Omidyar Network India funds 67 projects that aim to ease Covid-19 challenges

Impact investment firm Omidyar Network India on Tuesday announced it has fully utilised the capital pool of Rs 10.75 crore under its rapid response funding initiative for Covid-19. 

The initiative, launched in March this year, picked 67 proposals out of over 2,000 applications, according to a statement.

Of the Rs 10.75 crore, Rs 7.5 crore was committed in March and Rs 3.25 crore was contributed by employees of Omidyar Network India.

The company said that the applications provided insights into the types of non-profit solutions being built across the country. While the majority of proposals (79%) focused on physical health,  about 3% looked at mental health challenges.  Nearly half (49%) proposals were technology-focused, primarily online and mobile-based solutions.

“The response of the nonprofit sector to the current crisis has truly been awe-inspiring. The way they have galvanized into action has dispelled many myths associated with the nonprofit sector. Non-government organisations (NGOs) and nonprofits have responded rapidly to provide cost-effective solutions. They are adopting new technologies at a fast pace,” Roopa Kudva, managing director at Omidyar Network India said. 

The funds have been deployed for a mix of projects including direct relief work, grassroots awareness campaigns, on-ground programs to mobilize volunteers (47%), fact-based inputs to inform the thinking of policy-makers/influencers in supporting the national housing bank (12%), data, apps and other technological solutions (27%), collaborative efforts amongst funders and solution providers (12%) and economic resilience of NHB workers and small businesses (2%). 

The shortlisted projects under the rapid response funding initiative include a wide range of organisations -- non-profits, coalitions of NGOs and civil society organizations, for-profit businesses seeking to create non-profit solutions as well as research bodies. 

Last month, Omidyar Network India and International Innovation Corps, a programme by the University of Chicago Trust in India, launched a fellowship programme to support new talents to rethink and structure laws and practices governing emerging technologies in both public and private sectors in India.