FAQs
General FAQs
Eligibility FAQs
Applying FAQs
Selection FAQs
Please check out our Recently Asked Questions to find additional infomation.
What is the ADM?
The African Diaspora Marketplace (ADM) is a business plan competition designed to support the entrepreneurial spirit and resources of the U.S.-based African diaspora[1] community to promote economic development in Africa by facilitating diaspora direct investment (DDI) in viable small and medium enterprises.
Am I an SME?
The ADM uses the IFC definition of an SME, which is: i) number of employees between 10 and 300, (ii) Total Assets between $100,000 and US$15 million; and (iii) Total Annual Sales of between US$100,000 and US$15 million.
Are you currently accepting proposals?
Yes. The ADM II will be accepting proposals through February 3, 2012 at 5 p.m. EST (22:00 GMT).
Eligibility FAQs
Please look at the ADM II eligibility scenarios for examples of how the eligibly criteria will be applied.
Am I a "diaspora" member?
The ADM’s definition of African diaspora consists of people of African origin who are permanent residents or citizens of the United States. African origin includes all people of African descent not only first generation immigrants.
How do I meet the minimum of 25% ownership requirement?
The ADM-supported business entity based in Africa must be structured so that the applying U.S. citizen or permanent resident African diaspora member has a minimum of 25% ownership. Upon advancing to the Finalist round, applicants will be required to present proof of ownership in the form of a Certificate of Business Registration or other legal document outlining the ownership structure.
What do "matching contribution" and the requirement for "a minimum of one-to-one leverage ratio" mean?
ADM applicants must contribute resources of equal or greater value to the proposed project than they are requesting from the ADM. For example, a request for a $50,000 ADM grant must be "matched" with a contribution of at least $50,000 from the applying partners. However, while this matching contribution must include a financial component, it can also include "in-kind" contributions. So, for instance, applicants could provide a matching contribution of a $25,000 loan from a bank, $15,000 cash investment and land and machinery used during the course of the grant that is equal in value to $10,000. Be sure to include the monetary value of all "in-kind" contributions in the proposal in the "Notes" of the Financial Section of the ADM application. Applicants are encouraged to submit focused proposals.
How does the ADM define "partnership"?
- Proposals submitted by companies that are or will be 100 percent owned by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident that is a member of the African Diaspora, (or group of U.S. citizens or permanent residents that are members of the African Diaspora), do not need a partner.
- Proposals submitted for companies that are or will be less than 100 percent owned by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident that is a member of the African Diaspora, (or group of U.S. citizens or permanent residents that are members of the African Diaspora), do need a partner based in the country where the business is or will be registered. In this case, the U.S. citizen or permanent resident member of the African Diaspora must own at least 25 percent of the business.
Can an applicant identify the partner later? I have a good business idea, but don't have a partner in Africa yet.
Yes. U.S. citizens or permanent residents can apply without an African partner.
Can the applicant be in Africa and submit a proposal with a partner from the Diaspora in U.S.?
No. The ADM is focused on the contributions of the U.S. citizen or permanent resident members of the African diaspora community to the African continent. Therefore, the applicants must U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the U.S.
Does the African partner have to provide a "matching contribution" as well?
No. The "matching contribution" is calculated for the entire proposed activity. The ADM does not differentiate between the percentage of that contribution made by the U.S.-based African diaspora member and that of the local partner in Africa. The total "matching contribution" from all parties must be equal to or greater than that requested from the ADM.
Are unregistered businesses able to apply?
Yes. Businesses that are not yet legally registered may also participate in the competition; however, such entrants must become legally incorporated before advancing to the final round of the competition.
Are existing businesses eligible to participate to the competition?
Yes. Existing businesses (i.e., business that have been legally incorporated for more than 2 years) that are looking to expand to new markets or into new services or products are eligible.
What sectors are eligible?
All commercially viable proposals in the Information Technology, Renewable Energy and Agribusiness sectors will be considered. For Libya and Tunisia only, proposals will be accepted in any sector.
Are proposals that have a timeline of less than 12-18 months eligible?
Applicants may submit plans that will expend ADM funds in fewer than 12 months. However, as the purpose of the competition is to support long-term investment in growing businesses, winners will be required to establish targets that extend through a 12-month period and report to the ADM on these throughout that period.
Applying FAQs
How many proposals is ADM accepting?
There is no limit to the number of proposals accepted. All proposals submitted online by February, 3, 2012, at 5 p.m. EST (22:00 GMT), will be reviewed. We encourage any African diaspora member in the U.S. with a commercially-viable business idea for Africa to apply.
Can I submit multiple proposals?
No, applicants may only submit one proposal.
Can I email or fax my proposal to the ADM Team directly?
No. Proposals must be submitted through the ADM website.
What do character limits (e.g., 700 chars max) refer to in the online proposal form?
A character is any letter, space, or symbol — the average English word consists of 7 characters, including spaces and punctuation. If your answers exceed the given character count, the online application cannot accept your entry.
TIP: We encourage you to draft your answers to Section III of the proposal ("Detailed Business Profile") off-line on a word processor (Microsoft Word, WordPerfect, etc.). These include the ability to count characters as you develop your responses. You can then directly cut and paste the answers into the online application form.
TIP: Tables and other formatting (bullets, headings, etc.) will not be retained when entering information into the online form.
Can I send any additional materials along with my proposal?
No. Please do not submit any additional materials with your proposal except for the request ADM Financial Template.
Selection FAQs
What is the process for reviewing the proposals?
The proposals will be reviewed in a two-stage process. As a first step, all submitted proposals will be screened to ensure eligibility. Proposals will then be reviewed by international and diaspora business and development experts. Following Stage 1, a limited number of applicants will be selected as "Finalists" and invited to submit full business plans using a standard ADM format. In the second stage, full business plans will be reviewed by a jury of distinguished business experts and development practitioners from the international and diaspora communities. Finalists will then participate in "one-on-one" jury interviews with ADM judges in Washington, DC. The winners will be announced at the ADM Awards Ceremony to be held in June 2012.
Who will be on the ADM Jury?
The full business plans will be reviewed by a Jury of distinguished business experts and development practitioners from USAID, OPIC, Western Union, international business leaders, other development institutions, and leaders from diaspora community.
Are there quotas or limits on the number of winners or proposals by country?
No. Finalists are chosen based on their business ideas and proposal, without regard to the African country of implementation.
What happens after the ADM competition?
ADM winners will sign a project contract that outlines a milestone and disbursement schedule for the award grant. Grant payments will correspond to the milestones specified in the winner's proposal. Each project will receive technical assistance and will be monitored for a period of up to 18 month. The performance and lessons learned of the projects will be disseminated to the broader diaspora business and development communities.
How can I contact the ADM Team?
If your question is not answered here or elsewhere on the ADM website, please contact the ADM Team by email to info@diasporamarketplace.org. The DM Team cannot guarantee that it will be able to respond to inquiries received after 5:00 p.m. EST (22:00 GMT) on January 30, 2012.
