Malta’s only reward and donation-based crowdfunding platform, Zaar, has made a huge impact on local projects in 2022 – and has already made a strong start to 2023.
Set up by the Foundation for the Promotion of Entrepreneurial Initiatives (FPEI), Zaar provides an increasingly popular form of alternative finance for start-ups, entrepreneurs, communities and cultural organisations alike: crowdfunding. Through a campaign on the Zaar website, projects that launch almost any idea and cause can appeal directly to their target audience – the ‘crowd’ – for the many small donations that, collectively, will make a huge difference.
It is a formula that has spelt success for several local campaigns, particularly those related to civic responsibility and the community. In 2022, the ‘Malta for Madagascar Christmas Campaign’ on Zaar raised €1,110 to help The Arnaud Guesry Foundation reach Madagascar’s most vulnerable children, while the ‘Lifecycle Challenge – 2000km in 10 days for Renal Patients’ campaign raised €8,180 to support renal patients in Malta. Contributors to the ‘Walking the Camino De Santiago…. For the Love of Life’ campaign also joined together to raise an astounding €11,575 towards an outdoor sports facility in Ethiopia commemorating Jonathan Chetcuti – exceeding the campaign’s original funding goal by 463%.
“Zaar made a significant impact in the local community in 2022, with those who chose to raise funds through the platform benefitting from a wave of support both locally and internationally as the word spread, raising both funds and awareness,” says Zaar Manager, Giselle Borg Olivier. “In addition to campaigns that support the community, cultural projects are also gaining popularity, with people looking into crowdfunding as a tool to support theatre productions, music shows, concerts and recitals, books and art. For such initiatives, crowdfunding is an excellent promotion and pre-sales channel.”
While crowdfunding offers similar benefits for business start-ups, Zaar also served as an international springboard for local entrepreneurs in 2022. Through INCrowd, an Erasmus+ EU Project, Zaar gave two groups of young people the exciting opportunity to travel on a fully funded trip to crowdfunding academies in Brussels and Padua in May and November respectively. While at the academies, the young entrepreneurs had the valuable chance to develop their ideas and projects to turn them into a reality, while networking with other young entrepreneurs from across Europe.
“In 2023, Zaar looks set to keep up the momentum of support in Malta and beyond,” concludes Ms Borg Olivier. “Three community projects are currently underway, with one that has already raised more than €60,000. This is testament once again to the impact that crowdfunding has, providing a structured and borderless platform to raise funds for worthy initiatives.”
For more information about Zaar or to donate to any of its current campaigns, visit www.zaar.com.mt.
