The Development Marketplace (DM)
From www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org
Development Marketplace is a competitive grant program that identifies and funds innovative and early stage projects with high potential for development impact. It is organized around the concept of "marketplace", where several finalists set up booths and present their development-related projects to circulating jury members.
Development Marketplace is hosted by the World Bank. It began in 1998 as "Innovation Marketplace" - an internally-focused exercise to provide an alternative outlet for World Bank staff to change the decision-making culture, encourage risk-taking, and shorten project development and delivery time. Participation in and response to the Innovation Marketplace was greater than expected. Over 150 World Bank staff teams put forward ideas, of which 11 won awards. Several ideas that did not win awards found other partners/sponsors to support their implementation. This led to two outcomes: first, it reinforced the World Bank’s commitment to continue hosting and sponsoring the marketplace, and second, a decision was made to open the marketplace up to anyone interested in development issues from inside or outside the World Bank.
Currently, Development Marketplace occurs at two different levels:
Global Development Marketplace (GDM) is held every 12-18 months. Competition themes address pressing development challenges and change with each competition. The call for proposals is open to participants worldwide and awards range from $50,000 to $200,000. The Marketplace is hosted at World Bank headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Country Development Marketplaces (CDM) are organized by local World Bank offices at a national or regional level at varying times. Whilst similar to the global events, these competitions address specific development issues concerning a country or region. Awards typically fall between $5,000 and $25,000, and winners are most often local organizations or those that focus specifically on issues in the target geographies.
Aside from grants, the Development Marketplace offers its winners links to technical assistance, funding sources, grant proposal writing toolkits and other tutorials, as well as Knowledge Exchange documents and presentations.
The Development Marketplace contributed to the Outcomes of SEED Research and Learning 2007/08 by participating in a study entitled "Lessons from other Recognition and Reward Programs". This report explores whether and how such programmes might work together on issues of common interest in order to strengthen their individual impacts.
