WOMEN ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT FOR LEBANON PROJECT (WEEL)

Apply as a Women-Owned or Women-Led MSME

Get the chance to receive a grant between €15,000 and €50,000 to strengthen and grow your women-led or women-owned MSME despite the challenging political, economic, and social environment in Lebanon.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Who can apply and then be pre-selected during phase 1?

  • Legally registered businesses in Lebanon, including cooperatives and firms in the social and solidarity economy.
  • Lebanese nationals as owners or CEOs.
  • Women and/or led businesses, namely:
    • (a) 51.0 percent ownership/stake by a woman or women
    • or (b) ≥20.0 percent owned by a woman/women AND ≥1 woman as CEO/COO (President/Vice-President) as well as ≥30.0 percent of the board of directors being women where a board exists
  • Already established Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, namely:
    • Micro-enterprise : 5 to 10 employees
    • Small enterprise : between 10 and 50 employees
    • Medium-sized enterprise: between 50 and 100 employees
  • Businesses/cooperatives working across sectors – priority will be given to firms outside the agricultural/agribusiness, but these last ones will be also considered if a very good proposal arise. This includes but is not limited to: IT and IT services, creative industries, financial services, education, health providers or health equipment producers, transporters, storage centers, processors, distributors, wholesalers, exporters and importers, retailers, manufacturing firms in general.
  • All employees must have a contract.
  • Companies will be up to date to their social security payment and tax obligations.
  • Eligible businesses will have to submit a plan on how they intend on using the funds/grant and will need to submit relative supporting documentation (quotations, invoices, receipts, etc..). These plans will be prepared with the help of experts and business advisors.

Selection Criteria

The Jury will evaluate business plans based on the following criteria:

  • Scalability: The business should fill a gap and/or showcase a strategy/plan that could be replicated elsewhere.
  • Added value: It can add clear value to not only the business but the sector more broadly.
  • Impact: The business proposal should aim to increase production, exports, quality of service or services offer filling a gap in the local, regional, or global market and employment creation. Backward and forward linkages within local value chains with potential to create indirect employment that will be considered and monitored. In addition, firms aiming to improve environmental practices through the introduction of environmental certifications/standards. Employment of women will highly be taken into account.
  • Innovation: The firm wants to implement innovations such as the introduction of new technologies, a new approach, or a new process that can improve processes and products/services.
  • Feasibility: The business can achieve results and finalize the implementation of the business plan within the duration of the project.
  • The solution must be cost effective with an expected high return on investment and a plan for how to ensure sustainable revenue beyond the support from the project.

Additional points will be given to:

  • Proposals that can empower women to create new businesses and/or have potential for increased employment of women and youth.
  • Proposals that are environmentally sustainable and reduce the negative impact on natural resources or the natural environment.
  • Companies with an ethos towards fair-trade, fight against climate change and protection of the environment, decent labour and anti-slavery in their supply chain, companies with corporate social responsibility.
  • Companies operating with informal businesses and willing to strengthen them to scale up and formalize.
  • Businesses that cannot access other sources of funding or already used other sources of funding to co-finance a business plan to scale up and are looking for additional resources to ensure the viability of financing without risking financial sustainability.
  • Firms with a maximum turnover of USD 500.000 or in the event that a company has profits that can justify the need for financing, which profits are between 10 and 20 percent of the turnover.

No companies linked with political parties and religious parties will be selected.

Project Phases

Phase 1: Call for proposals and Preparation for the Pitch Competition

Only firms complying with the Application Requirements will be considered for the first phase of the project.

Women owned and/or led businesses (WOLBs) applying to this first phase of the project are not necessarily granted the access to the financial and technical assistance award. This initial call for proposals will accept a larger number of firms of which those selected on a first phase will receive a two-weeks training to prepare their business plan. These firms will then participate in a competition in front of a jury to present the business case. The award of the financial and technical support package will be granted based on the decision of the jury.

In any case, firms not winning the competition will receive orientation so they can present their business case to other projects if these are available.

Phase 2: Financial and Technical Assistance Implementation

Financial and Technical Assistance Implementation

It is expected that the amounts to be requested by firm size vary. Firms can apply for financial and technical assistance support for amounts between Euros 15,000 to 50,000 depending on firm size and turnover. Micro firms can apply for a maximum of Euros 30,000, and Small and Medium to a maximum of Euros 50,000. However, the allocation will be also assessed by Berytech´s business´advisors in line with the intended objectives and business plan and not only based on the firm size which cannot determine the impact of the award. In any case, all firms will need to co-finance with 10% of the awarded amount.

The financial award will cover the tailored technical assistance support that will allow the firm to implement the business plan and introduce new innovations. It is estimated that the technical assistance allocation will range from 5 to 20% of the grant but cannot be determined prior to the selection of businesses, if not to be less effective in the allocation of resources.

Winners interested in export related capacity building will be given priority admission into the World Bank Group’s export programme with an expected specific training and support starting in June 2022.  

Start your application as an MSME

Please fill out and submit your application before May 15, 2022. If you need some additional information before applying, please contact us at support@berytech.org.

Applications are now closed

Funded by EU_EN

Implemented by Expertise France