Help guide for the Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) Ecosystem Fund expression of interest form

This help guide is a companion for completing the expression of interest for Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan), a Regional Development Agency (RDA).

Preparation

• Before beginning your expression of interest (EOI), carefully review the guidelines for the Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) Ecosystem Fund, to ensure your organization is eligible to apply for funding and your proposed activities meet the program’s objectives and criteria.
• Review this help guide carefully as it contains details on how to answer specific fields exclusively for this program.
• This expression of interest will be used to determine whether you will be invited to submit a full application.
• Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory and you will be unable to submit your EOI if such fields are left incomplete.
  • Incomplete EOIs cannot be assessed and may be deem ineligible.
• Contact PrairiesCan should you have any questions or wish to discuss your proposed project or other relevant government programs that may be applicable your project.
• For information about the program, application, and assessment process, please see: Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) Ecosystem Fund in the Prairie provinces.

Completing the form

Refer to the guidance below for explanations of how to complete the expression of interest form.

Organization information

Legal name of applicant organization *

The legal name as shown on the certificate of incorporation or registration.

Operating name (if different than legal name)

Provide the name you are operating under if different from the full legal name.

Mailing address (Including suite, unit, apt #)

The mailing address of the applicant organization.

Email address

Include the general email address of your organization.

Website

Your organization’s website address (if available).

Corporate Status *

Indicate if your organization is a for-profit or not-for-profit.

Organization Type (select best fit) *

Select from the drop down menu what most accurately reflects your organization type.

Provide your Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Business number or Goods and Services Tax (GST) number (first 9 digits only)

The unique business number or GST number assigned to the applicant organization by the CRA. A business number or GST number must be obtained through the CRA. For information on obtaining a business number visit the CRA’s Business Number Registration page.

Jurisdiction of Incorporation *

Select from the drop down menu your organization’s jurisdiction of incorporation.

Incorporation Number

As shown on your Certification of Incorporation.

In the province of

Indicate in which province the organization was incorporated.

Date of incorporation

Indicate the date the organization was incorporated.

Alternative number type

Please enter if you do not have a CRA Business Number or Incorporation Number, so your organization can be identified (e.g. band number, education number).

Number of employees working for your organization (full time equivalents)

Indicate the number of Full-Time Equivalent employees (FTEs) working for your organization (and if applicable, any affiliated companies). Part-time employees should be calculated based on their equivalent to a FTE (i.e., one part time employee working approx. 20 hrs/week should be represented as 0.5 FTE).

Provide a brief summary of your organization and mandate (Maximum of 500 characters)

Provide an overview of your organization. Include:

• the date it was established in Canada
• mission/mandate, key priorities, reach/membership, governance
• a description of your management team and project team and management structure
• how it meets the eligibility criteria

Eligible not-for-profit organizations:

Eligible applicants under the Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) Ecosystem Fund must meet all the following criteria to be eligible for the program:

• be a Black-led*, not-for-profit organization**, located in Alberta, Saskatchewan, or Manitoba
• be an incorporated organization (federally or provincially) operating with a mandate, activities, and outcomes that focus on supporting members of Black communities in Canada
• have the ability to deliver business support/advisory services and reach the Black entrepreneurship community
• be able to enter into legally binding agreements

*Black-led organizations, for the purposes of this program, are defined as having both:

• a minimum two-thirds of leadership positions (directors, founders, etc.) in the organization primarily occupied by people who self-identify as Black
• a governance structure (volunteer committee, advisory board, eldership circle, etc.) that is primarily composed of people who self-identify as Black (minimum two-thirds of positions) 

** Not-for-profit organizations include:

• incubators and accelerators 
• innovation hubs
• business and entrepreneur support organizations
• organizations that support social enterprises or cooperatives

Organizations can apply on their own or with partners. If applying with partners or as a consortium, the application must include signed letters of support from each partner. These letters should describe the partner’s role, contributions, and relevant experience. Partner organizations may be Black-led or non-Black-led.

