The Global Fund for Children: Small Grants
Application Deadline
Open throughout the year
Funding Agency
The Global Fund for Children
Funding Amount
Between $25,000 and $75,000
The Global Funds for children makes small grants to innovative community-based organization working with many of the world’s most vulnerable children and youth.
Working with the mission to advance the dignity of children worldwide, the foundation supports most promising organizations operating in marginalized communities. The Fund transforms the lives of children on the edges of society—trafficked children, refugees, child laborers—and helps them regain their rights and pursue their dreams.
Since its founding, the Global Fund for Children has supported 9 million children so far. The impact is thousands of children are going to school instead of to work; thousands more protecting themselves from HIV, escaping the bonds of slavery, and getting the childhood they deserve.
Priority Area
The following selection guidelines in identifying organizations those are truly exceptional:
A focus on the most vulnerable
Our grantee partners reach the children of “the last mile”—those who are economically and socially outside the reach of mainstream services and support, including street children, child laborers, AIDS orphans, sex workers, hard-to-reach rural populations, and other vulnerable or marginalized groups.
Community involvement
We prioritize organizations that are rooted in their community and operate with community input, involvement, and investment, embracing the community as an integral part of their success.
Effectiveness
We prioritize organizations that can demonstrate sustained, meaningful improvement in the lives of the children and youth they serve.
Empowerment
We prioritize organizations that engage children and youth as active participants in their own growth and development, rather than as passive recipients of services.
Innovation and creativity
We prioritize organizations that tackle old problems in new ways, demonstrating innovation and creativity in their program strategies and approaches.
Strong leadership
We prioritize organizations that have committed, respected, and dynamic leadership with a vision for change.
Adaptability
We prioritize organizations that generate models, methodologies, and practices that can be adapted and applied to similar issues and challenges in other communities.
Potential for sustainability
We prioritize organizations that have a strategy for ensuring the long-term sustainability of their programs, through donor diversification, mobilization of government funding, community investment, income-generating activities, and other creative measures.
Reputation
We prioritize organizations that are recognized and trusted in their communities.
Eligibility Criteria
Prospective grantee partners must meet the following eligibility criteria to be considered for our support.
Appropriate size and stage of development
With rare exceptions, a prospective grantee partner’s annual budget should not exceed $200,000. In most cases, new grantee partners have budgets in the $25,000 to $75,000 range. Our aim is to identify organizations at a relatively early stage in their development.
Direct involvement with children and youth
Prospective grantee partners must work directly with children and youth. We do not support groups engaged exclusively in advocacy or research. (We do, however, support organizations that perform both advocacy and direct service.)
Capable management
Prospective grantee partners must have systems and processes for ensuring responsible management of funds. At a minimum, an organization must have basic accounting and reporting systems as well as phone and email access.
Local leadership
Prospective grantee partners must be led by individuals who live and work in the community. We prioritize organizations whose leaders were born and raised in the community. We do not fund the local offices or affiliates of national or international organizations.
Legal status
A prospective grantee partner must be registered with the local or national government as a nonprofit organization. If the political context makes legal registration unfeasible, the organization must demonstrate nonprofit equivalency. We do not provide start-up funding for the creation of new organizations.
How to Apply
Submit a letter of inquiry
All potential grantee partners are required to submit a preliminary letter of inquiry, which may be submitted at any time during the year. We use this letter to determine basic eligibility and fit with our selection criteria. Please note that the form cannot load in some internet browsers. If the form does not load, please try accessing it in Google Chrome.
Application Format
Organizations that believe they meet these criteria can submit a letter of inquiry at any time. If a letter of inquiry falls within our priorities, we will follow up with the organization to solicit a full proposal. Please do not contact us by phone or by email to ask about the status of your letter of inquiry. Due to the volume of inquiries, we cannot respond individually to those not selected for further consideration.
Contact Details
For more information about Priority Areas and other information, please visit the following links:
· http://www.globalfundforchildren.org/apply-for-a-grant/
· http://www.globalfundforchildren.org/eligibility-selection/
· http://www.globalfundforchildren.org/apply-for-a-grant/letter-of-inquiry/