Villgro is an Indian incubator for early-stage social enterprises. It runs this incubation program with Accenture for startups building solutions in the waste-to-value theme, meaning ventures that turn solid waste into a product or a service someone pays for.
Villgro states two aims for the program: getting these solutions adopted by opening access to markets, and enabling gender-inclusive businesses. The program sits inside Villgro’s inclusive livelihoods and entrepreneurship work, which backs startups that create earning opportunities for women in rural communities.
The program has run since 2023 and Villgro’s program hub still lists it as current. Its own page shows applications closed, and no reopening date is published, so the entry point today is Villgro’s standing incubation application portal.
Benefits & funding
- Funding support of up to INR 2 crore (INR 20 million). The program page states the ceiling without naming the instrument or splitting it between enterprises.
- Villgro gives incubation funding as equity, debt, a grant, or a combination of these.
- Support to scale, plus mentorship alongside the funding.
- Connections to markets and to investors.
- Access to industry experts from both Villgro and Accenture.
- Villgro’s incubation route adds seed funding, a diagnostic panel with industry experts, a 100-day plan with monthly targets, mentor matching, weekly calls and field visits.
- Later-stage support covers market channels built with farmer producer organisations, NGOs and self-help groups, live demos, and help attracting commercial capital.
Eligibility
- The applicant is a company, not an individual. A founder applies on behalf of the venture.
- A woman founder or co-founder must hold a minimum of 50% of the shareholding. This is a requirement, not a preference.
- The venture must be building solutions in the waste-to-value sector.
- The company must be registered as a Private Limited company, which is an Indian company form, so the entity is registered in India.
- The product or solution must be market-ready or ready to commercialise.
- No age, degree, work-experience or personal nationality requirement is stated. The gates sit on the company and on its shareholding.
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Application process
- 1Check the four eligibility lines first: the 50% woman-shareholding threshold, the waste-to-value focus, Private Limited registration, and a product that is market-ready or ready to commercialise.
- 2Open the program page and read the application status. It currently reads closed, and Villgro publishes no dates for the next call.
- 3When a call is open, use the Apply for Incubation button on the program page. It opens Villgro’s incubation application portal.
- 4Register on the portal and complete the form, which asks for country of operation, whether the enterprise is based in India, for-profit or non-profit registration, sector and sub-sector, which population benefits, and whether the impact on them is direct or indirect.
- 5Shortlisted enterprises go through Villgro’s onboarding: an assessment, an incubation agreement carrying growth milestones, and a compliance gap analysis.
- 6Selected enterprises then face a diagnostic panel with industry experts and work to a 100-day plan with monthly targets.
Program timeline
The program starts, run by Villgro in partnership with Accenture.
2023
Villgro’s program hub lists it under inclusive livelihoods and entrepreneurship as a current program.
2023 to present
Now
The program page shows applications closed. No closing date, reopening date or next call is published.
Ongoing
The Apply for Incubation button leads to Villgro’s incubation application portal, which stays available between calls.
Not published
cohort size, program length, selection dates and decision dates.