Application Deadline: 03/15/2022
Launched under Budget 2018, the Government of Canada’s Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES) aims to increase women-owned businesses’ access to the financing, talent, networks and expertise they need to start up, scale up and access new markets.
The WES Ecosystem Fund was designed to provide non-repayable contribution funding to projects led by not-for-profit organizations that would help close service gaps and strengthen capacity within the women entrepreneurship ecosystem in Canada.
Information on the 2018 recipients of funding is available here.
Through this call, the WES Ecosystem Fund will support not-for-profit organizations to strengthen capacity and address ecosystem gaps for diverse populations of women entrepreneurs. It will focus on fostering connections and cultivating networks, mentoring opportunities and resources/supports for women entrepreneurs.
Opportunities to compete for funding will be available for 2018 WES Ecosystem Fund recipients in the future. Please consult the WES webpage regularly for updates.
Eligibility
Current recipients of funding from the 2018 WES Ecosystem Fund call for proposals are not eligible to submit an application. Opportunities to compete for funding will be available for 2018 WES Ecosystem Fund recipients in the future. Please consult the WES webpage regularly for updates.
Applicant organizations must be a Canadian not-for-profit which operates at a local, regional or national level and falls under at least one of the following categories:
- Business and entrepreneur support organizations;
- Research/innovation hubs;
- Organizations that certify diverse suppliers in Canada;
- Indigenous organizations; and
- Business accelerators and incubators.
Eligible applicant organizations must be in operation for a minimum of one year (as of March 15, 2021). Applicants must demonstrate that they meet at least one of the following criteria:
- Have an established mandate focused on supporting women and/or women entrepreneurs; and/or
- Have existing programming (offered within the past one year) focused on women entrepreneurs/women skill development.
Please note: The Province of Quebec’s M-30 legislation may apply to Québec based applicants. Applicants are asked to identify if they are implicated by this legislation. This will not impact the assessment of the proposal.
For further information, consult the following website prior to submitting your application for funding: An Act respecting the Ministère du Conseil exécutif (M-30).
Application Procedure
Your application package must include the following:
- Completed application form.
- Proposal paper, no more than 10 pages in length (12-point font, double spaced) which includes the information outlined in Section 4 : Project Proposal Details (note, submissions that exceed this limit may be screened out).
- One year of past financial statements (audited or review engagement).
- Incorporation document.
- Completed Budget Detail Template.
- Sustainability Plan (covering period the period after funding ends 2024-25)
- Letter(s) of support from partners (signed by their authorized official) in the application (if applicable). Letter(s) must outline partner roles and contributions in delivering the required project, experience, expertise and knowledge.
- Agreement or Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between partners organizations (if applicable).
- Quebec based organizations only – Disclosure if M-30 legislation is applicable to your organization/proposed project
The Application Form and Budget Detail Template are secure PDFs and can only be opened in Microsoft Internet Explorer. However, if you use another browser (Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox etc.) or you have problems opening the PDFs, do not attempt to open the form in your browser.
Official Website:Women Entrepreneurship Strategy’s Ecosystem Fund Application Guide
