Digital Innovation Fund | Incubator

The Digital Innovation Fund supports UNHCR colleagues to explore, test, and pilot innovative solutions co-created with communities that responsibly leverage digital technology to protect forcibly displaced and stateless people, improve their well-being, and build self-reliance.

What we offer

Beyond funding, the Digital Innovation Fund provides teams with learning, guidance, and technical support to strengthen digital ideas and drive real-world impact. Each selected initiative receives:

Financial support

Digital, technical, & product development support

Emphasis on learning & user-centered design

Access to UNHCR's innovation community of practice

Internal UNHCR teams and colleagues, including

Country operations

Regional bureaux

Headquarters divisions

Multi-functional and cross-entity teams

Internal applications only

Applicants must be UNHCR staff or affiliated personnel

Applications must be made as a team even if one person leads and submits

While only UNHCR teams are eligible to submit applications, teams are encouraged to collaborate with other groups – particularly refugee-led organizations, community-based organizations, and actors bringing diverse expertise.

Boost your application

Clear digital solution addressing an operational or protection challenge

Strong focus on co-creation, inclusion, accessibility, and protection considerations

Alignment with UNHCR digital standards and principles

Innovative or adaptable approaches with potential for learning, reuse, or scale across UNHCR

Learn more about the application process

Before applying, make sure you read our FAQs (106.59 KB)

And familiarize yourself with our current Areas of Exploration (679.35 KB)

Digital Innovation, by the numbers

digital projects supported

Explore our impact

Digital gender inclusion and innovation bootcamps

refugee-and women-led organizations upskilled

organizations received seed funding to implement community

1,620

people reached directly

"We came from South Sudan when we were in war. So, by that time, we had a lot of trauma and we lost hope in life. But using virtual reality makes us feel mentally positive, as it allows us to immerse ourselves in a world where we can change the community we lived in into a positive living.”
Female South Sudanese refugee, Bidibidi Refugee Settlement, Uganda