Participation requirements for the develoPPP Classic ideas competition
Your company is privately owned and profit-oriented and registered in the EU, EFTA or a country on the OECD DAC list.
The financial and personnel capacities of your company are commensurate with the project idea
Your project contributes to sustainable development and goes beyond an investment in your company's core business
The full list of conditions for participation in the develoPPP Classic ideas competition can be found here:
To find out for which countries applications are possible, please consult the develoPPP Classic country list:
What is being promoted?
Through develoPPP, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) supports socially and environmentally responsible transformation in the private sector in developing countries and emerging markets. Aspects of this include ensuring a sustainable energy supply and the more responsible use of natural resources, as well as fair participation for women in different economic processes, fair access to health care services and long-term food security. As part of the develoPPP Classic ideas competition, particular consideration is therefore given to project proposals that contribute measurably to improvement in these areas.
In concrete terms, this can mean:
- Improving environmental and social standards in supply chains
- Creating decent jobs and improved working conditions
- Supporting women and marginalised groups, in particular, with careers and entrepreneurship
- Implementing measures that contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation
- Taking measures to protect the natural environment, for example through sustainable cultivation methods, saving water in production processes, and avoiding and recycling waste
- Creating access to health care services
Your application for develoPPP Classic
The develoPPP Classic ideas competition takes place two times a year and is open for six weeks before the closing dates of March 31 and September 30. Do you meet the participation requirements (PDF) and would like to submit a project idea? Then simply follow these steps:
- Select DEG Impulse or GIZ as the implementing partner.
- Submit a completed application via the develoPPP application platform.
The quality of each application is reviewed and evaluated individually on the basis of uniform criteria. A decision on whether to pursue the project idea in principle is usually made within six weeks of the submission deadline. You will then receive feedback directly from your chosen implementation partner.
If your project idea is successful in the competition, DEG Impulse or GIZ will support you in the next step in further concretising and shaping the project.
New ideas competition starts on February 15
The develoPPP application process is handled centrally via a separate platform on which you can easily submit and manage your application. Your company and your project proposal meet the participation criteria (PDF) and you already know which implementing partner you would like to work with? Then apply for funding!
Frequently asked questions about develoPPP Classic
The develoPPP application process is handled centrally via a separate application platform on which you can easily submit and manage your application.
The develoPPP Classic ideas competition takes place two times a year. You can submit your application during the following application periods:
1st quarter: 15 February to 31 March
3rd quarter: 15 August to 30 September
Your company must be privately owned, profit-oriented and registered in the EU, a member country of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) or a country on the OECD-DAC list. In addition, your project must contribute to local sustainable development as defined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and go beyond a mere investment in your core business. You can find the full list of requirements for your company and the project to be funded above.
Each application is individually reviewed and evaluated for quality using uniform criteria. The implementing partners DEG Impulse and GIZ assess which proposals are most suitable in the respective competition. A decision on whether to pursue a project idea in principle is usually made within six weeks of the submission deadline.
The develoPPP Classic funding instrument is deliberately kept open to different ideas and approaches in order to exploit the full potential of private-sector involvement. Each application is therefore reviewed and evaluated individually. In principle, your project idea must combine a long-term business interest with a sustainable developmental benefit in the target country. This means that not only the participating company itself benefits from the direct effects of the project activities, but also the local community. This can be achieved in various ways. Selected examples of successful develoPPP Classic projects can be found in the section Project & Success Stories.
With the develoPPP funding programme, the BMZ supports entrepreneurial projects in developing and emerging countries that combine a long-term business interest with a sustainable developmental benefit for the local people. Accordingly, funded projects must also have a positive effect beyond the participating company. Purely commercial funding that serves exclusively to expand the core business is therefore not possible.
With DEG Impulse gGmbH and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, you have two highly competent and experienced partners in German development cooperation at your side to help you structure and implement your project. Both are proven experts in the develoPPP programme and have each already successfully implemented over 1,000 projects with companies. The choice of implementing partner is determined individually by each company and depends on various aspects, such as the respective need for technical support on site.
DEG Impulse focuses on develoPPP projects that are implemented on site largely independently by the partner company; GIZ focuses on those that require on-site technical support and are to be integrated into local networks. You can find concrete examples of develoPPP Classic projects with DEG Impulse and GIZ under the Projects & Successes section.
Do you have questions?
For general questions regarding develoPPP or other BMZ funding programmes please contact
For questions regarding already concrete projects please contact the team of your implementing partner
![[Translate to EN:] Jonas Naguib](/fileadmin/_processed_/3/a/csm_Jonas_Naguib_a660682bea.jpg "[Translate to EN:] Jonas Naguib")