Enter the Food Waste Challenge and help address food security in Namibia

The Capricorn Foundation officially began its Food Waste Challenge on 13 July, asking the public to come up with creative ways to reduce food waste in Namibia.

As the deadline draws near, the foundation wants to remind the public to submit concepts before or on 12 August.

Based on an open innovation platform, the Food Waste Challenge will award N$100 000 to the best solution.

The Capricorn Foundation is looking for written proposals.

It is hoped that the challenge will open up new avenues for addressing the most vulnerable Namibians' basic need for food security, as well as have a positive social impact, raising the standard of living for many Namibians.

An expert panel will assess the proposal on a theoretical basis.

Should you wish to apply, please ensure that your proposed solution meets the specific requirements and is justified with arguments and relevant references.

This challenge is open and offered to:

1. Individual participants - an individual aged sixteen years or older at the time of registration.

2. Team participants - teams consisting of up to five individuals aged sixteen years or older at the time of registration.

3. Business entity participants - legal business entities.

How do you enter and submit your idea?

A general overview of the challenge can be found at https://capricornfoodwastechallenge.skild.com. Participants can sign up and register by filling out the online registration form honestly and completely, agreeing to the terms and conditions, and then clicking the "submit" button.

An email will be sent to participants to confirm their participation.

What kind of ideas and solutions is the foundation looking for?

The Capricorn Foundation looks for fresh opportunities that can offer unique and significant solutions for any area of the total value chain, from collecting food waste from sources, to determining whether it is fit for human consumption, to distributing the food to receivers or distributors so that it can be used again or given to beneficiaries.

The measures must result in more food reaching the vulnerable communities rather than it being squandered.

How will ideas be judged?

All entries that meet the eligibility criteria for the challenge, and do not otherwise violate any terms and conditions, will be evaluated on the following criteria:

• Relevance - Does the idea address the stated challenge? Will the idea effectively lead to more food – that would have been wasted otherwise – reaching more vulnerable people in Namibia.

• Level of innovation - Novelty or newness of the proposed solution. How bold and fresh is the idea? Is it a game changer?

• Feasibility (practicality) of the proposed solution - High possibility of implementation considering risks and costs. Technical and economic feasibility will also be considered.

• Impact and benefits - The proposed solution's potential to generate exponential benefits to address the issue of food waste in Namibia.

• Scalability - Likelihood and impact of scalability of the proposed solution.

• Sustainability - Likelihood of sustainability of the proposed solution.

• Inspiring - Will the solution inspire people to address the problem of food waste in Namibia?