CED — Black Entrepreneurship Program

• Completed application form (submitted by the signing authority/authorized person)
• Financial statements for the previous two years
• Annual reports for the previous two years
• Project proposal (max 10 pages, excluding appendices)
• CVs (1 page each) for management team members and, if applicable, five mentors

Who is eligible?

• Black-led not-for-profit organizations providing business support services

Who is not eligible

• For-profit businesses
• Organizations not registered in the Registre des entreprises du Québec (REQ)
• Organizations not operating in Quebec
• Organizations that are not Black-led (less than two-thirds Black leadership/governance)

Eligible expenses

• Wages associated with eligible activities
• Consulting fees
• Travel expenses
• Other project delivery costs directly related to eligible activities
• Overhead costs (e.g., rent, telecom, utilities, insurance) up to 15% of total project costs

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Establishment of a fund to finance business projects
• Debt refinancing
• Amortization costs
• Purchase of assets above fair market value
• Non-essential costs not directly related to the project

Eligible geographic areas

• Quebec

• Contribution to the BEP Ecosystem Fund objective and expected results / anticipated economic impacts for businesses
• Organizational capacity and performance
• Complementarity and collaboration with the entrepreneurial ecosystem
• Reasonableness of the costs and relevance of the financing package

• Step 1: Confirm authorized submission
  • Ensure the application is completed and submitted by the organization’s authorized person (signing authority).
• Step 2: Prepare application package
  • Complete the application form.
  • Compile the organization’s financial statements and annual reports for the previous two years.
  • Prepare the project proposal addressing the call’s evaluation criteria, including required supporting information (e.g., positioning, partnerships, geographic coverage, planned activities, timeline, performance indicators, financing package, forecasts).
  • Include CVs (1 page each) of management team members and, if applicable, five mentors.
• Step 3: Submit documents by email
  • Send the required documents to the email address indicated in the application form.

• Applications are reviewed through a competitive evaluation process.
• Applications must include all required information to be considered (incomplete or late files are not considered).
• CED may request additional information from applicants at any time during the evaluation.
• CED may approve an amount different from the amount requested.
• If approved, eligible costs can start from April 1, 2026 (costs incurred before this date are not eligible).

• This call for projects is competitive; meeting requirements does not guarantee funding due to budget availability and proposal volume.
• Incomplete or late applications will not be considered; applicants may be asked to provide additional information during the evaluation.
• As Phase 2, applicants are expected to demonstrate unique positioning, expertise, and added value within Quebec’s Black entrepreneurship support ecosystem.
• Ability to deliver services in both official languages is considered an asset.