Project primary contact

This person will be contacted for any follow-up on this application.

Title *

Provide the contact person’s job title (e.g., President, Executive Director).

Email address *

The email at which the primary contact may be reached.

Project secondary contact

Title

Provide the contact person’s job title (e.g., President, Executive Director).

Email address

The email at which the secondary contact may be reached.

Project information

Project title (maximum of 90 characters) *

Provide a project title beginning with "BEP-" that accurately reflects the activities and results of the project. The project title:

• must start with the acronym "BEP-" to be identified as an expression of interest to the Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) Ecosystem Fund
  • For example, BEP-Establish a business accelerator for Black entrepreneurs in the Prairie provinces
• can be a maximum of 90 characters including spaces
• will be disclosed on the Open Government Portal website as part of its proactive disclosure guidelines if your project is approved

Project address is the same as Mailing address on the account?

Yes / No

Select "Yes" if the address at which the project will be undertaken is the same as the organization’s mailing address. If checked, the mailing address will be automatically entered.

Project address / location (Including suite, unit, apt #): *

If the project address is different from the mailing address, enter the location at which the project will take place.

Describe your project activities in plain language. The description should include the objectives of the project, as well as, key activities of the project and how these activities will achieve the intended objectives of the project. (Maximum of 1,000 characters including spaces) *

Briefly describe your project in plain language. This is important as this section will be used in summary documents to describe your project at various review stages.

The description should:

• provide a high-level overview of the project and its objective
• outline the main elements of the proposed project, including how your project addresses market demand and what the funds will be spent on
• provide an understanding of how the project aligns with one of the following program activities:
  • Business accelerators and incubators
    • providing business guidance (e.g., business planning, marketing, hiring) and operational support (e.g., access to office space, specialized equipment to aid product development and market growth).
  • Networking, matchmaking, and mentorship
    • Facilitating connections among entrepreneurs, investors, experts, and stakeholders to share knowledge, build relationships, and foster collaboration.
    • Strategically pairing entrepreneurs with resources, partners, or opportunities that meet specific business needs—such as funding, talent, or technology.
    • Providing entrepreneurs with guidance and support from experienced individuals to help navigate challenges, build capacity, and accelerate growth.
  • Capacity building
    • Includes financial planning, business development, advisory services, training, and other activity that supports the participation of the Black community in entrepreneurship and the objectives of the BEP Ecosystem Fund.

Eligible projects must provide incremental value (e.g., expand/improve the applicant’s existing service offerings).

Briefly describe the economic benefits associated with this project. (1,000 characters including spaces) *

Provide an explanation on what economic outcomes your proposed project will achieve. Identify all assumptions to support the reasonableness of your economic outcomes. All projects will be screened for significance of outcomes and the likelihood of achieving them.

Describe the economic benefits associated with your project and provide numerical values measured year over year from the project start date typically to 1 year following the project completion date. Anticipated outcomes include:

• number of highly qualified personnel (HQP), including science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), jobs created in Canada
• number of non-HQP jobs created in Canada
• number of businesses served
• number of businesses created, maintained, expanded
• number of participants trained

Where applicable, describe whether your project would generate other economic outcomes such as:

• revenue growth ($)
• export sales growth ($)

If your project supports the Government of Canada’s commitment to inclusive growth (under-represented groups) you may include this in your explanation. Note: recipients will be encouraged to track inclusiveness indicators (i.e., women, Indigenous Peoples, and youth).

You will be provided another opportunity to explain in the Benefits section. Refer to the expected benefits for more details.

Which RDA Priority does this project best support?

Please select "Other" for this field as the BEP Ecosystem Fund does not align with the standard PrairiesCan program priorities. 

Click on the magnifying glass icon and the "Lookup records" window will appear, then select "Other".

 

 

Explain how this project supports the indicated priority. (Maximum of 2,000 characters).

