Ever heard of Justice Innovation? Until relatively recently, neither had I. But, for some reason, justice entrepreneurship is catching on as a major field of innovation in Kenya, like health and finance. So much so that HiiL Innovating Justice is offering up to 2 million KSH in equity-free funding for great ideas that transform the justice sector. As if 2 million KSH wasn’t enough, winners receive:
- Business Development Services and Acceleration;
- Showcasing and exposure internationally
- Access to an international network of mentors
- Potential future funding, and assistance finding more
Come to think of it, this makes sense. Innovations often occur in areas where significant gaps that need to be bridged.
Do you remember how difficult it was to send money before M-Pesa? That’s what made M-Pesa such a game-changer. And from the stifling lack of access to capital for small-scale entrepreneurs, M-Kopa was born.
An estimated 4 billion people worldwide lack access to justice. Long court procedures, expensive legal help, discrimination, infringement of intellectual property and others contribute to challenges that people in Kenya, including entrepreneurs, face in their daily lives.
The rise of the Silicon Savannah may be the answer to many of these issues with tech playing a major role in bridging these gaps in many parts of the world.
“Social enterprises are the new frontier in sustainable development,” notes Ahmed Farah, HiiL Innovating Justice’s liaison in Kenya, “We’re keen on supporting scalable, sustainable companies keen on making an impact.” Applicants are particularly encourage to explore innovations in areas such as:
- Crime and Law Enforcement — innovations improving relations between citizens and police or improving crime reporting
- Family Justice — innovations helping families solve disputes or injustices around, for example, divorce, birth, child rights
- Neighbor Disputes — innovations creating efficient, effective, and fair ways to solve disputes between neighbors
- Employment Justice — innovations addressing employment disputes, business formalization, work conditions or job security
- Migration and Human Trafficking — innovations tackling injustices felt by migrants including rights enforcement, safe travel, and basic security needs
- Land Disputes — innovations solving land disputes over title/ownership or improving protection of property rights
Applications in other themes will be accepted as long as they have a justice component.
To date, through 40 of its best innovations, HiiL Innovating Justice has provided access to justice for 1.4 million people worldwide. Will you be the next big justice entrepreneur?
The application deadline is June 30th 2017.
Apply at innovatingjustice.com or click here!
Contact ahmed.farah@hiil.org for queries, feedback or advice.
