Deadline: 26 July 2019

The Virginia Gildersleeve International Fund (VGIF) has adopted an active partnership grant-making model – a three-stage process through which it offers opportunities to small and emerging women-led groups, invests in its partners’ capacity-building and programmatic efforts, and provides leverage for longer-term grantee partners as they increase their impact and gain the capacity and visibility to approach larger funders.

VGIF looks for organizations who value transparency, collaboration, embrace learning, seek growth, employ a feminist or women’s rights approach, and with whom they share programmatic goals related to their priority area of Economic Empowerment for women, girls, and trans people.

VGIF identifies new grantee partners in Stage One only. Through this open application, VGIF assesses applicants for their fit with multi-stage partnership model, meaning that they are interested in assessing their organizational capacities and investing time and resources in capacity-building as well as programs, and are open to collaborating with staff and other partners through email, on-site visits, and in-country convenings.

Through geographic focus, VGIF will fund in 5 focus countries: Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, and India.

Funding Information

Grants are flexible (a mix of core and programmatic support), and partners will have the opportunity to receive up to 6 years of funding totaling $95,000.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible organizations must meet ALL of the following criteria to apply. VGIF partner with groups who are:

• Located in one of current priority countries: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, or India.
• Dedicated to improving the lives of women, girls and/or trans people, as evidenced by the group’s mission and/or activities. Groups’ activities should also indicate a significant focus on the economic empowerment of women, girls, and/or trans people.
• Groups of women, girls and/or trans people working together to identify and solve issues in their communities. These do not need to be registered as non-governmental organizations, but must be able to demonstrate that they are organized as a group, such as under a constitution or set of bylaws. Exception: Organizations located in India must be FCRA compliant.
• Groups must be governed and led by women, girls, and/or trans people, meaning they should fill all or most of the leadership roles, including, but not limited to, the highest levels of decision-making.
• Small and emerging organizations with little or no access to larger donors or institutional funding. VGIF give priority to organizations that have annual budgets less than $50,000 USD.
• Eager to collaborate, network, learn, and share ideas/expertise with like-minded organizations.
• Committed to measuring programmatic and organizational results.
• Made up of and/or working with socially excluded and disadvantaged women, girls, and/or trans people.
• Embracing a “nothing about us without us” mentality, meaning that decision-making and programming should reflect direct involvement of those who are affected by the organization’s work, including the local community if applicable.
• Interested in assessing and growing their organizational capacities. VGIF’s funds are flexible; however, proposed budgets should reflect a meaningful allocation of funds to activities directly related to organizational capacity assessment and strengthening.
• Planning to implement, or currently implementing, a program that delivers one or more of the following activities:
  • PROVIDING ACCESS TO RESOURCES such as creating market & company linkages, facilitating access to saving and lending options, providing materials, equipment, space, infrastructure, start-up capital.
  • EDUCATING & TRAINING in financial literacy, business and income generation training, entrepreneurship support, vocational training, life skills training for adolescent girls.
  • ENGAGING COMMUNITIES & ADVOCACY efforts that educate communities, work on changing/implementing laws, policies or norms that harm/protect women, girls, and/or trans people, or support networking activities.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted online via given website.

For more information, please visit https://www.vgif.org/for-grantseekers