Urgent Action Fund-Africa (UAF-Africa) 2026 for African Women's Rights Organizations and Networks (Up to USD 200,000)

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Applications are open for Urgent Action Fund-Africa (UAF-Africa) 2026. The Urgent Action Fund–Africa (UAF-Africa) has officially released its 2026 Call for Proposals (CfP) titled “Investing in Women’s Rights Organisations and Networks in Africa”, aimed at strengthening women’s rights organisations (WROs), activists, and networks working across the continent.

Urgent Action Fund-Africa (UAF-Africa) is a feminist, pan-African rapid-response Fund committed to transforming power relations by resourcing African Women Human Rights Leaders and Women’s Rights Organizations (WROs), as an act of solidarity. We are part of the broader ecosystem of feminist and women’s rights movements across Africa and globally.

Recognizing the need to move resources rapidly on a continent where opportunities and threats arise and decline quickly, UAF-Africa uses a rapid response grantmaking mechanism to support unanticipated, time-sensitive, innovative, and unique initiatives that promote women’s agency in democratic governance, economic, environmental and climate justice, natural resources governance, and conflict transformation while protecting their personhood, integrity, and rights.

Our work is grounded in trust-based philanthropy and a commitment to supporting organizations closest to communities experiencing injustice, recognizing them as key drivers of transformative change.

About this Call for Proposals

This Call for Proposals (CfP) is designed to strengthen AWHRDs, (WROs), and their networks working to advance democracy, human rights, gender justice, and inclusive civic participation across Africa. Through this Call, UAF-Africa will provide strategic grant support to organizations operating in complex contexts characterized by multiple and interconnected crises that continue to shape the lives, safety, and organizing spaces of women and marginalized communities.

Urgent Action Fund-Africa (UAF-Africa) Objectives

The overall objective of this call is to contribute to an enabling environment for AWHRDs, WROs and networks to sustain their activism, strengthen their institutional resilience, improve their collective wellbeing, and advance women’s rights, gender justice and democratic participation within the ten target countries.

The Fund will therefore resource areas that strengthen the capacity, collective power, and influence of WROs and networks. These investments are expected to contribute to the following results:

Result 1: Strengthened Institutional Resilience and Capacity
- WHRDs and WROs have increased access to flexible financial resources and accompaniment that enable them to rapidly respond to multilayered crises, shrinking civic space, conflict, humanitarian emergencies, and emerging opportunities, while simultaneously strengthening their institutional capacities, organisational resilience, security and long-term sustainability.
Result 2: Stronger Collective Action for Democratic Governance and Gender Justice
- WHRDs, WROs, and networks work more collectively and effectively to advance democracy, protect civic space, promote human rights, influence public policy, and counter the growing backlash against gender equality, women’s rights and the rights of marginalised communities.
Result 3: Stronger Feminist Knowledge, Philanthropic Influence and Learning
- WROs strengthen the production and dissemination of knowledge, evidence, and learning that inform advocacy, influence philanthropy and public policy, strengthen movement-building, and contribute to more effective responses to civic space restrictions, human rights violations, and threats facing AWHRDs.

Thematic Focus Areas

The Fund is inviting AWHRDs, WROs, and networks in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Kenya, Senegal, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Sudan, Uganda, and Zimbabwe to submit proposals that respond to one or more of the strategic priority areas outlined below.

Priority Area 1: Strengthening Democratic Governance, Peace, and Inclusive Civic Engagement
Priority Area 2: Advancing Gendered Human Rights, Rule of Law, and Justice
Priority Area 3: Advancing Bodily Autonomy and Fighting Gender-Based Violence and Anti-Rights Backlash
Priority Area 4: Feminist Knowledge Generation and Documentation

Urgent Action Fund-Africa (UAF-Africa) Grants Details

Applicants should apply for the window that best reflects the scope, scale, and objectives of their proposed initiative.

Funding windows	Purpose	Funding Ceiling
Window 1 – Strategic Action Grants	Designed for individual organisations implementing initiatives under a single priority area (excluding window 4)	USD 35,000–50,000
Window 2 – Integrated Feminist Action Grants	Designed for organisations implementing integrated initiatives that respond to two or more strategic priority areas through interconnected interventions.	Up to USD 150,000
Window 3 – Collective Power and Alliance Grants	Designed for coalitions, networks, alliances and consortia implementing joint initiatives that leverage complementary expertise, strengthen movement-building and generate collective impact across one or more priority areas and/or countries. Joint applications should be submitted by the consortium lead and should clearly outline each CSO’s role, interventions and individual budget costs.	Up to USD 200,000
Window 4 – Feminist Knowledge and Documentation	Dedicated grants supporting feminist research, gendered documentation, knowledge production, storytelling and evidence generation that strengthen feminist advocacy, learning and movement infrastructure.	Up to USD 105,000

Please note:

Administrative costs must not exceed 20% of the total grant budget.
Eligible administrative costs may include personnel costs directly supporting project implementation, office operations, utilities, office supplies, communication and internet, financial management, audit fees, bank charges, and other reasonable organisational overheads required for the effective implementation and management of the grant.
All administrative costs should be adequately justified and directly related to the implementation of the proposed project.

Eligibility Criteria

This call for proposals is designed to support AWHRDs, WROs, and networks advancing gender justice, human rights, and democratic participation across the 10 target countries.
They will prioritise locally rooted AWHRDs and WROs working to challenge structural inequalities, transform discriminatory social norms, and advance the rights of women and marginalised communities through collective action and systems change.

Who Can Apply (Eligible Applicants)

Women’s rights organisations, women-led organisations, feminist associations, networks, alliances and cooperatives.
Registered groups with the capacity to manage a grant, i.e. established governance structure, internal control mechanisms, and a bank account.
Women’s rights organisations based in Africa and implementing activities in one or more of the ten focus countries listed in Section 5.
Women’s rights organisations whose primary mission and activities directly relate to advancing women’s rights and gender justice in Africa.
Women’s rights organisations with a proven track record of meaningful impact in one or more of the thematic areas: Democracy and Civic Engagement, Human Rights, GBV, SRHR, or Feminist Knowledge Documentation.
Women’s rights organisations that work with and centre structurally excluded women, including young women and girls, women with disabilities, Indigenous women, women in conflict and crisis settings, and other structurally excluded women.
Organisations that meet UAF-Africa’s requirements in terms of due diligence, reputation and integrity.
Consortia of eligible organisations, applying through a designated lead applicant.