Apply to the Global Innovation Competition #GIC2016

Developments in technology and innovation mean that government and citizens can interact like never before. New tools and ways of working are inspiring people to use their voices and get involved with governance issues, and the open data and open government movements are supporting responses from governments all over the world.

Making All Voices Count is scouting the world for the best ideas that make the most of these new opportunities.

Our Global Innovation Competition 2016 is now open for applications from Ghana, South Africa, Kenya, Indonesia, the Philippines, Liberia, Tanzania, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Mozambique, Uganda and Nigeria.

Finalists at the Global Innovation Competition 2015

The competition offers up to 15 finalists the chance to meet together in Accra for a week of networking and mentoring. Finally, the teams will pitch their ideas at a live event that decides who will be the competition winners and win a grant from a £450,000 prize fund.

The themes for the competition this year support the goals of the Open Government Partnership and the Sustainable Development Goals, focussing on accountable, responsive governance.

What do we mean by innovation?

The Global Innovation Competition supports both offline and online approaches – often a combination of the two – and believes that innovation is about appropriate, impactful and sustainable technology.

 “It’s not only about the technology, but also how the project is deployed and its relevance to the cultural, political, economic and geographical needs of the end user” – Innovation Director Daudi Were.

How to apply

Find out more, and submit your application here.

Looking for inspiration?

Winners from previous Global Innovation Competitions have focussed on a range of issues, making sure ordinary people have a say in the governance issues that matter to them, and supporting government actors with the tools and training to respond.

These include a government-led initiative in Pakistan that uses SMS and geo-tagging to reduce maternal mortality, community radio to report on miscarriages of justice in South Africa, and a web platform that uses crowd-sourced information to help government in the Philippines to better coordinate their response to natural disasters (see Frei Sangil talk about her project in the video below, and read more about GIC 2015 finalists and winners here)