Grant competition for CSOs "Towards Life: Country in Action"

The Askold and Dir Fund is a Norwegian-Swedish initiative administered by ICAP Ednannia aimed at strengthening the capacity of civil society organizations (CSOs) to drive inclusive and sustainable recovery in Ukraine.

The programme supports approaches focused not only on responding to the consequences of the war but also on restoring and transforming societal systems at local, regional, and national levels.

Key areas of support:

• strengthening the organizational capacity of Ukrainian CSOs and improving cooperation with government and communities;
• engaging CSOs in the development and implementation of solutions for restoring social, educational, medical, cultural and other systems;
• enhancing the role of civil society in policy development, advocacy and public oversight.

Purpose of the grant competition

• The competition supports CSOs working on systemic solutions for sustainable recovery and restoration of key societal processes after the full-scale war in Ukraine.
• Priority is given to developing strategies, models, policies and services, rather than rebuilding destroyed infrastructure.
• Supported organizations are expected to contribute to restoring policies and services in key sectors and developing solutions that can be scaled and implemented at the local level.

The competition invites civil society organizations (CSOs) to submit project concepts in accordance with the requirements of the call.

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

1. Official registration in Ukraine

   • organizations must be registered under Ukrainian legislation (Law on Public Associations, Law on Charitable Activities and Charitable Organizations) or be associations of local self-government bodies;

   • the organization must be included in the Register of Non-Profit Organizations.

2. Relevant experience

   • at least three years of experience in project implementation related to recovery or reform in sectors such as education, healthcare, social services, culture, security, and others.

3. Financial capacity

   • demonstrated experience managing projects with a combined annual budget of at least UAH 5,000,000 in one of the last three years.

4. Managerial and analytical capacity

   • ability to develop solutions, policies, models, or mechanisms that can be scaled at the local level;

   • evidence may include analytical products, methodologies, research, models, or publications.

5. Mentoring or capacity-building experience

   • organizations should have experience supporting other CSOs or be ready to act in such a role.

6. Partnership experience

   • demonstrated cooperation with government or municipal institutions at national or regional levels, confirmed for example by letters of support or memoranda.

• Organizations that pass the preliminary selection will undergo a due diligence procedure to confirm their capacity to implement the project.

Project geography

• The competition “Towards Life: Country in Action” focuses on supporting national-level initiatives.
• Projects may cover the entire territory of Ukraine or address systemic policies with solutions scalable at the local level.
• Implementation of specific components in selected regions for piloting is allowed, provided the initiative has the potential for broader replication.

Funding 

• Within the “Towards Life: Country in Action” competition, grants are provided with a maximum budget of up to UAH 6,000,000 per project.
• Projects may have a maximum duration of 12 months.
• The amount of funding may be adjusted by the selection committee depending on the expected project duration and scope of planned activities.
• Project budgets must be prepared in Ukrainian hryvnias (UAH).

Eligible costs

Eligible costs are those that:

• are reasonable and justified in terms of the relevance of activities and the balance between the volume, quality, and cost of services received;
• are supported by appropriate financial and accounting documentation.

Ineligible costs

The following types of expenses are not eligible for funding:

• provision of subgrants;
• charitable assistance or endowment payments;
• purchase of vehicles and premises;
• capital renovation of premises;
• repayment of debts;
• activities related to religious or terrorist activities;
• payment of fees to civil servants or employees of government bodies, local self-government authorities, law enforcement agencies, or the prosecutor’s office;
• purchase of luxury goods or services exceeding reasonable expenditure levels.

Systems addressed by supported projects

Projects may focus on developing policies, models, programmes, services, or tools for strengthening the following systems:

• Education — restoration of educational processes and development of cooperation models between schools, communities, and the state.
• Social sector — strengthening social service systems and supporting vulnerable population groups.
• Healthcare — improving access to quality medical services and adapting the healthcare system to long-term recovery conditions.
• Culture, memory and identity — preservation of historical memory and development of cultural policies.
• Security — strengthening community safety and addressing risks related to war, violence, or information isolation.
• Energy resilience — improving communities’ ability to maintain essential services during energy crises.
• Cross-cutting solutions — initiatives integrating multiple recovery sectors.

The programme also supports cross-sectoral initiatives that connect several systems and contribute to comprehensive long-term solutions.

Main objectives of the competition

• support organizations acting as analytical, advocacy, or service hubs across sectors;
• institutional strengthening of national CSOs capable of supporting partners and local organizations;
• development of solutions for restoring key societal systems;
• creation of models, policies, and services that can be scaled and implemented locally;
• promotion of systemic change through integration of different recovery areas;
• integration of cross-cutting themes such as human rights, gender equality, anti-corruption integrity, digital and green transformation.

Examples of supported activities

• development of solutions for key societal systems, including policies, models, and services in education, healthcare, culture, social protection, security, and defence;
• preparation for scaling solutions at the national level through piloting, testing, and documentation;
• analytical and advocacy activities, including research, policy briefs, and informational support for local initiatives;
• mentoring and training for local CSOs and development of partnership networks;
• building coalitions and partnerships to strengthen integration between systems;
• implementation of approaches based on human rights, inclusion, gender equality, and digital or environmental transformation;
• preparation for the future competition “Towards Life: Communities in Action” 2026;
• organizational capacity development of CSOs, including strategic planning, financial management, and communications.
• One organization may submit no more than two project concepts within the competition, under different system areas.

