Crowdfunding Digital Platform for Vanuatu launching next week

November 13, 2020 12:14 am | Posted in Business News | Share now TwitterFacebook

by Royson Willie

A digital crowdfunding platform for Vanuatu, Raise, will be officially launched on Friday next week.

The event will take place at 5pm at the Yumiwork office in Lolam Building’s third floor.

Raise was created by Next Limited.

According to its creators, this new tool, which reinforces the archipelago’s recent advances in technological and digital development, will enable local project carriers, including abroad to find new sources of funding.

This initiative to create Raise has reportedly already received the support of the major partners including the United Nations Development Programme, Pacific Business Link, Vodafone Vanuatu and V-LAB business incubator established in Port Vila over a year ago.

This project has been developed within a few months by the team of a global strategy company, Next Limited, at the new Yumiwork co-working space and has benefited from support of students in economic and tourism from the University of Vanuatu.

A wide range of fundable actions can take place on Raise.

These include projects in fields such as education, sport, youth, health, culture and heritage, innovation and sustainable development.

Any projects in those areas will be welcomed on the platform www.raise-vanuatu.com once all the necessary conditions are validated to apply for funding.

Payment methods can be done in diverse ways as well such as credit cards thanks to the implementation of a new offer for e-commerce proposed by BRED Bank and EBS or M-Vatu, the electronic wallet proposed since October 2019 by Vodafone Vanuatu.

Through M-Vatu, Vodafone is participating in Vanuatu’s collective effort for financial inclusion and is demonstrating the growing appetite for local businesses and ni-Vanuatu to take decisive steps to fully realise the potential offered by the digital era, creators and organisers of the launching event said.

Next Limited are one of the four winners of the United Nations Development Program’s (UNDP) ‘COVID-19 Response Challenge’.

UNDP ran this challenge in partnership with Vanuatu Laboratory (V-LAB) to identify businesses that can come up with a business idea that addresses the negative socio-economic impact of COVID-19 within the Pacific.

The challenge was launched on April 24, 2020 and Next Limited was announced as one of the winners in June.