With the support of the European Union, OGP is launching the “Civil Society Innovations for Open Government” Grants (hereinafter referred to as “Grants”) calling for proposals from civil society organisations in Eastern Partnership OGP members, including Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.
The objective of the Grants is to support the development of innovative tools and/or public engagement techniques (both digital and offline) that promote enhanced implementation, co-creation and/or monitoring of anti-corruption, accountability, open government, civic space and public participation reforms at the national and local levels. Ideally, supported projects will also contribute to building and sustaining coalitions and efforts that are scalable and serve the purpose of expanding the base of civil society and other actors involved with OGP and open government activities.
Applications will be accepted until April 10, 2025. Project implementation timelines should not exceed the duration of maximum twelve (12) months and should in any case be completed by no later than May 31, 2026. The Call is announced as part of OGP’s Eastern Partnership Programme, funded by the European Union.
The Open Government Partnership Support Unit aims to support government and civil society in member countries, including in the Eastern Partnership region. The goal is to strengthen co-creation and implementation of nationally or locally-led open government commitments with potentially high impact that can lead to increasing government transparency, improving accountability, strengthening citizen engagement and government responsiveness.
The Grants will be managed by the OGP Support Unit. Contracts will be signed between the OGP Support Unit and the grantees.
- The call is open to legally registered civil society organisations or consortia among registered civil society organisations from Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. Cross-country partnerships are also allowed. Support from governmental bodies and agencies is beneficial, though not mandatory.
- Applicants should be willing to work closely with the OGP Support Unit, as well – where applicable – with the country’s or Local member’s OGP multi-stakeholder forum and Point of Contact.
- Applicants are expected to proactively document and share in conventional and social media their activities and outputs, and participate, where applicable, in OGP-organised peer exchange and learning events.
- Selected recipients will be asked to provide interim and final narrative and financial reports documenting implementation.
- A financial award in the amount of maximum EUR 15,000. 10% co-financing is encouraged, if possible, but not mandatory. Project implementation timelines should not exceed the duration of maximum twelve (12) months and should be completed by no later than May 31, 2026. Note that funds will be disbursed through a cost-reimbursable scheme, based on narrative and financial reports.
- Access to enhanced technical support from the OGP Support Unit and relevant partners.
- Promotional benefits through OGP’s global network of open government reformers.
Award funds can be used for:
- activities, including travel, event, accommodation and subsistence costs, etc;
- cost of staff assigned to the action;
- goods and contractual services for specialised tasks (translations, production of documents, external consultants time, accountancy, etc.);
- admin costs directly assigned to the action (supplies, rental of meeting rooms, etc.);
- general admin costs (overhead costs) up to 7% of the total eligible direct costs for the action (maintenance, utility bills, office furniture, etc.);
- purchase, rental or leasing costs for equipment and supplies (provided that ownership is transferred at the end of the action when required)*.
*The equipment, vehicles and supplies paid for by the budget for the project shall be transferred to the final beneficiaries of the project, at the latest when submitting the final report. If there are no final beneficiaries to whom the equipment, vehicles and supplies can be transferred, the beneficiary may transfer these items to local authorities, beneficiary(ies), affiliated entity(ies), another action funded by the European Union or, exceptionally, retain ownership of these items. In such cases, the coordinator shall submit a justified written request for authorisation to OGP, with an inventory listing the items concerned and a proposal concerning their use, in due time and at the latest with the submission of the final report.
Suggested activities will be assessed based on the following selection criteria:
- Potential impact: the extent to which the proposed approach addresses the problem/challenge and generates positive change.
- Clarity and relevance: how concise and applicable the proposal is in relation to the objectives and priority areas of this call and the political/reform context.
- Innovation: the degree to which the proposal presents novel, unique or creative ideas not widely implemented in the OGP country/OGP Local member before.
- Feasibility: the practicality of implementing the proposed activities within the project’s context and constraints.
- Scalability and/or Sustainability: the possibility for the proposed project/solution to grow, evolve, or have a lasting effect over time.
- Value for money: the potential of the proposed activities to significantly contribute to positive reform outcomes with optimal use of resources. Please note that due to the limited availability of funds, projects will be awarded a maximum of EUR 15,000 (including the encouraged 10% co-financing contribution).
- Clear alignment: how clear proposals are with the OGP values and principles as expressed in the Open Government Declaration, the Articles of Governance, and the OGP’s 2023-2028 Strategy.
- Inclusion: the extent to which proposed activities promote the inclusion of previously underrepresented civil society, especially those representing marginalised groups, vulnerable communities or local/grassroots actors including youth, refugees or internally displaced persons, or persons living with disabilities.
Completed application form and budget should be emailed to eap@opengovpartnership.org by April 10, 2025. Please add ‘EOI – Civil Society Grants – [Name of Organisation]’ to the subject of your email.
Applications will be reviewed and decisions will be communicated on a rolling basis.