Deadline: 31 October 2019

Initiative Sankofa d’Afrique de L’Ouest (ISDAO) has launched the second call for proposals to fund groups, organizations, and networks that are led by lesbian, gay, bi, queer, intersex, and trans people.

ISDAO is the first West African activist-led Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer and Intersex (LGBTQI) Fund dedicated to strengthening and supporting a West African movement for gender diversity and sexual rights by adopting a flexible approach to grant-making, and ultimately developing a culture of philanthropy that is committed to equality and social justice.

ISDAO provides flexible funding to support the overall coordination, operations, and strengthening of a group, organization, or network.

Values

They uphold the following values:

• Equitable representation of the LGBTQI community
• Building and strengthening ideologically principled movements, based on a recognition of unequal power relations
• Autonomy, inclusion, diversity, and intersectionality, allowing for self-determination at all levels

Funding Information

ISDAO’s grants range from USD 5,000 to USD 20,000 for a period of one year; depending on the organization’s needs, grant experience, and available funds. The call for proposal is informed by their earlier community consultations, which mapped the varied capacities and needs of organizations in West Africa. These include three grant categories applicants can apply for, tailored to the diverse organizing in the region. These include:

• Up to USD 5,000 ⎯ Foundational seed support for informal start-ups between 0-2 years, working locally at the grassroots. These organizations might lack formal systems or structures and have most, if not all, their work led by volunteers. The annual budget for an organization or group requesting this size grant cannot exceed $85,000 USD.
• $5,001 to $15,000 ⎯ Funding to sustain pre-existing work or to implement new initiatives undertaken by more formal groups that have been active for at least two years, working at local, national, or regional levels. These organizations should have some systems and structures in place and should be consistently staffed by either paid employees (part-time or full-time) or volunteers.
• $15,001 to $20,000 ⎯ Funding to consolidate or develop work by formal groups working at national or regional levels that have at least 3 years’ working experience and have functional organizational systems and structures and full-time staff. least 3 years’ working experience and have functional systems and structures and full-time staff.

It should be noted that the final amount of the grant awarded may differ from the amount originally requested.

Priorities

Priority will be given to lesbian, gay, bi, queer, intersex, and trans associations, grassroots groups, or collectives:

• With little or no access to funding from major donors;
• That are dedicated to new issues to which no funding has been granted previously;
• Located in rural, remote and/or underserved areas;
• Diverse in composition, including and/or working with marginalized lesbian, gay, bisexual, intersex, and trans people;
• Using innovative and creative strategies to promote their activism (including art, music, culture, poetry, social networks, etc.)

Groups and organizations led by and/or working specifically with LBQ women, trans and intersex persons are highly encouraged to apply.

Eligibility Criteria

ISDAO grants are awarded to organizations, networks, and groups that:

• Are led by lesbians, gays, bisexual, queer, intersex and trans (LGBTQI) people. ISDAO considers a group to be “led by LGBTQI people” when LGBTQI people are in decision-making roles, including defining the organization’s strategic and financial priorities, and represent at least 75% of the staff, spokespersons, and members of the board or other decision-making bodies;
• Are based in at least one of ISDAO’s current focal countries, including: Ghana, Togo, Senegal, Benin, Liberia, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, or Nigeria;
• Are dedicated to improving the lives of LGBTQI people at the local, national, or regional level.
• Are committed to engaging in and strengthening the movement to advance the human rights and inclusion of LGBTQI persons. Your group should be open to collaborating with other LGBTQI organizations and allies and be willing to share your experiences to strengthen the LGBTQI rights movement.
• ISDAO DOES NOT require a group to be legally registered to be eligible for funding.

Note that projects proposed by individuals, government institutions, or political organizations will not be considered for Funding.

How to Apply

Interested applicants should send the completed proposal form, budget and additional documents via email at the address given on the website.

For more information, please visit https://www.isdao.org/apply-for-a-grant/