Gender Summit 2025 – Innovation Pitchathon: A Unique Opportunity for Change-Makers

If you’re an innovator, entrepreneur, researcher, or a determined changemaker whose work transforms lives in Child Nutrition, Maternal Health, or Agriculture—your moment has arrived. The Gender Summit 2025 – Innovation Pitchathon is now open for applications. This unique opportunity invites you to pitch your tangible, scalable innovation to decision-makers who can help accelerate your impact across Africa.

Pitchathon Summary

• Location: Abuja, Nigeria (at the Gender & Inclusion Summit, held in hybrid format)

• Host Institution: Policy Innovation Centre (PIC) in partnership with Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, and supported by institutions including the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) and Gates Foundation

• Type: Innovation-focused; applicable for prototype, pilot, early-scale stage, and established solutions in need of scale or partnership

• Target Group: Innovators, entrepreneurs, researchers, startups, social enterprises, NGOs, or community-based initiatives impacting African communities

• Fields of Focus: Child Nutrition, Maternal Health, Agriculture (single or multiple areas)

• Value & Coverage: Fully covered trip—travel, accommodation—plus 3-month post-summit design support at the PIC Innovation Lab

• Duration: 3 months (post-summit design support) plus coverage of summit attendance

• Application Deadline: 22 August 2025 

• Notification of Selected Pitches: 25 August 2025 

• Summit Dates: 3–4 September 2025 in Abuja, Nigeria—hybrid event with both in-person and virtual components

• Eligibility: Applicants must be based in or actively operating in Africa; innovation must be tangible and implementable in real-world settings

🔍 Overview

The Pitchathon forms a centerpiece of the broader Gender & Inclusion Summit (GS-25), themed “New Voices and New Approaches for Accelerating an Inclusive Society.” Organized by the PIC, the summit will include:

• Interactive plenaries, thematic breakout sessions, roundtables, exhibitions, oral and poster presentations, and learning workshops—all designed to foster inclusive dialogue and tangible solutions

• A hybrid format, enabling both in-person engagement (Abuja) and virtual participation, drawing over 1,000 participants from policymaking, civil society, development partners, academia, and grassroots movements

Within this framework, the Innovation Pitchathon offers:

• A platform to present your project to high-level stakeholders—government officials, development partners, funders, and ecosystem enablers

• Pre-pitch orientation support for selected innovators, ensuring your pitch is polished and impactful

• Post-summit support: 3-month design support through the PIC Innovation Lab, giving you expert mentorship to refine and scale your solution

🎁 Benefits Highlight

This opportunity isn’t just symbolic—it comes with real, actionable support:

• All-expense paid trip to participate in the Summit, including travel and accommodation

• Visibility and connection with an influential network of decision-makers across sectors who can champion your innovation

• Design and strategic support post-summit, helping you iterate and elevate your solution through the PIC Innovation Lab

✅ Eligibility Criteria

To be considered, your submission must meet the following:

• Real-world implementation: Innovations must be beyond the idea stage. Prototype, pilot, early-scale, or ready-to-scale solutions are all welcome

• Sectoral relevance: Must address challenges in Nutrition, Maternal Health, and/or Agriculture

• Applicant type: Innovators, startups, entrepreneurs, social enterprises, NGOs, researchers, or community initiatives with African operational impact

📝 Application Process

Interested candidates can apply by filling the online application form

📆 Key Dates to keep in mind:

• Submit application: 22 August 2025

• Await notification of selection: 25 August 2025

• Summit & Pitchathon participation: 3–4 September 2025

💡Extra Context & Summit Theme

The broader GS-25 is part of PIC’s ongoing initiative to drive evidence-based, inclusive policymaking across Africa. This year’s summit emphasizes elevating underserved voices, examining how to use data to inform culturally relevant and scalable solutions, and tackling systemic inequities in healthcare, education, economic participation, digital access, and beyond . Key partners include government, civil society, academia, traditional and religious institutions, and development actors—all working together to co-create paths to an inclusive society .

⭐ Your Next Steps

1. Draft a compelling pitch—clear, concise, impactful—focus on your innovation’s change potential.

2. Collect supporting materials (visuals, results, pilot data) that demonstrate your product’s viability.

3. Submit before 22 August 2025 via the application link (referenced in Opportunity Desk or PIC’s channels) .

4. Prepare for pre-pitch orientation if selected: sharpen your presentation; be ready to engage with powerful stakeholders.

5. Leverage the 3-month design support to refine and scale your solution through PIC Innovation Lab post-summit.

🔗 Apply Now

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