Donna Moderna and the Fondazione Vodafone Italia have launched a new initiative called the “Women & Work Project”, a competition for women which aims to encourage the best social enterprise ideas for women.

There are three areas:

Solidarity. Lending a hand

Entrepreneurial ideas to encourage the employment of women who have suffered violence or who live in disadvantaged socio-economic conditions. Open to women of all ages.

The Web. Let’s get online

Projects linked to the world of the internet or telecommunications and aimed at encouraging the employment of women. Open to women of up to 30 years of age, final-year students or recent graduates.

Home & Work. Getting better organised

Projects to encourage more effective management and conciliate domestic and professional demands in the daily lives of women. Open to women of all ages.

The best projects in each of the three categories will received a prize of €100,000.

How to take part

Application forms can be submitted between 15 October 2010 and midnight on 15 January 2011. In order to request finance you should download the competition notice from the web site www.progettodonnelavoro.it, along with the loan request and business plan forms, register your personal details and submit the completed documents online. A printed copy, along with the attachments, should also be sent to: Fondazione Vodafone Italia, Piazza SS. Apostoli, 81 00187 Rome.

Applications may be made by any women, permanently resident in Italy, who intend to create a business activity with charitable or socially useful aims.