7 Small Business Grants Entrepreneurs Can Apply for This Season! – GrantWatch

Report on Small Business Grants and Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Introduction

Non-repayable grants offer critical financial support for small businesses, enabling operational stability, expansion, and innovation. This report analyzes seven currently available grant opportunities and evaluates their direct and indirect contributions to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These funding mechanisms are instrumental in fostering economic resilience and advancing inclusive, sustainable development by empowering entrepreneurs to overcome financial barriers and contribute positively to their communities.

Analysis of Available Grants and SDG Contributions

1. Grant to Empower Small Businesses in the Digital Economy

   This grant provides funding, training, and mentorship to facilitate entrepreneurial success in the digital economy, with a priority for businesses in low-to-moderate income communities.

   • SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): By fostering entrepreneurship and job creation, the grant promotes sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth.
   • SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure): It enhances the technological capabilities of small enterprises, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization.
   • SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): The focus on underserved communities directly addresses economic disparities by providing equitable access to capital and resources.

2. Grants for Specialty Crop Food Safety Costs

   This funding assists small specialty crop businesses in covering expenses related to on-farm food safety programs, including certifications, testing, and training.

   • SDG 2 (Zero Hunger): The grant supports sustainable agriculture and enhances the safety and quality of the food supply chain.
   • SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being): By promoting higher food safety standards, it helps reduce the incidence of foodborne illnesses.
   • SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production): It encourages sustainable production patterns by helping small farms meet rigorous safety and quality certifications.

3. Grants for U.S. Booksellers and Comic Store Owners

   This program offers financial assistance to booksellers, bookstore owners, and comic store employees to ensure operational continuity during unforeseen events.

   • SDG 4 (Quality Education): It supports the viability of businesses that serve as community hubs for literacy, learning, and access to cultural materials.
   • SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): The grant preserves jobs and provides a financial safety net for employees in a culturally significant sector of the retail economy.

4. Disaster Relief Grants for Independent Business Retailers

   This initiative provides up to $10,000 to independent retailers for urgent expenses following a disaster, such as inventory replacement and property repairs.

   • SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): It strengthens the economic resilience of local communities by helping small businesses recover and reopen after disasters.
   • SDG 13 (Climate Action): The funding helps mitigate the economic impacts of climate-related disasters, which are increasing in frequency and intensity.

5. Recoverable Capital Support Grants for U.S. Small Businesses

   This grant offers interest-free, recoverable capital that is repaid only after the recipient business achieves specific financial milestones, improving access to affordable financing.

   • SDG 1 (No Poverty): It provides a non-debt financing alternative, allowing entrepreneurs to build assets without the burden of high-interest loans.
   • SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): The model improves capital access for entrepreneurs who may face barriers in traditional lending systems, fostering more equitable economic opportunity.

6. In-Kind Support Grants for Small Business Owners of African Descent

   This program delivers targeted in-kind support to help entrepreneurs of African descent in the USA, Canada, and internationally establish or grow their businesses.

   • SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): It promotes entrepreneurship and business development within a key demographic, contributing to inclusive economic growth.
   • SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): The grant directly addresses systemic economic disparities by providing tailored resources to a historically marginalized entrepreneurial community.

7. Grants for U.S. and Canadian Businesses Driving Community Change

   This grant awards funding to enterprises with projects designed to improve community life, with a specific focus on promoting diversity and equity.

   • SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): It directly supports initiatives that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion at the community level.
   • SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): The funding empowers businesses to lead projects that make communities more inclusive, safe, and sustainable.

Conclusion

The analyzed grants demonstrate a significant alignment with multiple Sustainable Development Goals. By providing targeted financial and in-kind support, these opportunities not only foster the success of individual businesses but also contribute to the broader global objectives of inclusive economic growth, social equity, and environmental sustainability. Small businesses are critical agents in achieving the 2030 Agenda, and these grants serve as vital instruments in empowering their role as drivers of sustainable development.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

1. SDG 2: Zero Hunger
   • The article mentions a grant for small specialty crop businesses to cover food safety expenses. By supporting small-scale food producers, this initiative contributes to sustainable agriculture and ensuring a safe food supply chain.
2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
   • This is the primary SDG addressed. The entire article focuses on providing grants to small businesses to help them start, grow, hire staff, and sustain operations. This directly promotes entrepreneurship, job creation, and the formalization and growth of micro- and small-sized enterprises.
3. SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
   • The grant to empower small businesses in the digital economy directly supports this goal. It provides funding, training, and mentorship to help entrepreneurs adapt to and succeed with modern technology, thereby fostering innovation and upgrading their infrastructure.
4. SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
   • Several grants explicitly target inequality. The grants prioritize businesses in low-to-moderate income communities, support entrepreneurs of African descent, and fund projects promoting diversity and equity. These actions aim to empower and promote the economic inclusion of marginalized or disadvantaged groups.
5. SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
   • The disaster relief grants for independent retailers help businesses recover from unforeseen events, contributing to the economic resilience of communities. Additionally, the grant for businesses driving community change directly supports initiatives that improve community life and make them more inclusive.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Target 2.3: By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers.
   • The grant for specialty crop businesses helps them cover essential costs like food safety certification and testing. This support enables them to meet market standards, sustain their operations, and protect their income, which is aligned with supporting small-scale producers.
2. Target 8.3: Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services.
   • All seven grants listed are forms of financial services designed to foster entrepreneurship and support the growth of small businesses. They provide capital for equipment, hiring, and product launches, directly contributing to this target.
3. Target 9.3: Increase the access of small-scale industrial and other enterprises… to financial services, including affordable credit, and their integration into value chains and markets.
   • The grants, particularly the “Recoverable Capital Support Grants” and the grant for the “Digital Economy,” directly increase access to affordable capital for small businesses, helping them innovate and integrate into larger markets.
4. Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of… race, ethnicity… or economic or other status.
   • This target is addressed by grants specifically aimed at businesses in “low-to-moderate income communities,” “business owners and entrepreneurs of African descent,” and projects that “promote diversity and equity for all community members.”
5. Target 11.5: By 2030, significantly reduce… direct economic losses relative to global gross domestic product caused by disasters.
   • The “Disaster Relief Grants for Independent Business Retailers” directly address this target by providing funding to cover urgent expenses after unforeseen events, helping small businesses reopen and reducing their economic losses.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• Number of small businesses receiving financial support: The article is centered around a list of 7 grants, implying that the number of businesses that successfully apply for and receive these grants is a key measure of impact.
• Amount of financial support provided: The article explicitly mentions grant amounts, such as grants “up to $10,000,” “$10,000-$50,000,” and “$1,000.” These figures can be used as indicators of the volume of capital being directed to small businesses.
• Proportion of businesses from specific groups receiving support: The existence of grants for “businesses in low-to-moderate income communities” and “business owners of African descent” implies that progress can be measured by tracking the number or proportion of beneficiaries from these specific demographic and economic groups.
• Provision of non-financial business support: The grant for the digital economy mentions providing “training, and mentorship” in addition to funding. The grant for entrepreneurs of African descent offers “in-kind support.” The number of businesses receiving these services is a relevant indicator of support for business development.
• Number of businesses supported in disaster recovery: The disaster relief grant implies an indicator related to the number of retailers that receive aid to “reopen and sustain operations” after a disaster.

4. Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: grantwatch.com