It's Public Goods Grants Season : Get involved

A new era of Public Goods Funding for Africa beacons

Nov 11, 2023

Gm fren,

Welcome to another exciting edition of the Bankless Africa newsletter. Today, we delve into a topic of paramount importance and opportunity: the Gitcoin Grant Rounds and their significance for the African tech and blockchain community.

Advertise here. reach out via banklessafrica@gmail.com

In this issue💯📩

🎯 Gitcoin Grant Rounds & a new era of Public Good Funding for Africa

🎯 Updates across the Multichain

🎯 Newsflash → Inside Africa 🌍

🎯 News Globe → around the world 🌐

🎯 On Air → Interesting podcasts episode to listen to🎧

🚨 Action Zone/Quick Links 🔗⚡

What Are Gitcoin Grant Rounds?

Gitcoin is a platform that leverages the power of blockchain to fund open-source projects, primarily those that contribute to Public Good. Through its Grant Rounds, Gitcoin facilitates crowdfunding for various initiatives, ranging from software development to community building. These rounds are more than just funding opportunities; they embody a new way of collaborative progress, democratizing the process of supporting projects that promise a positive societal impact. The Grant cycle happens every 3 month.

Why Do They Matter?

In a rapidly digitizing world, the African continent is poised at the edge of a technological renaissance powered by web3. Public Goods Funding such as Gitcoin Grant Rounds matter because they represent a chance to accelerate this growth. They provide a unique platform where African developers, innovators, and entrepreneurs can showcase their projects and secure funding without the traditional barriers of venture capital.

Moreover, these grant rounds operate on the principles of Quadratic Funding. This funding mechanism ensures that the number of contributors matters more than the amount contributed, emphasizing community support over deep pockets. This is particularly beneficial for African projects where community support is strong, but large funding sources are often limited.

New Public Good Funding for Africa

Public Good Africa recently launched and is looking to pioneer a new era of Public Goods and Public Good Funding in Africa. As part of this vision, it will be running an independent side round during Gitcoin Grant 19 for high impact projects in Africa. This will be the first of it’s kind. Public Good Funding has helped catalyzed lots of innovation and builder activities in other parts of the world, unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case for Africa. This is partly due to lack of education, access and deliberate efforts to connect with larger Public Good Funding initiatives. Public Good Africa aims to change that. It’s exciting times and we are happy for this initiative. Know any impact project in Africa that could use funding? let them reach out to Public Good Africa.

Public Good Funding Impact on Africa

For Africa, the implications of participating in Gitcoin Grants and Public Good Funding Rounds are manifold:

Boosting Innovation: African innovators can access global funding, enabling them to transform their ideas into reality without geographical limitations.
Community Empowerment: These rounds foster a sense of community, as Africans can both contribute to and benefit from global projects that resonate with their needs and aspirations.
Showcasing Talent: They offer a global stage for African developers and entrepreneurs to showcase their talent and ideas, helping to change the narrative around African innovation.
Creating Opportunities: By funding public goods that cater to African needs, these rounds open doors to solutions specifically tailored to local challenges.

Why Should Africans Get Involved?

Engagement in Gitcoin Grant Rounds is not just about securing funding; it's about being part of a global movement towards decentralized, community-driven progress. For African participants, it's an opportunity to:

Contribute to and shape the future of open-source projects that could revolutionize various sectors in Africa.
Network with a global community of innovators, investors, and thought leaders.
Learn from a diverse range of projects and ideas, gaining insights that can be applied locally.
Donations doubles as fund allocation, giving participants control on how Grants are distributed. The more Africans participate, the more they get to have a say in funding impact on the continent.

How to get involved

As Grantee - You can apply if you are working on an open source software, building a web3 community, building Ethereum infrastructure and more. For individuals, projects and teams looking for support, you can reach out to Public Good Africa. They provide guidance to projects looking to apply.
As a Donor - Set yourself up to fund impact once the round is opened. Help determine how the Grant is distributed globally and locally.

Here’s a quick step for absolutely beginner.

Set up a web3 wallet. e.g Metamask
Add Layer networks - Optimism & Public Good Network
Bridge some funds to these networks. The QF mechanism ensures that giving even 1 USD to project makes impact. So don’t feel like you don’t have enough to donate. you can bridge small amount to donate.
Set up your gitcoin passport
Verify stamps to make sure that you have atleast 15 or higher humanity score. This is to prevent people from using multiple wallet addresses to donate to same project in order to get high amount of the matching pool(sybilling). also the higher your score, the more your donation is matched.
Get ready to donate when the round is live on Wednesday, 15th November, 2023 at 12:00 UTC.

As we navigate the complexities of our digital future, Public Good Funding mechanisms such as Gitcoin Grant Rounds and Public Goods Africa offer a beacon of hope and a testament to the power of collaborative funding. For Africa, it's not just an opportunity; it's a call to action – to participate, contribute, and propel our continent towards a more innovative and self-sustaining future.

Let's embrace this season of public good funding and make our mark on the local and global tech landscape.

🎯 Updates across the Multichain

All links in the Action Zone/links

🔗 Polygon Village is back, shinier, and better than ever.

With a grant program of more than 110 million in MATIC, deep mentoring, and ecosystem support, Village aims to be the home for web3 founders.

🔗 Optimism announces We 💖The Art : a five week contest celebrating onchain creators with 1,000,000 OP prize pool across 4 distinct art categories. deadline for submission is December 13th at 23:00 UTC.

🖇️ Optimism introduces Superchain Faucet to provide testnet ETH for all OP chains.

🎯 Newsflash → Inside Africa 🌍

🗞️ Pacminer, a blockchain mining platform, announces a $50 million investment in Ghana to enhance its mining pools and cloud computing infrastructure. Read

🗞️Uganda collaborates with the TA-CargoX consortium to establish the TradeXchange platform, a blockchain-driven solution for trade facilitation, aiming to align its trade practices with global standards and boost its exports. Read

🗞️ Kenya Pilots new Digital ID program

In November 2023, Kenya began a pilot program to introduce the Maisha Card, a new digital ID system, replacing the previous blockchain-based Huduma Namba. This initiative, led by Immigration and Citizen Services PS, Prof Julius Bitok, aims to issue these cards to first-time ID applicants and those needing replacements. The Maisha Card features a microprocessor chip with encrypted data and enables the creation of a Maisha Digital ID for smartphone users. Read

🗞️ Cameroon's Finance Ministry Advocates for Crypto Regulations Amid Rising User Base and Ponzi Scheme Concerns. Read