ResourcesFunding call for proposals

Local calls simplify the financing process for stakeholders implementing transformative and context-relevant projects that result in meaningful progress. Grants not only go towards new projects with funds also made available for the continuation of programmes or when scaling up successful initiatives.

The bottom line is to reach the most marginalized, embedding principles of equity, transparency and accountability, and unlocking alternative sources of public and private capital. All gains leveraged through multi-partner trust fund financing go towards making inroads for 2030 Agenda achievement.

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Purpose of the ‘call’: Ramping up efficiency, accountability, and innovation 

Most multi-partner trust fund secretariats issue calls for proposals, so interested partners (current or prospective) can pitch fund-related projects. Not only does this encourage ongoing stakeholder engagement, but it supports SDG gains across the humanitarian-development nexus.

Depending on the fund and context, international and local NGOs, civil society organizations, government institutions, and private sector outfits may be eligible to receive blended sources of financing that are used in the design and delivery of innovative and effective initiatives that contribute to sustainable, multi-level action.
 


The application process

Fund secretariats often welcome proposals from a range of interested stakeholders—with United Nations organizations and civil society partners being the biggest bidders and contenders. Depending on the fund, stakeholders are at liberty to submit various types of proposals. The Peacebuilding Fund Secretariat accepts proposals from three tiers of applicants (maximum three joint UN recipient agencies, UN and civil-society organizations, and civil society organizations as direct recipients). Other funds, meanwhile, finance collaborators through dedicated windows or issue-focused response grants.

In most cases, a successful proposal passes through two stages, the first comprising Q+A sessions, concept note design, online submission, and panel of experts review. Fund secretariats communicate results to all applicants within eight to twelve weeks following the close of a call.

In the second stage, successful applicants must submit full project proposals that go under review prior to the disbursement of funds. Local organizations, in particular, should apply for new funding opportunities.
 

For more information on specific calls, thematic areas of focus, eligibility, guidelines, terms and conditions, deadlines, and focal points, visit the fund webpage or contact the responsible secretariat for more details.

 

Ongoing and past calls for proposals 
Internal Displacement Solution Fund (IDSF) - Open

The Internal Displacement Solution Fund (IDSF) is calling for applications for its first programming round for August/ September 2023 with a funding envelope of 14 million USD. The IDSF seeks to advance solutions to internal displacement at country level by enabling joint action that builds on the views, needs, and capacities of IDPs and host communities and promotes sustainable, nationally-owned solutions.

Eligibility

  1. During this programming round, only UN country teams among the 13 pilot countries (map of pilot countries) are eligible to apply.
  2. Only UN entities that have signed the MOU with IDSF are eligible recipients of funds.

Size of Grants & Funding

The financial cap per joint programme is USD 3 million, with each allocation to approved proposal no less than USD 1,500,000. Programmes should be completed within 2-3 years from the date of disbursement of funds.

The JP proposal should be submitted by the Resident Coordinators Office to the IDSF secretariat mona.folkesson@un.org no later than 2 October 2023, 23.59 GVA time.

Download a description of the funding round here.

Click here for more information about the fund.
Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund - Open

The United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund is pleased to inform you of the launch of its third Call for Proposals in Uganda. This Call for Proposals seeks to provide grants for local grassroots organizations working on protection of women and girls and conflict prevention with local women’s and young women’s rights organizations.

This call seeks to fund qualifying local organizations in Uganda through the following funding streams:

Programmatic funding from 30,000 USD to 200,000 USD 
To finance programmatic activities of CSOs aimed at (i) Increased meaningful participation and decision-making of women in conflict prevention processes and response (in line with WPHF impact area 2); and (ii) Enhanced safety, security and mental health of women and girls’ and their human rights respected (in line with WPHF impact area 5).

Institutional funding from 2,500 USD to 30,000 USD 
To reinforce the institutional capacity of women’s rights and women-led organizations working on the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda in Uganda to ensure they are able to sustain themselves and to improve their impact (in line with WPHF impact area 1). 