The objective of the BEP Ecosystem Fund is to strengthen the Black entrepreneurship ecosystem by enabling Black-led not-for-profit organizations to provide incubator/accelerator programming, mentorship, financial planning, and business development and advisory services and training to Black Canadian entrepreneurs and business owners to help them grow their businesses and succeed.

Explain in detail how your project’s objectives, activities, and outcomes meet the BEP Ecosystem Fund objective as well as other PrairiesCan key priorities where applicable.

Project timelines

Proposed project start date *

This is the proposed date the agreement between the Recipient and PrairiesCan could come into effect.

• The start date must be no earlier than April 1, 2025.
  • Costs may be eligible on a retroactive basis for a 12-month period prior to receipt of a funding request, but no earlier than April 1, 2025.
• Costs incurred prior to the project start date are not eligible for reimbursement under the terms of the agreement and are outside of the scope of the project.

Proposed project end date *

This is the anticipated date the project activity will cease. All project activities must be completed March 31, 2030.

Project costs

PrairiesCan contributions must normally range between $250,000 to a maximum of $3,000,000 per project over a maximum of 5 years.

Recipients will not normally receive funding for more than one project.

Description *

List the various cost items you anticipate incurring in the implementation of the project. Each cost item should have its own line (see instructions below).

Recipients must ensure all project cost items are clearly verifiable.

Project-related costs that may be eligible for reimbursement include:

• Cost of labour (e.g., wages and benefits) and material used;
• Operating costs that are incremental and directly related to the project (e.g., management fees, working capital, translation costs);
• Consultancy fees (e.g., professional, advisory and technical services);
• Advisory expenses (e.g., planning, business information, counselling advisory services, coaching, mentoring or networking events; workshops or conference fees; fees associated with participation in business training through a business service organization);
• Costs related to expanding or maintaining markets;
• Subcontracting costs;
• Production and distribution of promotional materials and management tools;
• Anticipated cost of maintaining the useful life of an asset for a reasonable period (e.g., photocopier maintenance);
• Production of management tools;
• Costs related to specialized services such as testing services, research and development services, technical or innovation services, sector development strategies in all markets and business networking.

Examples of ineligible costs include:

• Refinancing of existing debts or amortization or depreciation of assets;
• Infrastructure improvements such as construction, expansion, or modification of buildings;
• The purchase of any assets for more than the fair market value of the said asest;
• Land acquisition and goodwill;
• Entertainment expenses; and
• Donations, dues, and membership fees.

PrairiesCan reserves the right to make the final determination on the value of contributions, the inclusion of any in-kind contributions, and to exclude expenditures deemed to be ineligible or outside the scope of the project.

Costs incurred prior to the Proposed Project Funding Start Date will not be eligible.

Project costs incurred by the applicant in the absence of a signed funding agreement with the RDA are incurred at the sole risk of the applicant.

Type *

Indicate if the cost is capital (e.g. purchase of equipment and associated costs such as installation) or non-capital (e.g. salaries, professional fees, maintenance).

Amount *

The anticipated amount of the cost item.

Total Project Costs

Automatically sums the cost items listed above.

Note: This total must equal the Total expenditures from the Cash Flows section below.

To add a project cost item, click on the  button and the following window will appear for you to provide the information. Click the Submit button once complete. You will still have the ability to edit the project cost item after hitting this Submit button.

 

Cash flows

Fiscal Year (Ending March 31): Year 1

Total Fiscal Expenditures

Anticipated total project costs incurred in Year 1.

RDA Funding

The amount of RDA funding being requested to support Year 1 expenses.

Non-RDA Funding

Automatically generated: the expenditures not covered by RDA funding.

Fiscal Year (Ending March 31): Year 2

Total Fiscal Expenditures

Anticipated total project costs incurred in Year 2.

RDA Funding

The amount of RDA funding being requested to support Year 2 expenses.

