Retrospective: Public Goods Africa Independent Grant Round in GG19

Summary

This retrospective covers the Public Goods Africa Grant Round, which operated as an independent initiative during GG19.

Objectives and Goals

The round pursued three primary aims:

1. Successfully pilot a QF Grant round exclusively for the African Continent
2. Identify and support high-impact projects
3. Establish precedent for future QF initiatives and advance the global web3 Public Good movement

Implementation

Using a direct identification approach with a smaller matching pool, organizers selected ten projects through these steps:

• Research and shortlisting of high-impact Africa-focused initiatives
• Direct outreach inviting selected projects to participate
• Application assistance and Grant Stack training

Selection criteria emphasized:

• Projects must target African impact
• Projects must strengthen the Web3 ecosystem
• Projects must demonstrate at least three months of activity

The round "prioritize[d] builder initiatives such as developer training programs, hackathon initiatives, and developer communities."

Outcomes and Statistics

• Total donations: $727.12 (approximately 15% of matching funds)
• Average donation: $4.13
• No sybil attacks detected
• No project reached the matching cap, indicating equitable distribution

Challenges and Learnings

Key obstacles included:

• Technical issues reported by some donors
• New donors struggled with Gitcoin Passport scoring requirements
• Participants unfamiliar with Layer 2 networks and bridging processes
• Limited funds among potential contributors
• Lower matching caps recommended to enable broader distribution

Community Feedback and Engagement

Support included:

• Ongoing assistance for donors, grantees, and participants
• Twitter Spaces for education and publicity
• Post-round community feedback gathering via Twitter Spaces and Telegram

Recommendations for Future Grant Rounds

• Increase matching fund allocation
• Expand project participation numbers
• Broaden selection criteria with specific objectives
• Launch additional education initiatives

Conclusion

The organizers expressed gratitude to all participants and positioned this round as foundational, envisioning future rounds where "Web3 technology powered by Public Good Funding catalyzes social and economic change."

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Source: Original post on Gitcoin Governance Forum