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The Degroof Petercam Foundation Award

Degroof Petercam Foundation works with social entrepreneurs and innovators who provide solutions that benefit employment and sustainable prosperity. The Foundation has therefore created the DPF Award, which is granted to a project every year.
Each year, the Degroof Petercam Foundation selects a project that receives one million euros' financial support. It also actively monitors the project for five years and makes its expertise and network available to the project.
Degroof Petercam Foundation distinguishes three types of interventions that can help
address employment challenges: develop skills that fit the needs of the labor market, stimulate entrepreneurship as powerful levers for economic growth and strive for a more inclusive employment market.

3 finalists each year

  • Financial support of 20,000 euros
  • Non-financial support and the opportunity to benefit from our network

2 new runners-up

  • Financial support of 50,000 euros
  • Non-financial support and the opportunity to benefit from our network

1 new laureate per year

  • Financial support of €1 million over five years
  • 5 years of support
  • 300 hours of non-financial support and the opportunity to benefit from our networks

Shortlist of candidates by 

  • A network of professional nominators
  • Online preselection
  • Field visit
  • Final selection by an independent jury

Basic selection criteria

  • Innovation: an outstanding solution with the potential to reach systemic change
  • Geography: the association should be based and have impact in the EU
  • Scope: skills, entrepreneurship, and job accessibility
  • Maturity: project with a first proven impact and potential for scale-up

Our impact methodology

The DPF primarily aims at helping non-profits scale up and reach a systemic impact. Along the five years of support, DPF works on seven categories with the supported projects: Financial health, Partnerships & Stakeholders, Talent, Impact, Strategy & Governance, Visibility, Operating Model.

Winner of DPF Award 2023

Salomé Chemins davenirs
Chemins d'avenirs enables equal career opportunities for young people in rural and sparsely populated areas.Founded in 2016, the French non-profit organization tackles territorial divides and their consequences, a growing concern in European countries. Their goal is to drive a system change on two levels. First, it accompanies young people from rural areas to reach their full potential through a mentoring program. Second, it combines scientific research with an advocacy strategy to influence public authorities, the education system and corporations on this issue.

Watch the video on Chemins d’avenirs

Winner of DPF Award 2022

Degroof Petercam Foundation Award 2022
Activ’Action aims to transform the job search period into an opportunity to enlarge one's network, enhance one's employment skills, carry out projects and try out new abilities through its free and collaborative workshops. Its unique methodology focuses on a catalog of 15 soft skills (oral fluency, teamwork, active listening, etc.) that are essential for today's world and tomorrow's challenges. This project responds to a societal need, knowing that unemployment has a negative impact on soft skills and behavioral aptitudes (self-confidence, social cohesion, optimism, perseverance, ambition, etc.), which are paramount for the job market.

Winner of DPF Award 2021

ticket-for-change-nieuwe-laureaat-degroof-petercam-foundation
Ticket for Change aims at empowering everyone to direct their talents toward a positive social and environmental change through their jobs. Concretely, via various tailored programs, they accompany entrepreneurs creating jobs with a social and environmental vocation, leaders and employees transforming their jobs towards a more impact, and unemployed people or people in transition to find meaningful jobs. This partnership aims at helping Ticket for Change finance its systemic development and grow internationally, focusing on Belgium and Luxembourg first.

Winner of DPF Award 2020

Degroof Petercam Foundation Award 2020
Bayes Impact is a French NGO that favors technology to tackle social issues. Among the various problems our society is struggling with, Bayes Impact focuses on facilitating access to employment. How? By means of its public service called "Bob", a free and open source tool relying on artificial intelligence and powerful algorithms to help people find a job in a personalized manner.

Winner of the DPF Award 2019

Degroof Petercam Foundation Award 2019: DUO for a job
DUO for a JOB pairs young job-seekers having a migrant background with experienced workers (50 years and older) who can assist them in finding a job. The non-profit organization serves both young people and potential counselors. It was founded in Brussels in 2013, and is now active in Antwerp, Brussels, Ghent and Liège. The objective of this partnership is to help the organization to expand its activities throughout Europe, starting in France.