Open Innovation Challenge

Are you ready to pilot a solution that addresses the needs of smallholder farmers, rural communities, and indigenous populations? Join us in the Moonshots for Development Open Innovation Challenge, an initiative powered by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the InterAmerican Development Bank Lab (IDB Lab) the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the European Space Agency (ESA), the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and the European Institute of Innovation for Sustainability (EIIS).

Through this challenge, we are looking for solutions that build resilient food systems across four challenge tracks: (1) Insurance, (2) Agroecology, (3) Digital Extension, and (4) Fragility, with particular interest in solutions that use AI and geospatial analysis to create positive impact for smallholder farmers and/or rural communities.

We are excited by solutions that center the rural communities, ensuring the impact of these solutions is accessible to smallholder farmers and rural households. In cases where solutions are engaging end-users directly, technology should be context appropriate, accounting for issues like internet connectivity and feature phone prevalence.

2025-2026 M4D Challenge Tracks

The Open Innovation Challenge invites innovators to pilot solutions aligned with four thematic tracks that address critical levers for building resilient food systems.

Insurance Solutions for Resilient Food Systems

M4D seeks innovations that expand access to and effectiveness of insurance solutions for smallholder farmers and rural enterprises. Solutions should strengthen climate, crop, or livestock insurance products, or promote digital platforms that lower costs and improve trust, transparency, and uptake of insurance products. Solutions must credibly improve the resilience of food systems.

Reducing the Drivers of Fragility

M4D seeks innovations that strengthen the resilience of rural communities and institutions facing fragile situations — where people experience high vulnerability to natural and human-made shocks, weak governance, and limited institutional capacity. Solutions under this track should demonstrate how they actively identify and address priority drivers of fragility affecting smallholder farmers and rural communities; promote prevention and resilience, tackling root causes rather than symptoms; apply a “do no harm” approach, ensuring inclusiveness and sensitivity to conflict and vulnerability; and adapt to fragile contexts, maintaining engagement even when situations evolve. Solutions may be piloted or scaled in fragile contexts or situations, and applicants should articulate how their innovation contributes to reducing fragility in their target area.

Digital Extension for Accountable Service Delivery

M4D seeks digital tools that enhance the accountability, efficiency, and reach of agricultural and rural advisory services. Solutions might include data-driven extension platforms, or automated decision-support systems that improve timeliness, transparency, and inclusion in service delivery. Pilots must demonstrate an ability to strengthen local institutions and their service delivery to smallholder farmers.

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Agroecology for Productive, Climate-Resilient Systems

M4D seeks innovations that advance agroecological transitions by bridging sustainable production practices, ecosystem services, and inclusive market access to strengthen rural livelihoods, resilience, and food security and nutrition.

Solutions may include digital and financial innovations that enable agroecological practices at scale; new approaches to technical assistance, knowledge sharing, and co-creation with producers; the production and use of bio-inputs and biocontrols; adapted small-scale mechanization; integrated soil fertility management and soil restoration; improved access to and management of adapted genetic materials; circular and efficient resource use; applications of geospatial analysis, remote sensing, and Earth observation data tailored to smallholder and diversified production systems; and solutions that foster agroecological production, certification, traceability, and value addition through local and territorial market systems.

Cross-Cutting Themes

The Challenge also encourages crosscutting approaches that strengthen the effectiveness and scalability of solutions:

Geospatial Analysis

The M4D Alliance has special interest in innovations that leverage Geospatial Analysis to advance solutions related to the challenges described above: insurance, agroecology, digital extension, and fragility.

AI for Good

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to enhance efficiency, accuracy, and responsiveness of solutions across all tracks. Applicants are encouraged to consider solutions that embed AI to accelerate data interpretation, enhance prediction & modeling, personalize advisory services, or otherwise enable proposed solutions.

Program Details

Do you have a new vision for the future of rural development waiting for the chance to be brought to life?

Now is the time! Innovators are invited to apply towards this transformative program, offering up to $360,000 in funding and support to teams and paving the way for groundbreaking success. Teams chosen for this remarkable opportunity will embark on an innovation journey that will take their ideas to the next level:

Begin with the Phase 0 virtual bootcamp, a dynamic launchpad designed to propel business model development, enriched by a month of personalized mentorship that will set the foundation for success in later stages.
Select teams progress to Phase 1, where startups can secure up to $10,000 USD. This phase offers bespoke coaching tailored to your unique business needs, with exclusive access to M4D’s invaluable resources and networks.
Top teams advance to Phase 2, with up to $100,000 USD in funding, along with comprehensive pilot and implementation support to bring your vision to life.
Finalists in Phase 3 have the potential to earn up to $250,000 USD and receive unparalleled support to scale your enterprise to new heights.