The application deadline is 2 October 2023.
Elsie Initiative Fund - Completed

The Elsie Initiative Fund for Uniformed Women in Peace Operations (EIF) is calling for applications for its third programming round. During this round, current and prospective Troop or Police Contributing Countries (T/PCCs), as well as United Nations organizations, are invited to submit their application for funding.

The eligibility criteria for both modalities along with a Letter of Interest (LOI) template and an explainer-guide are available on the EIF website (https://elsiefund.org/third-programming-round/).

The closing date for submissions is 31 July 2023.

 

CRAF'd - Completed

The Complex Risk Analytics Fund (CRAF’d) is pleased to announce an Open Call for Proposals with a funding envelope of $3 million for investments into essential data sets on major risk events and affected populations. 

About the call
In the face of escalating social, political, economic, and environmental challenges, data-driven approaches have become critical to improving our response to crises. However, the scarcity of risk data in crisis-affected and fragile settings often leaves crisis actors ill-equipped to respond effectively.

Thematic focus
CRAF’d seeks projects that address this data gap by providing actionable insights into major risk events and their impact on affected populations. 

Application deadline is 6 August 2023. Click to apply.

 

Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund - Completed

The United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund is pleased to inform you of the launch of its latest Call for Proposals in Ukraine which is available in both Ukrainian and English. This Call for Proposals provides grants for civil society organizations working across Ukraine to ensure the protection of women and girls as well as promote their participation and leadership in humanitarian crisis and response efforts.

This call seeks to fund qualifying local civil society organizations in Ukraine through:

  1. Programmatic funding from 30,000 USD to 500,000 USD  

To finance programmatic activities of civil society organizations that (i) promote the participation and leadership of women in humanitarian crisis and response (aligned with WPHF impact area 3) OR (ii) that enhance the protection of women and girls (aligned with WPHF impact area 5). 

  

The application deadline is 28 July 2023. Click to apply.
Malaysia-UN SDG Trust Fund - Completed

The Malaysia-UN SDG Trust Fund is a partnership between the United Nations and the Malaysian government to support sustainable development in Malaysia. The Fund aims to improve the lives of people in different areas and groups, particularly those who are at risk of being left behind, by focusing on local efforts.

The Call for Proposals 2023 is an opportunity for organizations to submit proposals that contribute to the SDGs in Malaysia.

The Malaysia-UN SDG Trust Fund, a collaborative initiative between the MySDG Foundation and the United Nations in Malaysia, supported by the Government of Malaysia, announces the launch of its 2023 Call for Proposals (CFP-2023). This first call for proposals aims to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across Malaysia, by focusing on groups and communities at risk of being left behind.

The CFP-2023 invites project proposals from UN agencies, Malaysian civil society organizations, non-governmental organizations, and academia engaged in SDG implementation and advocacy. A total sum of USD3.6 million (approximately MYR16,200,000 based on USD1= MYR4.50 exchange rate) will be disbursed to approved projects, enabling their impactful implementation.

Call for proposals closes 14 July 2023

Visit Malaysia-UN SDG Trust Fund webpage for more information.
Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund - Completed

The United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) is looking to strengthen collaboration with non-governmental organizations with expertise in Asia and the Pacific to enhance the protection of women human rights defenders at risk in the region.

WPHF seeks to identify a credible and experienced international, regional, or national non-governmental organization (I/NGO) to support its Women Human Rights Defender (WHRD) Window in providing financial support to WHRDs from and/or working in conflict and crisis contexts in Asia and the Pacific, notably Afghanistan and Myanmar.

The selected I/NGO will support the implementation of emergency grant-making to WHRDs through the WHRD Window Safety Net stream, which provides rapid and flexible funding — currently in partnership with five INGOs — to enhance the protection of WHRDs from/working in conflict and crisis-affected countries.

