Call For Proposals: African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) 2017

Deadline: February 13 and March 3, 2017

The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) invites proposals for grants from all eligible women’s rights organizations and coalitions in Africa and the Middle East. Through Leading from the South, AWDF will support initiatives that work to end violence against women, defend women’s bodily integrity and autonomy, affirm economic rights and expand democratic space and women’s political participation.

About

The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) is a grantmaking foundation that supports local, national and regional women’s organizations working towards the empowerment of African women and the promotion and realization of their rights. AWDF works towards the creation of healthy, just and inclusive societies framed by equality, peace and respect for women’s rights. Since its founding, AWDF has awarded more than US$30 million in grants.

AWDF is mandated to fund in all 54 African countries. Under the Leading from the South initiative AWDF has expanded its grantmaking mandate to include selected countries in the Middle East.

Thematic Areas

Through Leading from the South, AWDF will award grants that advance the following three impact areas:

1. Eliminate violence against women and girls & sustain respect for women’s bodily integrity and autonomy.
2. Protect full economic rights and justice for women.
3. Expand democratic space; sustain inclusive governance and equal political participation of women.

Grants

Grants will be awarded in the range of US$20,000 to US$ 500,000 a year, in line with the following three categories:

1. Yala! Grants:
   • Size: US$20,000 to US$ 50,000 a year for up to 2 years • Geographic scope: Local and national
2. Ananse Grants:
   • Size:US$ 51,000 to US$ 199,000 a year for up to 2 years • Geographic scope: National, transnational (across 2 or more countries), regional.
3. Pamoja Grants:
   • Size: US$ 200,000 to US$ 500,000 a year for up to 2 years Geographic scope: National, transnational (across 2 or more countries), regional, international.

Successful applicants will also be eligible for additional organisational capacity building support from AWDF.

Eligibility

AWDF is committed to supporting women’s leadership and will only fund groups that are women led in board/staff and have advancing women’s rights/gender equality as a priority and an explicit part of their mandate. AWDF supports organisations and initiatives advancing the rights of women facing multiple discriminations.

• AWDF accepts applications from women’s rights organisations registered and working in DAC recipient countries in Africa and the Middle East (see country list below).
• AWDF funds women-led, women’s rights organisations as a priority. Organisations must have:
  • a track record of work on women’s rights
  • a woman as organisational director/lead – a majority of women staff at least 70% women involved in the governing board/body
  • a stated commitment to women’s rights/gender equality in the organisational mission/vision/values
  • At least 70% of programmatic resources must be dedicated to direct programming on women’s rights;
  • the project applied for will be managed by a woman
• Organisations must demonstrate their capacity and financial management systems to effectively implement and account for grant funding and programme delivery.
• Organisations must have registration status that enables them to receive funds from foreign sources.
• Organisations must have been in existence for at least 3 years.
• Applications will be accepted in English or French. Once a grant is awarded, technical support will be available in English and French with additional support in Arabic.

Eligible Countries

Applications are accepted for women’s groups registered in the following countries in Africa and the Middle East:

• Africa: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central Africa, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tomé and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
• Middle East: Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Yemen

Funded programmes may be implemented in any of the above countries, as well as in Sudan, South Sudan, Iran and Syria.

Application

• Download LFS application guidelines here
• Download Yalla application form here
• Download Ananse application here
• Download Pamoja Application here

NOTE:

• For Yala! and Ananse grants applications must be submitted to AWDF by 13 February 2017. AWDF will acknowledge receipt by email for all applications received.
• For Pamoja grants applications must be submitted to AWDF by 3 March 2017. AWDF will acknowledge receipt by email for all applications received.
• Applications will be reviewed by AWDF’s experienced Programme Officers and managers and the final decision for the grants made by the AWDF board with contributions from technical advisors.
• Short-listing, review and selection process will take approximately 12 weeks from the submission deadline. Successful applicants will be contacted by 15 May 2017.

For more information, visit African Women’s Development Fund.