Boosting Female Founders Initiative - Round 1

Overview

The Boosting Female Founders Initiative (the program) will run over three years from 2020-21 to 2022-23. The program is part of the Women’s Economic Security Package, which helps to support more Australian women into work and supports Australia’s international obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The program will provide targeted support on a co-contribution basis to female founders of startup businesses (startups) to launch and scale their businesses into domestic and global markets. The Australian Government has announced a total of $18 million. For this round, $6 million is available. The objectives of the program are to: stimulate private sector investments into innovative startups led by women help female entrepreneurs overcome the disadvantages they face in getting access to finance and support to grow their startups enable female founders to scale-up, expand into domestic and global markets, and become self-sufficient boost the economy through increasing the diversity of startup founders. The intended outcomes of the program are: increased number of startups founded by women new products and services are brought to market by startups founded by women increased financial investment in startups founded by women women improve their earning potential through entrepreneurship increased job creation and economic growth. The grant amount will be up to 50 per cent of eligible project costs - unless you can meet additional requirements (see the grant opportunity guidelines for further information).