IDC Innovation Fund (PYEI / NPMN)

IDC Innovation Fund — Round 3

Supports projects that reduce youth employment barriers in South Africa through innovation grants for social ventures.

⚠ This may reflect a past cycle — verify the current call on the funder's site.

The IDC Innovation Fund is a grant initiative administered jointly by the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC) and the National Department of Employment and Labour, operating under the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI) and the National Pathway Management Network (NPMN). The fund specifically targets organizations proposing innovative solutions to structural barriers that prevent young people — particularly those in marginalised communities — from accessing labour markets and economic opportunities. It is explicitly described as a grant, not a loan or recoverable investment.

Round 3 of the Innovation Fund closed on 23 September 2025. Applications were submitted by email to InnovationFund@idc.co.za through a Terms of Reference and Expression of Interest process. Eligible applicants included for-profit companies, non-profit organizations, universities, and research institutions operating in South Africa; individual applicants were not eligible. The fund's three thematic priorities are stimulating demand for youth employment, driving systems change in how institutions connect young people to economic pathways, and linking marginalised youth to concrete economic opportunities. Award amounts are not specified in published documentation; applicants request budget details from IDC or through the ToR process.

Round 3 is closed and results are expected to be communicated to Round 3 applicants through the IDC process. Organizations interested in future rounds should monitor idc.co.za/innovationfund for the release of a Round 4 Terms of Reference and submit an Expression of Interest promptly on publication. The strongest proposals historically address the demand-side of youth employment in geographic areas with limited economic infrastructure, backed by credible organizational track records in youth labour-market interventions.