Stages

• The call for applications within the grant competition will take place in several submission waves.
• Deadlines for submitting project concepts:

  • 1 April 2026 (17:00)

  • 1 June 2026 (17:00)

• The competition is expected to support approximately 5–10 organizations.
• The expected project duration is up to 12 months. The proposed implementation period must be clearly justified in the application according to the planned results and scope of activities.
• Project implementation is expected to start no earlier than 1.5 months after the concept submission deadline.

Concept submission stage

• At the first stage, organizations submit a short project concept (up to 1,000 words).
• The concept should briefly describe:

• • the idea of the initiative and its relevance;

  • expected results and the organization’s capacity to implement the project at the national level;

  • the expected grant amount;

  • the organization’s profile;

  • justification of the funding need;

  • planned activities and the expected impact of the project.

Project concepts must be submitted electronically through the ednannia.ua website.

The submission deadline is 1 April 2026 at 17:00.

Main application steps

1. Organization registration

   • Applicants must register their organization on the platform using the provided link.

   • After registration, an administrator sends a confirmation email.

2. Access to the personal workspace

   • After activating the account, applicants log in to their personal account on the website using their email and password.

3. Submitting the project concept

   • Applicants complete the application form in the section “Applications / Submit an application” for the competition
     “Towards Life: COUNTRY in Action (national level)”.

   • The completed concept must then be submitted to ICAP Ednannia for review.

4. Concept review

   • After submission, ICAP Ednannia grant managers review the concept.

   • If improvements are required, the concept status will be changed to “Requires revision”.

5. Acceptance for evaluation

   • If the concept is completed correctly, it receives the status
     “Accepted for review by the Selection Committee”.

Additional support for applicants

• Participants may consult with a team of three ICAP Ednannia grant managers for questions related to the competition.
• The support line operates from 10:00 to 18:00 on working days, and inquiries can also be sent to grant@ednannia.ua.
• Organizations selected after the concept review will be invited to submit a full project proposal.

Concept evaluation within the grant competition takes place in three stages, while project concepts themselves are assessed in two stages.

Stage 1. Preliminary screening

At the first stage, ISAR Ednannia checks submitted concepts for compliance with the competition requirements, including:

• compliance of the concept with the required format;
• eligibility of the applicant organization;
• submission of a complete set of required documents.

Based on the results, a decision is made on whether the concept proceeds to the second evaluation stage. Applicants not admitted to the next stage receive notification through their ISAR Ednannia account and via email.

Stage 2. Concept evaluation by the commission

At this stage, the commission evaluates concepts based on the following criteria:

1. Project relevance

• alignment with current challenges and priorities of national recovery;
• understanding of the operational context and the needs of the relevant system;
• potential of the initiative for scaling or further application at regional or local levels.

2. Clarity, realism and internal coherence

• logical consistency between objectives, tasks, activities and expected results;
• feasibility of achieving the proposed results considering time and resource constraints.

3. Organizational capacity

• demonstrated experience in the relevant field;
• ability to operate at the national level, including analytical, advocacy or service-oriented activities;
• presence of partnerships and networks for mentoring and supporting other organizations.

Stage 3. Submission of a full project proposal

• Organizations selected for the third stage are invited to submit a full project proposal within the specified timeframe.
• ISAR Ednannia representatives conduct interviews with the applicant teams to clarify project details (at least 3–4 organizations may be invited to this stage).

Additional evaluation criteria for project proposals

Full applications are assessed based on:

• relevance of the project to recovery challenges;
• clarity and realism of planned activities;
• experience and expertise of the project team;
• justification and balance of the proposed budget and its alignment with project objectives.

• Organization's Charter.
• Certificate of State Registration.
• Non-profit status certificate.
• Financial statements for the last 2 years.
• CVs of key implementers.

Monitoring and evaluation

• ICAP Ednannia conducts monitoring and evaluation of projects. These activities may be carried out by the organization itself or with the involvement of other organizations and external experts.
• Grant recipients are required to track the implementation of planned indicators and targets defined in the project proposal.
• Applicants must conduct internal monitoring of project implementation and evaluation of results.
• Monitoring and evaluation are based on indicators of expected results specified in the project application.

Reporting

• Grant recipients are responsible for submitting project and financial reports on the activities carried out to ICAP Ednannia.

Reports include:

• a project report, containing copies (or samples) of all developed documents or materials;
• a financial report, including copies of supporting documents (primary accounting and other documentation) as required by the grant agreement and its annexes.

Compliance with donor and ICAP Ednannia policies and procedures is a mandatory condition for implementing grant-funded projects.

These requirements are defined in the grant agreement and its annexes, which regulate the implementation of the project.

Tender procedures

• Procurement of services and goods for project implementation must be conducted through tender procedures.
• Potential suppliers may participate in the tender process, while members of the project team listed in the application cannot act as suppliers.
• The tender process ensures a transparent and competitive procurement procedure, which includes:

• • announcing the tender;

  • collecting proposals from suppliers;

  • evaluating submitted offers.

• The supplier is selected based on the most suitable proposal, taking into account quality, cost, and compliance with project requirements.