The Embassy of Finland in New Delhi and UNICEF have launched a global call for applications from tech startups in low- and middle-income countries developing femtech solutions. The initiative aims to identify and invest in technological solutions that improve the health, wellness, and socioeconomic participation of women and girls worldwide.
Through the UNICEF Venture Fund, selected startups will receive grant funding and one year of mentoring support. The call specifically targets early-stage tech startups developing open-source solutions using cutting-edge technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and blockchain. Interested companies can apply at unicef.link/FemTechCall before the May 8, 2025 deadline.
“Women and girls represent half of the world’s population and half of its potential. Investing in fem tech solutions is key to unlocking their socio-economic potential. UNICEF and Finland have a shared purpose to catalyze innovation in emerging economies like India to help accelerate progress and achieve global social impact,” says Kimmo Lähdevirta, Ambassador of Finland to India.
Finland is a founding partner of the UNICEF Venture Fund. The Embassy of Finland in New Delhi convened representatives from both private and public sectors at an event launching the inaugural annual call for applications for the Fund’s femtech initiative, which will run from 2025 to 2030.
The press release highlights several concerning statistics that underscore the urgent need for innovative solutions in women’s health and economic participation:
- As of 2023, one in five young women worldwide were married before the age of 18
- In 31 countries, about 1 in 3 girls aged 15-19 have undergone genital mutilation
- Every two minutes, a woman dies from cervical cancer, making it the fourth most common cancer in women but also the most preventable
- On average, 31 percent of women globally are not in education, training, or employment, with the largest gap in Central Asia and Southern Asia
- Approximately 740 million women in developing economies remain unbanked, representing over 55 percent of the total unbanked adult population in these regions
“The use of technology like AI and blockchain for social impact has the potential of changing lives at scale and closing the gap for girls and women who are still too often left behind or excluded from innovation and research. Today’s global call pushes the door wide open with an investment opportunity for innovators harnessing breakthrough technology for social impact,” says Cynthia McCaffrey, UNICEF Representative, India.
The UNICEF Venture Fund has been operating for 10 years, designing portfolios of initiatives around breakthrough technologies in developing economies. Building on its first decade of social venture investment, the Fund now aims to double the impact of investments to reach more people in more countries in half the time by 2030. This ambition is supported by the Ethereum Foundation, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), and GSR Foundation.
“Investing in cutting edge localised solutions helps build networks of innovators and problem solvers. Strategic investment from partners like the Government of Finland enables communities, especially the most vulnerable, to identify and catalyze the change they need,” McCaffrey added.
Prior to launching this global call, the UNICEF Venture Fund conducted market mapping in 2024 to generate evidence on femtech solutions and markets in emerging economies. The Fund also worked on capacity and ecosystem building, including conducting three regional challenges for femtech startups in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East, in collaboration with Gitex Global.
