Social Innovation Awards
The Social Innovation Awards programme is aimed at entrepreneurs and social enterprises whose products, services or business models respond to real barriers faced by women, youth, people living in rural areas and persons with disabilities. They recognise innovators with prototypes or early-stage businesses tackling social challenges across sectors such as health, housing, rural livelihoods, energy, water and financial inclusion.
The awards offer funding, alongside tailored mentorship, technical support and business development assistance to help strengthen and scale early-stage ventures.
Since 2015, the programme has invested over R88 million in funding and business development support, backing more than 200 innovators. These ventures collectively employ more than 4 000 people and support over 16 000 livelihoods.
R88.9 million
Total invested
203
Social innovators supported
150%
Increase in jobs
204%
Increase in turnover
"Just as ripples spread out when a single pebble is dropped into water, the actions of individuals can have far-reaching effects."
Dalai Lama
Applications to this year’s Social Innovation and Disability Empowerment Awards are currently closed.
Send us your details to be notified when the next the next awards are open for applications.
Stories.
Breast cancer remains the highest rate of mortality in South African women and those living in rural areas face multiple barriers in screening.
Kathryn Malherbe, CEO and founder of Medsol, is working on the development of deep machine learning (DML) and artificial intelligence (AI) software that addresses this issue.
This month we shine the spotlight on Syked, a virtual private counselling platform for individuals looking for alternative ways of seeking mental health support without putting themselves at risk.
A digital crowdfunding platform that enables individuals to invest in agribusinesses owned by small holder farmers.
A social enterprise supporting communal farmers to build a sustainable farming model that provides market access for red meat producers.
Dr. Daemon McClunan is the owner and founder of Optishunt, an implantable device that prevents blindness in glaucoma patients by draining excess fluid out of the eye to equalise pressure between the eye and the optic nerve.
Ejoobi is a tech platform that allows job seekers in rural areas, without internet access, to send their CVs to recruiters via SMS or USSD. Job seekers also receive cloud storage, alerts and job adverts via the platform.
Regenize were awarded R1.3 million in the 2019 Social Innovation and Disability Empowerment awards.
Having recently won the SAB Foundation Social Innovation Award, 2019 is set to be a good year for Sowetan entrepreneur Nhlanhla Ndlovu and his innovative affordable housing business, Hustlenomics.
Abalobi was co-founded by Serge Raemakers, Abongile Ngqongwa and Nicolaas Waldeck in 2015, with the aim to improve fisheries management, the lives of small-scale fishers and to create a social enterprise agency for them.
Lindokuhle Duma is the founder of a Durban-based company, Iziko Stoves. Iziko Stoves are innovative cooking and braai stoves that utilize wood, coal or any biomass materials as a cooking fuel.
