{"id":7479,"date":"2026-05-30T01:58:03","date_gmt":"2026-05-29T23:58:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/?p=7479"},"modified":"2026-06-09T14:03:56","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T12:03:56","slug":"un-fao-global-agriinno-challenge-gac-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/?p=7479","title":{"rendered":"UN FAO Global AgriInno Challenge (GAC) 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><div id=\"tdi_1\" class=\"tdc-row\"><div class=\"vc_row tdi_2  wpb_row td-pb-row\" >\n<style scoped>\n\/* custom css - generated by TagDiv Composer *\/\n\n\/* custom css - generated by TagDiv Composer *\/\n.tdi_2,\r\n                .tdi_2 .tdc-columns{\r\n                    min-height: 0;\r\n                }\n<\/style><div class=\"vc_column tdi_4  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<style scoped>\n\/* custom css - generated by TagDiv Composer *\/\n\n\/* custom css - generated by TagDiv Composer *\/\n.tdi_4{\r\n                    vertical-align: baseline;\r\n                }\n<\/style><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\" >[vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article id=\"post-175213\">\n<div>\n<p><strong>Deadline: June 20, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Applications are open for the UN FAO Global AgriInno Challenge (GAC) 2026. The challenge is an international call for startups, agripreneurs, researchers, and innovation teams developing solutions for more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient agrifood systems.<\/p>\n<p>Co-organized by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Zhejiang University, and Pinduoduo, GAC has established itself as one of the leading global platforms for youth-led agrifood innovation, fostering connections among emerging innovators, international experts, investors, policymakers, and technical partners.<\/p>\n<p>The 2026 edition focuses on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) \u2013 regions particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, food insecurity, geographic isolation, and limited innovation ecosystems, yet often overlooked in global investment and technology landscapes.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Challenge Themes<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>GAC 2026 challenges innovators to develop or scale digital solutions for resilient blue and green agrifood systems that are grounded in the realities of island life, responsive to climate pressures, and capable of transforming outcomes at the community level.<\/p>\n<p>All solutions must address at least one of four pillars critical to SIDS resilience:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Better Production:\u00a0Addressing limited arable land, fragmented supply chains, high food-import dependency, and climate pressures on agriculture and fisheries.<\/li>\n<li>Better Nutrition:\u00a0Tackling the double burden of malnutrition \u2013 rising obesity and diet-related NCDs \u2013 alongside limited access to affordable, healthy diets.<\/li>\n<li>Better Enviroment:\u00a0Protecting vulnerable SIDS ecosystems \u2013 forests, coral reefs, and coastal systems \u2013 from climate change, biodiversity loss, and degradation.<\/li>\n<li>Better Life:\u00a0Overcoming geographic isolation, limited economic opportunity, and high youth unemployment to foster inclusive rural development.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Benefits<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Full Travel Packages\n<ul>\n<li>Round Trip flights<\/li>\n<li>Accommodation &amp; meals<\/li>\n<li>Local Transportation<\/li>\n<li>Visa application fees<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Expert Coaching\n<ul>\n<li>2-Day workshops<\/li>\n<li>UN &amp; academic mentorship<\/li>\n<li>Investor matchmaking<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Long-term Visibility\n<ul>\n<li>FAO official channels<\/li>\n<li>Alumni network access<\/li>\n<li>Forum showcasing<\/li>\n<li>Caribbean &amp; Pacific events<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Top 3 Winners Receive:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Seed funding<\/li>\n<li>FAO Science &amp; Innovation Forum exhibition slot<\/li>\n<li>Digital agriculture Innovation Bootcamp in China<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Eligibility<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Applications are open to agripreneurs and innovation teams worldwide. To be eligible, applicants must:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Be registered as a company or legal entity.<\/li>\n<li>Have less than $1,000,000 in annual turnover.<\/li>\n<li>Have less than 5 years of operations.<\/li>\n<li>Have a technology-based solution or business model at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 7-9, with evidence of post-MVP stage.<\/li>\n<li>Have at least one team leader below 35 years of age.<\/li>\n<li>Selected teams must commit to\u00a0continuous engagement throughout the entire duration of the programme, including the Innovation for Good workshops, Global Final Pitch event in Hangzhou (August 2026), and potential showcase at the FAO Science and Innovation Forum in Rome (October 2026)<\/li>\n<li>Teams with female agripreneurs are strongly encouraged to apply.<\/li>\n<li>Have a solution that directly addresses agrifood challenges in SIDS, or that has already been piloted or deployed in a SIDS context.<\/li>\n<li>Teams based outside SIDS are fully eligible. However, teams originating from or led by individuals from a SIDS will be given preference in the evaluation process.<\/li>\n<li>Each applicant can submit only one application, and we will only consider the final submission as team\u2019s application<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Application<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/sti-portal.fao.org\/network\/group\/27\/anonymous-request-membership\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Click here to apply<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>For more information, visit <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/sti-portal.fao.org\/network\/group\/27\/about\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UN FAO Global AgriInno Challenge<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text]<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"[vc_column_text css=\"\"] Deadline: June 20, 2026 Applications are open for the UN FAO Global AgriInno Challenge (GAC) 2026. The challenge is an international call for startups, agripreneurs, researchers, and innovation teams developing solutions for more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient agrifood systems. Co-organized by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Zhejiang University, [...]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7480,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"googlesitekit_rrm_CAow1K2_DA:productID":"","tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-call-for-applications"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7479"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7479\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7699,"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7479\/revisions\/7699"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7480"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunityforworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}