Our PSG fund assessment criteria
Proposals are assessed against 4 criteria to decide whether applicants qualify for funding, and how much they may receive.
The PSG assessment criteria are:
- net benefits to New Zealand
- rationale for additional Crown funding
- a strong project plan
- evidence of ability to deliver benefits.
Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership is observed across the PSG fund and is embedded within each of the assessment criteria.
We need robust information and sufficient evidence for us to assess your case for funding. Proposals are unlikely to succeed if they are based on high-level, overly aspirational, or unsubstantiated claims or loose assumptions.
On this page, we have tips about how we assess your application against these criteria.
Explain the net benefits to New Zealand
Clearly explaining how your project will benefit New Zealand economically is a prerequisite for PSG funding. At a high level, this means that a project must increase profits in the food and fibre value chain in New Zealand or reduce production costs within that value chain.
The economic benefits and costs must be articulated, realistic and stand up to robust analysis by MPI. These economic benefits must represent a return on investment for the Crown.
Your project will also be assessed on wider benefits for the New Zealand food and fibre sector, including environmental and social benefits, or benefits to iwi.
Present a clear rationale for additional Crown funding
Proposals need to clearly explain and quantify how your project would proceed without Crown funding. A successful proposal will articulate how Crown funding would enable you to do something over and above what you could achieve with private investment alone and deliver strong benefits to New Zealand.
Provide a strong project plan
Applications should clearly outline activities or workstreams in the project, with appropriate budgeting.
We want to see:
- a direct connection from activities or work streams to the delivery of benefits
- the key assumptions you’re working with, and how you will test and validate them
- who will oversee and manage the project
- the risks you’ve identified and how you plan to mitigate them.
Evidence of ability to deliver benefits
As the PSG is a co-investment fund, we need confidence that your organisation has a good reputation, is financially stable, and able to contribute the agreed co-funding to the project.
We also need to see evidence that you:
- have the capacity and capability to deliver the project
- understand what the end user needs
- will be able to sustain the economic benefits beyond the lifetime of the project
- understand how your project fits in the wider New Zealand context, for example, previous work undertaken in this area or regulatory issues
- have freedom to operate.
How to apply
As a first step in applying for PSG funding, you will need to complete a short Expression of Interest. If we think your project could be a good fit with the PSG, we will invite you to submit a more detailed application.
How to submit an expression of interest for PSG
Refer to our guidance for more details
For detailed information about how we assess PSG applications, refer to our guidance document.
Technical guidance for applicants [PDF, 342 KB]