Non-RDA Funding

Automatically generated: the expenditures not covered by RDA funding.

Fiscal Year (Ending March 31): Year 3

Total Fiscal Expenditures

Anticipated total project costs incurred in Year 3.

RDA Funding

The amount of RDA funding being requested to support Year 3 expenses.

Non-RDA Funding

Automatically generated: the expenditures not covered by RDA funding.

Fiscal Year (Ending March 31): Year 4

Total Fiscal Expenditures

Anticipated total project costs incurred in Year 4.

RDA Funding

The amount of RDA funding being requested to support Year 4 expenses.

Non-RDA Funding

Automatically generated: the expenditures not covered by RDA funding.

Fiscal Year (Ending March 31): Year 5

Total Fiscal Expenditures

Anticipated total project costs incurred in Year 5.

RDA Funding

The amount of RDA funding being requested to support Year 5 expenses.

Non-RDA Funding

Automatically generated: the expenditures not covered by RDA funding.

1. To enter cash flow information, click the down arrow on the far right for the fiscal year you are interested in. Click the Edit option that appears. Note: fiscal years shown below are for illustrative purposes only.

2. Enter the "Expenditures" and "RDA Amount Requested" information and then hit Submit. You will still have the ability to edit the project cost item after hitting this Submit button.

 

RDA funding requested *

This is the sum of the RDA Funding column in the Cash Flows section. It is automatically calculated.

Total expenditures *

This is the sum of the Total Fiscal Expenditures column in the Cash Flows section. It is automatically calculated.

Note: This total must equal the Total project costs from the Project Costs section above.

Total non-RDA funding *

This is the sum of the Non-RDA Funding column in the Cash Flows section. It is automatically calculated.

Note: This total must equal the Amount provided by funding partners from the Funding Partners section below.

The solid arrows point to the fields that must balance and the dotted lines indicate what column is being summed to produce those totals. Note: fiscal years shown below are for illustrative purposes only.

Funding partners 

Funding Partner

The first entry in the list of funding partners is reserved for your own organization (the "Applicant"). Add other funding partners or contributors, if any, in subsequent rows.

Identify all potential project partners that will provide monetary or in-kind contributions.

Guidelines for in-kind costs/contributions

Only project costs incurred and directly paid by the applicant can be reimbursed by PrairiesCan.

An in-kind contribution is a project cost that does not involve an expense incurred and paid for by the project applicant. Typically, these expenses are borne by third parties for items or services that are in turn provided to the applicant at no cost or at a reduced cost (e.g., a deep discount not typically offered to others).

In-kind costs:

• are used to demonstrate a more accurate picture of the project scope, including:
  • project funding
  • project leveraging
  • demonstration of participant and/or private sector contributions to a project.
• must be for an item considered by PrairiesCan to be essential to a project ’s success, eligible under the programming, and would otherwise be purchased and paid for by the applicant.
• may only be included in the project when there is a clear plan and commitment from the applicant on how the costs can be verified.

Example: An industry partner will provide trucks to a college for use in a project to train truck drivers.

• The college did not incur or pay any incremental costs but the project could not reasonably go forward without the trucks, so this would be an in-kind contribution to project costs.
• The value of the trucks to the project can be quantified via sales records.

Note: recipients must ensure all contributions (including in-kind contributions) are clearly verifiable.

Funding Category

Select from the drop down menu the description that best reflects the funding source.

Funding Confirmed

Indicate if the funding has been confirmed.

In the case where your organization (Applicant) is a source of funding, indicate yes if you have cash on hand.

Amount

The anticipated amount of funding this partner will provide.

Amount provided by funding partners

Automatically sums the funding amounts listed above.

Note: This total must equal the Total non-RDA funding from the Cash Flows section above.

1. To add a funding partner, click on the button and the following window will appear for you to input the information. Click the Submit button once complete. You will still have the ability to edit the project cost item after hitting this Submit button.

