Application Deadline: November 1, 2022
As one of the three intergovernmental pillars of the Commonwealth, the Foundation operates within that critical space between government and the people. The Foundation works to bring the voice of civil society into all aspects of governance, supporting civil society engagement in shaping the policies and decisions that affect people’s lives.
The Foundation’s Strategic Plan 2021-2026 is strongly linked to the Commonwealth Charter and its values and aspirations, and it identifies three thematic areas of focus:
- Health
- Environment and climate change
- Freedom of expression
Possible freedom of expression areas may include supporting civil society to engage meaningfully with government on:
- Advocating for a legal and regulatory environment that protects and upholds freedom of expression for all
- Promoting access to information and transparency in governance, including through a free and independent press, robust freedom of information laws and their practical application
- Supporting civil society to work with artists to raise awareness to issues of freedom of expression and engage in advocacy efforts around these issues
Eliligibility
- The applicant must be a not-for-profit civil society organization (CSO) registered in an eligible Commonwealth Foundation member country.
- Newly registered organisations (those that have been registered and operating for less than a year) should not apply.
- The proposed project must be implemented in the country of registration. Projects can be implemented in one or more eligible Commonwealth Foundation member countries and can have a national, sub-national, regional, or international remit. In multi-country projects, strong local participation in project implementation is required.
- The applicant organization must have a minimum of two years’ demonstrable experience working on participatory governance and advocacy within the area/theme(s) of the proposed project.
- The total grant amount requested must be between £15,000 and £30,000 per year, and for a maximum of two years.
- The requested grant amount should not exceed 70% of the applicant organisation’s total annual income, averaged over the past two years.
- The annual income of the applicant organization, averaged over the past two years, must be less than £2m.
- The project proposal must address at least one of the notified priority themes.
- The project proposal must demonstrate appropriate integration of gender considerations. For example, the applicant may use the findings of gender analysis to inform the design of the project proposal and / or and ensure allocation of adequate resources to effectively address gender equality in the project cycle.
- Proposals must relate to projects that are expected to begin within the second half of 2023 (i.e., after 1 July 2023 and before end September 2023).
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the 2022/2023 Commonwealth Foundation Grants Programme