CATAL1.5°T launches its acceleration program dedicated to SMEs and start-ups in West Africa

Foster investment in climate, innovation and entrepreneurship in Global South

Launched in 2024, the CATAL1.5°T initiative continues its deployment with the kick-off of the acceleration program in West Africa.

CATAL1.5°T is a global initiative to finance and support 180 start-ups in Latin America and West Africa and is broken down into four programs dedicated to small and medium-sized businesses, start-ups and their networks and ecosystems.

Indeed, more and more companies in the South are getting involved in the fight against global warming. They are developing solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but are unable to obtain the necessary financing, due to a shortage of support and of financial investors in these regions.

Technical partners such as Investisseurs & Partenaires (I&P), Climate KIC, Tecnológico de Monterrey are working alongside GIZ to contribute to the fight against global warming.

The initiative is funded by the international Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) for an initial term of six years.

West Africa call for proposal is now open!

In West Africa, the CATAL1.5°T Accelerator program has just been launched.

Through seed funding and technical support, it will help early-stage SMEs and start-ups to develop their products and services more quickly by giving them access to technical assistance and seed funding (between 50 000 € and 200 000€).

Selection criteria

In West Africa, the CATAL1.5°T program will support 30 companies meeting the following criteria:

• Registered in one of the 8 West African countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Togo).
• Run by women and men dedicated full-time to their business and wishing to collaborate with a group of investors.
• Operating in the sectors of energy access and power generation; low-emission transportation; buildings, cities, industries, appliances; forestry and land use.
• The solution (product or service) proposed by the company enables greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced or avoided, or carbon to be sequestered.
• Meets one of the following criteria: Less than 50 employees; or less than $3MUSD in assets; or less than $3MUSD in sales.

Selection process

Investisseurs & Partenaires will be in charge of identifying eligible companies, monitoring applications and supporting SMEs.

Women-led companies are strongly encouraged to apply.

Companies eligible for the Acceleration program are invited to submit their applications.