Eligibility
I/NGOs which have experience working with WHRDs in fragile and conflict-affected contexts in Asia and the Pacific — specifically in Afghanistan and Myanmar — are eligible to apply. Organizations need to have a proven track record working on women’s rights, following feminist and human-rights based principles, addressing violence against women and girls, and protection issues of women and girls. Organizations with language capabilities relevant to Afghanistan and Myanmar will be a distinct asset.

Size of Grants & Funding
The WPHF will grant a maximum of $400,000 USD to an I/NGO and up to $700,000 USD for a consortium of I/NGOs to deliver on activities to meet objectives.

APPLICATION PACKAGES SHOULD BE EMAILED IN ENGLISH TO WPHF-WHRD@UNWOMEN.ORG WITH THE SUBJECT LINE “WPHF-WHRD I/NGO PARTNERSHIP CFP.”
APPLICATION DEADLINE: 10 MARCH 2023

An information session will be organized with prospective applicants on 23 February at 1:30 pm Geneva time. To register your interest, please send an email to WPHF-WHRD@unwomen.org with the subject line “WPHF-WHRD I/NGO Partnership Information Session.”

Download applications here.
CRAF'd Completed

The Complex Risk Analytics Fund (CRAF’d) is pleased to announce an Open Call for Proposals on Climate Fragility Risks.

With a funding envelope of $3 million, CRAF’d will support projects that use analytics and artificial intelligence to help global stakeholders anticipate, prevent, and respond to climate fragility risks. 

Apply now and submit a concept note by 25 November 2022. Please also share this email with relevant partners.
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About the Call

Climate change is one of the greatest global challenges of our time. More frequent and intense weather events, such as floods and heat waves, are hitting the most vulnerable people the hardest. Climate fragility risks, including food insecurity, resource water scarcity, displacement, or insecurity, can emerge when the adverse effects of climate change compound conditions in fragile contexts.

CRAF’d is seeking projects that unlock the potential of analytics and artificial intelligence to contribute to a better understanding of climate fragility risks and translate insights into earlier, faster, and more targeted crisis action. In addition, CRAF’d will support projects that advance monitoring and evaluation of data-driven crisis action related to climate fragility risks.

Information Sessions
If you are interested to learn more about this Open Call for Proposals and the application process, please register for one of the information sessions on Wednesday, 9 November 2022.
Joint SDG Fund Completed

This call supports a new generation of transformative, government-led, integrated initiatives that leverage the best expertise and resources to address complex issues and speed up SDG attainment. The focus is on strengthening resilience and ending the vulnerabilities of small island developing states (SIDS), and the overall funding envelope is $30 million US dollars. All SIDS countries are eligible to receive funding. 

Intended to be catalytic, funding will support programmatic solutions of two years or fewer, with a budget of $1 million US dollars per country. Multi-country offices are eligible for funding envelopes corresponding to locality and populations served, and reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

For more information on the Joint SDG.
The Elsie Initiative Fund Completed

The second round of Elsie Initiative Fund for Uniformed Women in Peace Operations programmes cover three types of activities:

  1. Barrier assessments to identify the primary factors impeding the deployment of uniformed women peacekeepers to United Nations missions.
  2. Projects increase meaningful participation of uniformed women peacekeepers in United Nations missions.
  3. Premium for the deployment of gender-strong units that includes a substantial representation of women overall, and in positions of authority.

For the latter, interventions must include gender-equity training to all unit members, and have adequate material to ensure parity of deployment conditions for all peacekeepers.

For more information on the Elsie Initiative. 
Global Fund for Coral Reefs Completed

Right now, call for expressions of interest for prospective convening agents are open to the following country programmes: Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Malaysia, Mozambique, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, and Viet Nam. Eligible applicants must be a non-profit, non-governmental organisation or inter-governmental organisation.

Designated country or regional programme leads are the 'convening agents' and they bring together a consortium of local and international partners to implement activities under the Global Fund for Coral Reefs Theory of Change. 

Click here for more information on the Global Fund for Coral Reefs.