Government of Canada 2021 Afri-Plastics Challenge: Accelerating Growth for African Entrepreneurs

Over 17 million tonnes of waste are generated by Sub-Saharan Africa annually, and only 12% of plastic waste is recycled. The Challenge aims to reduce marine plastics in Sub-Saharan African countries by developing and scaling innovative solutions to plastic mismanagement in a way that promotes gender equality and empowerment of women and girls.

The Challenge will help communities throughout Sub-Saharan Africa to prevent plastic waste from entering the marine environment by finding ways to minimize reliance on plastic and new ways of managing plastic waste.

• Table of Content
• About Government of Canada
• Afri-Plastics Challenge: Accelerating Growth
• Requirements for Afri-Plastics Challenge: Accelerating Growth Qualification
• Application Deadline
• How to Apply

About Government of Canada

The federal government of Canada is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. In Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council.

Afri-Plastics Challenge: Accelerating Growth

Requirements for Afri-Plastics Challenge: Accelerating Growth Qualification

We are looking for existing solutions to improve plastic waste management that can be scaled throughout the duration of the Challenge. Examples of a few of the types of organisations that may be interested in applying and scaling their businesses include; small-medium scale recyclers, waste picking organisations, waste management enterprises or small-medium buy-back centres. 

As depicted below, the two main strategies for mitigating plastic leakages at the downstream level include improved and intensified waste collection, and recycling – actions within these two dimensions are highly interdependent.

Application Deadline

How to Apply

The Afri-Plastics Challenge Strand 1 Accelerating Growth opens for entries on Wednesday, 21 July 2021, 09:00 (BST) and closes on Wednesday 15 September 2021 at 12 noon (BST).

Following the closing date on Wednesday 15 September 2021 at 12:00 noon (BST), entries for the will be screened for eligibility and assessed. A diverse portfolio of entries that best meet the relevant assessment criteria will be long-listed by a group of external assessors, then later shortlisted by a Judging Panel.

We strongly encourage all entrants to read the Applicant Handbook along with the full Terms and Conditions before entering the Challenge.

For more details, visit the website.

The Afri-Plastics Challenge is divided into three strands:

• Strand 1: Accelerating GrowthSeeking small and medium-sized enterprises that have a proof of concept and the ability to scale nationally or regionally to reach a high target number of people, particularly engaging women and girls.Learn more here.
• Strand 2: Creating Solutions (Launching September 2021)A call for new ideas particularly those that respond to a particular gap in the innovation landscape in specific Sub-Saharan African countries or with specific population groups.
• Strand 3: Promoting Change (Launching December 2021)A call for large scale campaigns that raise awareness and engage women and girls in the plastics value chain.