 

2. To edit what your organization will be contributing towards this project, click the down arrow on the far right for the fiscal year you are interested in. Click the Edit option that appears and a similar pop-up window as shown above will appear.

 

 

Briefly describe any partnerships (non-financial and financial) for this project (maximum of 1,200 characters including space): *

Describe partnerships that would be important to the success of the proposed project including how you will engage with the Federation of African Canadian Economics (FACE) and the Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (BEKH).

It is strongly encouraged that applicants explore partnerships with other organizations to strengthen service offerings and coverage. Partner organizations may be Black-led or non-Black-led.

If your project includes partnerships, provide:

• partner names
• partner role(s)
• partner track record, experience, and expertise
• any additional project partner locations where benefits of this project may accrue
• how this project will benefit the project partners involved

Signing authority

Indicate here the individual within your organization who has signing power / the authority to enter into an agreement. This person may be different from the contact person.

Title *

Provide the contact person’s job title (e.g., President, Executive Director).

Email address *

The email at which the primary contact may be reached.

Diversity and inclusion

The Government of Canada is committed to diversity and inclusion so that all Canadians have the opportunity to participate in and contribute to the growth of the economy. Gender and diversity data collected may be used for research, statistics, program and policy evaluation, risk management, strategy development, reporting, and gender-based analysis (including GBA+). This information can help the Government of Canada monitor progress on inclusive access to federal support programs and services; to identify and remove barriers; and, to make changes to improve inclusive access. The Government of Canada understands that participation of underrepresented groups is an integral part of building strong and inclusive communities and economy.

No personal identifying information will be shared. Aggregate and anonymous data may be shared with other federal organizations and/or published for reporting and monitoring purposes.

Is your organization majority (i.e. over 50%) owned or led by individuals who self identify as:

Definition: majority owned or led is defined as individuals with long-term control and management of the organization and an active role in both strategic and day-to-day decision making.

If applicable, please indicate whether your organization is led or majority-owned by one or more of the listed groups. Note that this information will not be used in the assessment process. Aggregate and anonymous data may be shared with other federal organizations, and/or published for reporting and monitoring purposes. If you do not know if a particular group is involved in the management team, or prefer not to answer, please select ‘prefer not to answer/do not know’ from the drop-down box.

 

Will your project directly support any of the following diverse groups?

This question is regarding the people that will benefit from this project. Will your project directly support any of the groups listed? If so, please answer ‘yes’. If you do not know if your project will directly support a particular group, or prefer not to answer, just leave the field blank.

 

If yes, please specify (maximum of 1,500 characters, including spaces)

Provide an explanation of how your project will support these groups.

Documents

Upload the following required documents to be provided with your expression of interest:

• supporting documents
• incorporation documents for your organization and proof of signing authority (e.g., bylaws, articles of incorporation, board minutes or records of decision)
• a business plan providing details about your organization (including management team, board of directors) and details about the proposed project
• Letters of support
  • if applying with a partner or with consortia of partners, you must include a letter(s) of support from the partner(s) (signed by their authorized official)
    • letter(s) should outline partner roles and contributions in delivering the required project, experience, expertise and knowledge
• financial statements
  • for the past 2 years
  • interim statements for at least the last 6-month period
• confirmed funding
  • confirmation of non-PrairiesCan project funding (e.g. bank statements, unused portion of lines of credit, official letters of intent, funding agreements) and identification of project partners, where applicable

Validation

For this step, any errors or omissions in the form will be brought to your attention and you will be given the opportunity to review them and make any necessary corrections.

Attestation

Before you can complete and submit your expression of interest, it is necessary in this final step for you to affirm that you are aware of certain statutory obligations, and that your organization meets the eligibility requirements for BEP – Ecosystem Fund. The attestation must be completed by a member of your organization with signing power/authority to enter into a legal agreement. For your reference, the complete text of this attestation is given below.

Please select "I agree" to affirm, and then submit using the "Submit" button.