UAE Government’s “Moonshot Pilot Grant” to drive innovation
The UAE Government has launched the “Moonshot Pilot Grant”, its new public sector innovation fund that is offering up to $100,000 per pilot to facilitate testing of potential government initiatives and accelerate their development and implementation in the public sector. The grant aims to enlist global experts to help develop and implement innovative ideas and projects to improve global public sector initiatives to make UAE future ready.
The grant was unveiled during the recent Moonshot Apprenticeship Program graduation event, implemented by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Centre for Government Innovation (MBRCGI), where graduates presented their solutions and ideas to key ministers and representatives of the UAE Government.
H.E. Huda Al Hashimi, Deputy Minister of Cabinet Affairs for Strategic Affairs; confirmed that the grant is aligned with the UAE Government’s vision to adopt a progressive framework based on innovation, and an advanced work model to enhance the government’s agility and readiness in the future.
“The Moonshot Pilot Grant will create a supportive environment for innovation in governments by defining objectives, developing a general project structure, and setting achievable targets; in line with the ‘Principles of the 50’ aiming to build a new generation of young talents and create a knowledge-based economy,” she said.
The MBRCGI’s Moonshot Pilot Grant will fund projects related to the government sector, such as data, govtech, economy, global outreach, and global talent. It will also enable governments to build more sustainable and robust economies by facilitating new solutions to government financing, new tools to achieve growth, and smart spending plans for crises and emergencies.
MBRCGI is seeking top global experts who are willing to test their innovative ideas in the UAE. Applicants for the Moonshot Grant must demonstrate concrete actions that can change the core of governance and help create pockets of innovation that can be scaled to support governments. Concepts must be impactful, improve governments, disruptive, practical, timely (to be completed in six months), globally relevant, and implemented in the UAE.
Applications close on 18 November 2021.
