The Wales and Africa grants scheme is a grant fund for community groups and organisations throughout Wales who work with partnerships in Sub Saharan Africa.

The Wales and Africa grant scheme is a flagship initiative of Welsh Government’s Wales and Africa programme. The scheme enables community groups and organisations in Wales to access funding for small-scale projects that contribute to Wales’ delivery of UN Sustainable Development Goals and deliver benefits to Wales and Africa.

The Wales and Africa programme supports and encourages civil society, business and public bodies in Wales to take action on poverty in Africa through active global citizenship, skills exchanges a and mutual learning, partnership working, and climate change action.

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Applicants can apply for funding between £1,000-£25,000 and must make a tangible contribution to at least 1 of the 4 themes described below:

1. Health

We seek to contribute to protecting the mental and physical health and wellbeing of communities in Africa through our grants. Examples of this could include:

• Supporting knowledge and skills sharing between health institutions in Wales and Africa for mutual learning and benefit;
• Supporting healthcare professionals in Africa to access small scale training and support from Wales; and
• Supporting communities in Wales and Africa to access to more equitable, quality healthcare

1. Lifelong Learning

Under Lifelong Learning we will support individuals or groups of young people or adults in Wales and/or Africa to gain skills and knowledge. Examples of this could include:

• Linking communities in Wales with African partners to develop mutual understanding of global development and international issues;
• Supporting the educational needs of disadvantaged children in Africa and sharing that experience with school pupils in Wales, contributing to their global citizenship education; and
• Supporting people in Africa to learn practical/vocational/artistic skills to improve their livelihoods.

1. Climate Change and Environment

Under our climate change and environment grant stream, we will support initiatives that reduce environmental degradation and biodiversity loss in Africa as well as strategic and practical work to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and to protect people from the impacts of climate change on food supplies, water availability or safety. Examples of this could include:

• Activities which support African farmers to adapt to a changing climate;
• Projects which enable the use of renewable energy in Africa;
• Projects engaging people in Wales with climate change issues as they affect Africa; or
• Work aiming to support African partners in implementing sustainable development practices.

1. Sustainable livelihoods

We seek to promote realistic and sustainable livelihood opportunities in Wales and Africa, ensuring that marginalized individuals are included in grassroots economic and social development. Initiatives that we support include:

• Community-led, income generating cooperatives that have benefit to Wales and Africa;
• Engaging the public through Fair Trade campaigns, advocacy or policy;
• Activities that bring the consumer closer to the producer in a sustainable way;
• Support to small-scale agricultural projects and activities; and
• Support to grassroots income generating activities.

For this round of Wales Africa grants we are able to offer some additional funding specifically for women’s empowerment projects which will work with existing partners delivering in Uganda or Lesotho. Grants between £20,000 and £30,000 will be available, with a total of £90,000 ringfenced for this award.

Applications focussing on contributing to gender equality in the following fields will be considered:

• Women in leadership
• Women’s rights
• Climate change
• Training and education
• Period dignity
• Gender based violence

In addition, your project should also demonstrate how the activity contributes to Wales’ delivery of UN Sustainable Development Goals and deliver benefits to both Wales and Africa. Organisations should consider how their strategic project aligns with the values and aims of Welsh Government policy and action plans, particularly the Wales and Africa programme, and Gender Equality.

Ahead of applying for a grant from this ringfenced pot, applicants should discuss their project with the Welsh Government team to check if it would be eligible for consideration. Please contact the Wales and Africa team at walesandafrica@gov.wales with a brief paragraph about what the project would entail. Please don’t send project applications to this email address – all applications must be made through the WCVA’s MAP portal. As part of your application you will indicate if you are applying for a grant to carry out a project focussing on women’s empowerment. For any questions related to accessing the application form, please contact the WCVA team at walesafricagrants(at)wcva.cymru.

Please note, applications should be for either the main grants of £1,000-£25,000 or specifically for women’s empowerment projects. We cannot accept applications which combine both.