Citi Foundation announces recipients of Inaugural Global Innovation Challenge

Citi Foundation has announced the recipients of its first-ever Global Innovation Challenge, a new model to identify and provide philanthropic support to community organisations that are developing innovative solutions to social and economic challenges faced by low-income communities.

The inaugural Global Innovation Challenge is providing a total of $25 million to 50 community organisations working to improve food security and strengthen the financial health of low-income families and communities around the world.

The list of grantees includes the International Development Enterprises (iDE), which runs a programme helping ethnic minority rice farmers in Vietnam overcome climate-related challenges by using efficient technologies and creating sustainable businesses to boost their rice production.

The iDE has been operating in Vietnam since 1991. The organisation has been working closely with the Vietnamese government to increase the income of the poor, addressing agricultural challenges as well as expanding access to sanitation.

As recipients of Citi Foundation’s inaugural Global Innovation Challenge, each organisation has been granted $500,000 to support programmes across four key areas: food access, availability, affordability and community resilience.

Innovations range from launching apps that will connect food supply and demand to piloting new technology and sustainable farming practices to setting up urban gardens and more.

“Philanthropic capital plays a critical role in the marketplace of social solutions and the Citi Foundation’s Global Innovation Challenge is designed to help new ideas grow and scale,” said Brandee McHale, president of the Citi Foundation and head of Citi Community Investing and Development.

“From providing immediate relief to those in crisis to longer-term interventions, the organisations that make up our first-ever Global Innovation Challenge cohort are delivering life-changing solutions that strengthen the health of low-income communities.”

The grants span two years and over the course of the initiative, grantees will have access to a learning community facilitated by IDEO.org, a non-profit design studio. Through a digital platform and a set of curated experiences, grantees will have the opportunity to collaborate, share lessons learned and exchange best practices.

The Citi Foundation announced the Global Innovation Challenge in February 2023. Over 1,000 submissions were received from organisations working in more than 80 countries.

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