Back women-led solutions ready to scale.
Since 2021, we’ve funded and supported women entrepreneurs whose health and food security businesses now reach millions of people. Partner with us to help them reach many more.
70
women-led enterprises supported from 26 countries since 2021
15
founders selected annually from Africa & Middle East, Asia and Latin America
€1.75M
funded by Bayer Foundation Women Entrepreneurs Award since 2021
CHALLENGE
Too many strong businesses are still building alone.
Women-led businesses are tackling urgent challenges in health and food security. Many remain underfunded and under-connected to the investors, buyers and partners they need to scale.
1 in 2
social enterprises worldwide are led by women, compared with 1 in 5 conventional businesses
World Economic Forum, The State of Social Enterprise
2.3%
of global venture capital went to women-only founding teams in 2024, although they represented 6.4% of deals
Founders Forum Group, 2025
€1.5T
estimated financing gap for women-owned micro, small and medium enterprises
IFC / World Bank Group estimate
OPPORTUNITY
Help women-led businesses go further.
The solutions are already working. With the right funding, relationships and expertise, many more people can benefit from them.
The Award is one part of that work. As a partner, you can join at different stages, by supporting founders through the Award, adding follow-on capital or paying for verified results.
We help you find opportunities in the sectors and markets you care about and understand what your funding could enable. So you can put it to work with confidence, knowing what it supports and how progress will be measured.
APPROACH
How the right support comes together.
Locally rooted scouting
Impact Hub teams in 70+ countries surface strong women-led ventures in priority countries that traditional pipelines often miss.
Flexible capital
€25,000 in non-dilutive award funding supports the next step. Founders can then progress towards equity, convertible or outcome-based financing as their needs evolve.
Investment readiness
A 6-month accelerator sharpens the business model, metrics, and narrative, helping founders turn promise into a clear, confident investment case.
Visibility & credibility
Bayer Foundation backing provides an institutional credibility signal, while global media visibility can reduce perceived risk and strengthen trust with decision-makers.
Ecosystem access
Awardee Days and curated events connect founders directly with investors, partners and ecosystem leaders who can help unlock the next stage of growth.
Global network
Founders stay part of the Bayer Foundation alumni community and the Impact Hub Network, which continue to spark introductions, peer support and collaboration.
IMPACT
What women-led businesses are making possible.
Thirty founders from the 2024 and 2025 cohorts reported what their businesses delivered. The partnership deck has the full results, including investment raised and revenue growth.
5.4M people
with better healthcare access and awareness
330k+ patients
with better access to healthcare services
59k+ farmers
with better productivity, markets and income
600k+ people
who gained access to nutritious food products
PROOF
Hear it from the founders
Here’s what changed for their businesses after the Award, in their own words.
“Being a part of the fellowship helped Indian investors to build confidence in Pinky Promise. We were able to close our round really quickly and secure impact aligned investors onboard. Most importantly it also gave us an opportunity to work with Bayer in India too!”
“Support from the Bayer Foundation and We Share Forward Foundation helped us make a major strategic pivot: a new kind of social enterprise was born. TxC began with a focus on one issue and one population; that investment helped us build an agnostic infrastructure for measurable, verifiable positive behavior change, adaptable across challenges, sectors, and countries. Today, we work in Colombia, Ecuador, and Mexico, and client renewals are creating a path to expand into eight countries across Latin America. Their support helped us turn a focused intervention into a model with the potential to scale globally.”
“The Bayer Foundation Women Entrepreneurs Award gave PROSPERiA far more than non-dilutive capital. It connected us with an extraordinary network of people who have actively opened doors—from university collaborations and new clients to strategic partnerships and investment opportunities. It also brought me into a community of incredible women entrepreneurs who continue to support one another, share opportunities and celebrate each other’s progress. That credibility, access and sense of community have helped us expand our reach, strengthen our path towards sustainable scale and continue moving our mission forward.”
“Being associated with Bayer Foundation grants us some level of trustworthiness because this is an organization that is seen and known globally. We wouldn’t have been in the league of those partners if it hadn’t been through the introductions and relationship with Bayer Foundation.”
“I almost agreed to an unfavourable financing deal because I didn’t yet understand my value. Being selected for the Bayer Foundation Women Entrepreneur Award 2024 and receiving €50K from Bayer Foundation and We Share Forward became the signal that unlocked an additional €300K from aligned climate investors; and, more importantly, gave me trusted partners who respected my learning journey.”
PARTNER
Three ways to partner
Start with the Award, or come in after it. Ticket size, geography and visibility can all be shaped around your priorities.
Fund an award category
Fund cohort of women-led enterprises in your priority sector or region, delivered through the existing Award
CO-FUND A CATEGORY
Provide follow-on capital
Join the Women Entrepreneurs Funders Alliance, a revolving fund shared with Bayer Foundation and other co-funders, where repaid capital is reinvested in more awardees.
JOIN THE ALLIANCE
Invest in Verified Impact Assets
The Common Good Marketplace converts verified social impact into fundable, transferable Verified Impact Assets (VIAs).
BECOME AN IMPACT BUYER
Not a funder? Corporate and ecosystem partners can open doors to buyers, markets and expertise. Talk to us
WHY NOW
What you gain as a partner
01
Spot innovation that matter
Local teams across Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America find strong founders that most funders rarely reach on their own.
02
Your funding goes futher
Your contribution sits alongside Bayer Foundation and other co-funders, so it goes further and the risk is shared.
03
Results you can report on
IRIS+-aligned reporting on the founders you fund, so you can show your board what changed.
PARTNER NOW
The founders are building. Together, we can help them scale.
Fill in the short form to receive the partnership deck. We’ll then be in touch to talk through your priorities, from geography and sector to instrument and ticket size.