The grant
Between €5,000 and €75,000, sized to the track and paid against an agreed plan rather than as a lump sum. It buys equipment, expertise, certification or market entry — not running costs.
The programme
Money is half the offer
A LEAP grant arrives with the advice, the certification support and the buyer introductions that make it usable. Five services, four sectors, five cross-cutting priorities — and one grant ladder from €2,500 to €75,000.
- Grant range
- €5,000 – €75,000
- Support services
- 5
- Priority sectors
- 4
- Cross-cutting priorities
- 5
The offer
Three things arrive together
Splitting them would be easier to administer and worse for the business, so we don't.
The advisor
A sector specialist assigned for the length of the grant, who has done the thing being funded before. They start before the money moves and stay until the plan is delivered.
The route to market
Buyer introductions, trade fairs and B2B meetings, plus the certifications international buyers ask for. Growth needs a customer, and a grant cannot buy one.
Support we provide
Five services, delivered by the expert network
Each grantee uses the ones its plan calls for — not all five, and never on a schedule set by us.
Digitisation
E-commerce, booking systems, stock and accounting tools — the software a business actually runs on, set up and staff trained on it.
Business development
Strategy, operations and pricing work with an advisor who knows the sector, tuned to the stage the company is at.
Certification
Quality, safety and export-readiness certifications, from the gap assessment through to the audit international buyers require.
B2B and sales
Buyer matchmaking, trade fairs and structured B2B meetings that open a channel rather than produce a business card.
Financial planning
Books, budgets and cash-flow discipline — and the readiness a bank or an investor needs before the next round of capital.
Priority sectors
Where the fund invests
Four sectors where MSMEs in the region create the most jobs, exports and durable growth.
Tourism
Community-based and sustainable tourism ventures, hospitality and experience design.
Manufacturing
Light industry, product upgrading and access to regional and EU supply chains.
Technology
Digital products, IT services and tech-enabled business models built for regional markets.
Agriculture
Agri-food processing, value addition and climate-smart production.
Cross-cutting priorities
What every project is assessed against
Sector decides whether a business can apply. These five decide how a project scores once it has.
- Trade
- Green growth
- Digital
- Job creation
- Circular economy
Who can apply
One ladder, three rungs
Support is sized to where a business already stands. You apply to the rung you are on, not the one above it.
Entrepreneurs
Early-stage founders with a proven idea and first customers landing.
Microbusinesses
Owner-operated businesses that are trading and ready to formalise and grow.
Enterprises
Established small and medium companies scaling production or entering export markets.
Every project funded through LEAP is assessed against the same five priorities.
Trade, green growth, digital transformation, job creation and the circular economy. They are not extra criteria bolted onto the scoring — they are how the fund decides what growth is worth paying for.
Find the window that fits
Windows open by country and by track. The calls page lists everything open, closing, upcoming and closed.