Commonwealth Startup Fellowship 2025

To be eligible for these Fellowships, prospective Fellows must:

• Be of at least graduate level;
• Be a citizen of or have been granted refugee status by an eligible low or middle-income Commonwealth country;
• Be permanently resident in an eligible Commonwealth country;
• Be fluent in written and spoken English.
• Not have undertaken a Commonwealth Professional Fellowship within the last five years (at the time of taking up the award)
• Be available to undertake their fellowship from the prescribed start date
  
  

In addition, they must demonstrate:

• • Evidence of innovation, in terms of product, service, or market
  • Active development for at least six months and demonstrable commitment from team members
  • A working minimum viable ‘product’, service and/or prototype
  • Significant evidence of customer engagement or traction in the form of early sales or pre-sales . proof of interest or demand, signed contracts or other relevant evidence.
    
    

    Benefits

    • A cohort of 20 early stage start-ups will be recruited. One person from each business must be available to attend a two-week bootcamp in Accra, Ghana at the end of March 2025.
    • There is also the possibility for representatives from outstanding organisations to travel to London in the UK later in the year for a series of exciting capstone events.

    
    Financial assistance

    Each Fellowship provides:

    • Approved return travel from the Fellow’s home country to the in-person bootcamp in Accra, Ghana.
    • Accommodation, travel and catering for the duration of the in-person bootcamp in Accra, Ghana.
    • Reimbursement of the standard visa application fee.
    • Reimbursement of vaccination costs
    • Access to a Fellow’s Grant Fund for business or participation-related costs
    • If a Fellow declares a disability, a full assessment of needs and eligibility for additional financial support will be offered by the CSC.