The Equalizer Challenge: Scaling Women’s Health Innovations

Women make up half the world’s population, yet sexual and reproductive health, maternal care and other health needs specific to women are critically underfunded and underdeveloped.

“Every minute, at least two women die globally from breast or cervical cancer or pregnancy-related complications due to inequitable access to healthcare,” says Dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency. This stark reality underscores the urgent need for scalable, high-impact health solutions that reach underserved communities and close the health gap for women worldwide.

Every day, nearly 800 women die due to preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth1. Around half a million women die from cervical cancer and half a million from breast cancer each year, according to the World Health Organization, with the vast majority of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries where screening, prevention and treatment are almost non-existent.2

Despite the severity of these issues, only 1 per cent of global healthcare research and innovation funding addresses female-specific conditions beyond oncology. Even more alarming, only 0.2 per cent of research and development funding focuses on sexual and reproductive health in developing countries, despite its critical role in determining lifelong well-being3. Gender biases persist in technology and healthcare design, reinforcing the need for inclusive, impactful solutions. 

We need more innovations to close the gap.

To that end, UNFPA, in collaboration with MIT Solve, IE University and Women of Wearables, is launching The Equalizer Challenge: Scaling Women’s Health Innovations – an innovation challenge designed to provide catalytic, equity-free funding while empowering innovators to amplify their impact and scale up transformative solutions for women’s health. The Equalizer Challenge is enabled by the generous support from the Governments of Germany and Luxembourg to the UNFPA Equalizer Accelerator Fund.

Challenge objectives

Through this challenge, UNFPA aims to:

• Identify and support scalable innovations in women’s health.
• Empower women-led enterprises addressing critical health conditions.
• Strengthen the women’s health innovation ecosystem.
• Provide equity-free funding, mentorship and capacity-building to women entrepreneurs to ensure positioning to scale up.
• Advance gender equity in technology and innovation, increasing access to funding and networking opportunities.

What do we mean by scalable solutions?

Scaling a solution means expanding its reach to serve more people or cover new geographical areas, ensuring long-term impact and sustainability. Our focus is on solutions that are ready to scale through further investments. Many initiatives in key areas – such as cervical cancer screening, menopause care, breast cancer detection and infertility treatment – are well positioned for this type of expansion.

By investing in these solutions, we can extend their reach to new regions and larger populations, ensuring more equitable access to critical healthcare services. Strategic funding and partnerships will drive this growth, helping proven initiatives scale effectively while maintaining impact and quality.

Eligibility criteria

• Women-led social enterprises4 registered and operating in UNFPA programme countries with a scalable health innovation addressing women’s health needs.
• Organizations – startups, social enterprises, non-profits and hybrid models – committed to expanding access to critical women’s health solutions, with clear business models and pathways to scale through markets or the public sector.

Applicants must provide:

• A minimum viable product (MVP).
• Proof of ownership of the MVP.
• Application submission in English (with team members demonstrating working knowledge of English).
• Commitment to virtual innovation cohort activities from May to December 2025, adhering to all programme requirements.

Evaluation criteria

Applications will be reviewed in two phases: initial screening by the UNFPA team, followed by interviews with an expert judging panel.

The selection criteria include:

• Alignment with the challenge focus: The innovation addresses health conditions uniquely affecting women and girls.
• Innovative approach: A novel solution or novel application of an existing solution.
• Potential for impact: Proven effectiveness in improving health outcomes.
• Sustainable business model:A well-defined approach for cost recovery or revenue generation.
• Feasibility and scalability: A clear, practical and sustainable growth plan.
• Inclusive, women-centred design: Solutions designed by, for and with women, especially in underserved communities.

Timeline

📅 Call for submissions: April 9 – May 4, 2025.

💡 Winners announced: June 2025.

🚀  Innovation support programme: June – November 2025.

💰 Catalytic funding: Up to $20,000 per winner.

🌍 Global exposure: Direct access to health innovation networks, mentorship and investors.

🔗 Post-challenge support: Ongoing engagement, networking and participation in health forums.