Community-based organizations in the countries of the East African Community (EAC) are invited to apply to the 1st call for proposals of the Mountains ADAPT small grants project for mountain community resilience. The small grants support inclusive ecosystem-based approaches that respond to climate change impacts in mountains and help communities protect their natural environment and improve their livelihoods.

The Mountains ADAPT small grants project provides up to 30,000 USD towards the design and implementation of impactful solutions for climate change impacts on mountain communities. Successful community-based organizations will receive capacity development and training support to implement the proposed solution in their community.

This first round of call for proposals will fund up to 15 projects in the EAC. Solution proposals should be submitted through the application link by 15th September 2026 at 11:59 pm (East African Time).

Application Guideline

Community-based organizations can apply to the Grants following the steps below:

1. Fill in the application (Lime) form with all the required information.

2. The eligible application will move to the next steps of an evaluation of the proposal. You might be contacted with further requests for information.

3. The regional selection committee will evaluate and select up to 15 projects in the EAC and SC region.

4. The selected proponents will be contacted to start working on the development of the full proposal and implementation plan.

In the application form community-based organizations are kindly requested to provide information on:

Organization capacity and experience: including registration number and relevant experience (previous projects) in their mountain region.
Issue to solve: climate change risks and impacts the project aims to address, supported by visual evidence.
Proposed solution: a nature-based approach that responds to local community needs and integrates gender considerations.
Beneficiaries: identification of target groups and expected community benefits.
Attachments: organization’s registration certificate and national ID or passport of the legal representative and evidence of previous experience.

Summarize eligibility criteria

Applicants should:

Be a locally based, duly registered non-governmental organization operating in a mountain region of the benefitting countries in the East African community (DRC, Somalia, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania).
Address a mountain climate change challenge or vulnerability with the proposed project with a strong focus on ecosystem-based adaptation approach.
Have prior experience working directly with mountain communities.
Filled in all essential information requested in the application form.

You can access the application form at this link.

Timelines and deadlines for submissions

Solutions proposals must be submitted through the application link by 15th September 2026 at 11:59 pm (East African Time).

Selected proponents will be contacted in the 3rd quarter of 2026, with implementation of the solutions plan to start in the 4th quarter of 2026.

Eligibility

Who can apply for the grant? Civil society organizations, preferably grassroots, community-based, youth or women organizations delivering community-based actions to adapt to climate change impacts in mountain communities of the East African Community.

Are individuals eligible, or only registered organizations? Only registered organizations are eligible to apply.

Do organizations need to be formally registered to qualify? Yes. Only formally registered organizations are eligible to apply. Applicants must upload their official registration certificate as part of the application form. If selected, the organization will also need to have an official bank account (not a personal/individual) to receive the funds.

Are there geographic or thematic restrictions (e.g., only organizations in certain regions or working on specific issues)? Yes. Eligible organizations must demonstrate experience working directly with the benefiting mountain community. Applicants should also show proven capacity to implement the proposed projects. A strong experience in implementing adaptation and/or environmental activities will be considered an asset during the evaluation process.

Do organizations need to have prior experience implementing international funds? No, organizations only need to demonstrate prior experience working with and in projects benefiting mountain communities, not necessarily from international funding sources.

Application process

How to apply for the grant? Applicants must complete and submit the full application form available at this link.

What documents are required with the application? Applicants must submit the following documents along with their application form: The organization’s valid registration certificate and the national ID card or passport of the organization’s legal representative. Additionally, if selected, the applicant must present official banking details of the organization (must coincide with the organization’s registry).

Is there an application deadline? Yes, only applications received before 15 August 2026 at 11:59 pm (East African Time) will be considered.

Can applications be submitted in languages other than English? Yes. The application form can also be accessed and filled in in any of the following languages: French and Kiswahili.

Funding details

What is the maximum and minimum grant amount available? The maximum grant amount available is USD 30,000. There is no defined minimum amount. However, applicants are encouraged to request sufficient funding to implement substantive, nature‑based solutions and on‑the‑ground activities.

What kind of solutions can be proposed? Projects should empower local communities, respond to identified climate risks and impacts through ecosystem-based approaches and/or implementing Nature-based Solutions to, for example, restore ecosystems, harvest rain water, climate-smart agriculture, disaster preparedness, diversifying incomes among other. You can get some inspirations from the Booklets: Mountains ADAPT: Solutions from East Africaand theMountains ADAPT: Solutions from the South Caucasus

What types of expenses can the grant cover? Grant funds may be used to cover a wide range of eligible expenses, including staff and hired experts’ salaries, equipment and materials, training and capacity‑building activities, operational and administrative costs, and other project‑related expenses directly tied to implementation.

Are there restrictions on how the funds can be used? All expenditures must align closely with the approved project idea, be well justified in the application, and demonstrate efficiency and sustainability in implementation.

The budget cannot include any direct salary payments or allowances to government officials (including local municipality representatives), in line with UNEP financial rules and regulations. Involvement of local officials in project activities (e.g., facilitation, oversight) can be included, but it must be covered through in-kind collaboration or government co-financing, and it should not involve direct payments from SGFS grants.

Is co-funding required? Co‑funding is not a mandatory requirement. However, projects that have existing or anticipated co‑funding (for example, from a local municipality or other partners) will be considered an asset during the selection process.

Selection criteria

How will applications be evaluated? Applications will go through the simple eligibility screening phase to ensure they comply with the eligibility criteria (see more details in the Resources section). After pre-screening, applications will be reviewed by a Selection Committee using the Evaluation Matrix attached to the Resources section.

What are the key criteria for selection? The key selection criteria are the proposed solution’s relevance to local climate vulnerabilities, technical feasibility, inclusivity (gender/youth/etc.), innovation/scaling potential, community ownership and participation, safeguard compliance and sustainability (see more details in Resources section).

Who makes the final decision on grant awards? Selection Committees in the South Caucasus and East African Community will evaluate all shortlisted projects and make funding decisions (see more details in the Resources section).

Will unsuccessful applicants receive feedback? Each applicant will receive a notification of the outcome on whether the proposal was selected or not. Unsuccessful applications will also receive feedback.

Implementation and Reporting

What happens after successful projects are identified? Selected organizations will be asked to develop a detailed implementation plan, including key milestones and timelines. Grantees’ capacities will be assessed, and tailored capacity‑building support will be provided to ensure projects are technically sound, inclusive, and align with UNEP’s social and environmental standards and safeguards.

What reporting requirements will grantees have? Grantees must report according to the defined timeline in their implementation plan. Reports should include evidence of progress against milestones, budget spending and financial records, and visual materials (e.g., photos, videos) documenting activities.

How often must progress reports be submitted? Two narrative and financial reports are required: A mid‑term report and a final report upon completion of project activities. Other complementary monitoring activities can be requested as agreed during the development of the implementation plan.

Are site visits or audits part of the monitoring process? Projects will be randomly selected for field monitoring visits. Selected projects will be closely monitored to ensure compliance and accountability.

Timeline

When will successful applicants be notified? Third quarter 2026.

When should the project implementation start? Fourth quarter 2026.

What is the grant implementation period? 12 months.

Support

Is there technical assistance available during the application process? For technical assistance or any clarifications, please contact the UNEP project team at unep-mountainsadapt@un.org.

Will training or capacity building be provided to grantees? Yes. Tailored capacity‑building support will be provided to grantees after their capacity needs are assessed.