Mekatilili Micro-Grant Award
Support for a practical prototype, experiment or community-focused next step in Kenya.
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Is this worth your time?
A practical fit for a small, clearly defined experiment rather than an entire business launch. The strongest decision question is whether one useful next step can genuinely be completed within the available budget and period.
Ubunifu editorial assessment, not an organiser eligibility decision.A stronger fit when...
Kenyan citizens aged 21-35, applying individually or in a team of up to three, with a project mainly implemented in Kenya. Applicants must have already explored or tested the idea. Company registration is not required.
Pause or look elsewhere when...
A request mainly for wages, stipends, personal expenses, debt repayment, fundraising or international travel. The applicant must be hands-on, and a person may participate in only one application per cycle.
What the support actually means
Up to KES 100,000 can support materials, tools, prototyping, testing or other direct project activities. The ceiling is not an automatic award; scope the activity to what can be delivered with the requested amount.
Costs and commitments: No salaries, stipends, personal expenses, international travel, debt or fundraising expenditure.
Your costs, time and commitments
The proposed activity should take one to three months. Applications close on 22 November 2026, recipients are expected in February 2027, implementation is February-May, and a short reflection is due within two weeks of completion.
How selection or access works
The organiser considers impact potential, human-centredness, feasibility, learning and resourcefulness. A credible experiment can still be valuable when it tests an assumption that turns out to be wrong.
Preparation and application steps
Get these ready first
Preparation advice; the organiser determines mandatory documents.
- Review the published application questions and complete the organiser's budget template.
- Describe what you have already tried and the specific uncertainty the next step will test.
- Price the direct costs and explain what will be delivered, by whom and when.
Your next steps
- Check every team member's citizenship and age, and identify the lead applicant.
- Remove prohibited spending from the budget before applying.
- Submit the official form with a focused activity, not a broad list of ambitions.
Questions to confirm and guide sources
Questions to confirm before committing
- The closing time and timezone, which were not specified in the reviewed call.
- Disbursement timing and any receipts or evidence required beyond the final reflection.
Sources behind this decision guide
Reviewed 2026-11-05. Guidance is not a guarantee that an application window remains open.
Full programme facts and official sources
Who this is for
Kenyan citizens aged 21-35, individually or in a team of up to three. The project should be mainly in Kenya, with some exploration already completed.
- Stage
- Exploration or prototype
- Sector
- Community-focused innovation
- Support type
- Prototype microgrant
- Costs and commitments
- No salaries, stipends, personal expenses, international travel, debt or fundraising expenditure.
- Deadline
- 22 Nov 2026 - closing time/timezone not specified
- As published
- 22 November 2026; closing time and timezone not specified.
- Format
- Kenya; local implementation.
- Event dates
- Implementation February-May 2027; selected recipients announced in February 2027.
- Travel and visa support
- International travel is excluded.
- Documents and preparation
- Application questions and budget template are provided; the full form and downloads were not exhaustively tested.
- How to apply
- Define one achievable one-to-three-month test and submit through the official page.
- Applicant route
- Direct application; formal business registration is not required.
Official sources
Mekatilili official micro-grant call Source checked 2026-11-05
Check before committing
Applicants must check the current budget restrictions and supply their own evidence. Selection is not guaranteed.
Listing, saving and community ratings do not verify the organiser, guarantee eligibility or promise selection. Check the official terms before committing time or money.