nurturing environment for IBEs via high touch portfolio management, access to subject experts as mentors and technical assistance that builds long term value in – Product Design, Validation & Testing and Go-to-market Partnerships
We are building an open source business guide for invention based enterprises to help them grow from an idea into a sustainable business.
To know more or partner with us, write to us at info@villgro.org
Sectors: ShelterTech & Housing, Climate Action
The ShelterTech program aims to support the incubation and launch of high-impact, highly-scalable, innovation based sustainable & affordable housing startups registered in India. The program is run by Villgro Innovation Foundations and funded by Habitat for Humanity International, Inc - Terwilliger Center for Innovation in ShelterTech. If you are a startup working in the sustainable & affordable housing sector - solving problems through either sustainable building materials, access to housing, improving efficiency of the construction industry, etc apply to the program. Applications for the program are on a rolling basis.
Sectors: Cleantech
Powering Livelihoods, a CEEW-Villgro initiative launched in 2020, aims to boost India’s rural economy by scaling up the penetration of clean energy-powered appliances for livelihoods. Over three years, the initiative will support at least six enterprises to sustainably deploy at large scale. Villgro will also use the experience and evidence generated to add back and catalyse the sector. The initiative will also help these companies execute business strategies that are gender equitable and drive for a greater participation of women in the workforce.
Powering Livelihoods will meet the unique needs of each selected enterprise through dedicated financial, technical, and sectoral growth support. The program aims to achieve its objectives through the following key streams of activity:
Our incubation efforts will be tailored for each company to ensure technical effectiveness, business growth and financial viability.
Access to technical assistance worth upto USD 100,000 to bridge enterprise specific need gaps, and delivered through strategic technology partners.
Funding of up to USD 250,000 for each enterprise to help in scaling up and commercialising their technologies.
Funding for studies and research to generate evidence that can unlock additional support for similar enterprises. The program intends to build case studies and showcase business success to leverage greater interest and support for the sector.
Read more at www.poweringlivelihoods.org
Sectors: Agriculture / Water
India’s water challenges are widespread and complex; and agriculture has a significant role to play in ensuring our water security. The program moves beyond farm level and local community-led institutions to identify innovative solutions that can scale sustainably.
Villgro will discover and build a cohort of ten innovative enterprises that are working on
The program also seeks to make social entrepreneurship more gender equitable by reserving funding and incubation support for women led enterprises and for those companies whose end beneficiaries are predominantly women.
Our incubation efforts will include active facilitation of partnerships between social enterprises, grassroots organisations and public institutions.
Access to mentors and technical assistance to bridge enterprise specific need gaps, and delivered through strategic business and technology partners.
Seed funding that is adaptable to each enterprise depending on their ability and demonstration of scale up and commercialisation.
Funding for studies and research to generate evidence that can unlock additional support for enterprises and foster partnerships. The program intends to highlight new ways to build partnerships and collaboration in a nascent entrepreneurial sector.
Sectors: Healthcare
BioNest is an initiative by BIRAC to foster the biotech innovation ecosystem in India. Villgro, in association with the Mazumdar Shaw Medical Foundation (MSMF) and Narayana Health (NH) has been selected to support and strengthen innovations in low-cost medical care.
MSMF-NH will support these enterprises with access to physical infrastructure including the use of high end equipment and testing facilities; apart from clinical expertise from the Narayana Health hospital and access to the network of industry experts from the Mazumdar Shaw Medical Foundation.
Read more at www.tbi.ms-mf.org
Sectors: Energy & Cleantech
The BIRAC Social Innovation Immersion Program will support a cohort of innovators to understand and discover problems in India and mentor them to create viable products and services to solve them. These “Social Innovators” are focused on the themes of Waste to Value and Combating Environmental Pollution. Villgro will help individual innovators identify needs & gaps within communities, help gain valuable market insights and enable them to convert these insights into a feasible solution.
In the first cycle which lasts 18 months, a group of 5 Social Innovators have been identified to work on the waste to value theme, which will be followed by the second cycle of 18 months where another 5 Fellows will work on “Combating environmental pollution”. The first 6 months will be focussed on immersion where they will understand the waste ecosystem in India by interacting with various stakeholders and perusing secondary research and followed by a 12 months product development phase where they will be supported in designing scalable products and services that can create value out of the waste.
The SIIP offers Social Innovators the opportunity to work uninterrupted and in a mission mode to find a solution to their chosen problem statement. This will involve,
