Deadline: 26-Jun-2026
The United Nations Development Programme is inviting grant applications from eligible Italian-registered INGOs to implement short-term humanitarian and early recovery projects in Gaza. The initiative supports multisectoral interventions for internally displaced persons and highly vulnerable groups, including women-headed households and persons with disabilities. Funding ranges from USD 450,000 to USD 850,000 per proposal, with projects lasting up to eight months.
Overview
The United Nations Development Programme is accepting grant applications to support humanitarian response and early recovery projects in Gaza.
The call focuses on practical, short-term interventions that respond to immediate needs while also laying foundations for longer-term recovery and resilience.
Projects must use multisectoral approaches and specifically target internally displaced persons and highly vulnerable groups.
Purpose of the Call
The purpose of the call is to support humanitarian and early recovery interventions that improve living conditions, restore basic services, and strengthen community resilience in Gaza.
Projects should address urgent needs while also supporting recovery pathways through shelter, services, livelihoods, protection, psychosocial support, and social cohesion.
The call encourages locally adapted solutions that are feasible within Gaza’s operational, access, and importation constraints.
Key Focus Areas
The initiative focuses on transitional housing, internally displaced persons, early recovery, WASH, health, education, food security, livelihoods, protection, community self-organisation, psychosocial support, social cohesion, gender equality, disability inclusion, resilience, safeguarding, accountability, and multisectoral humanitarian response in Gaza.
What the Grant Supports
The grant supports short-term humanitarian and early recovery projects using multisectoral approaches.
Supported interventions may include:
- Dignified transitional housing solutions for internally displaced persons
- Restoration of basic public services
- WASH services
- Health-related service restoration
- Education-related service restoration
- Food security support
- Livelihood interventions
- Protection activities
- Community self-organisation initiatives
- Psychosocial support
- Social cohesion activities
- Support for women-headed households
- Support for persons with disabilities
- Community resilience-building activities
Projects should combine immediate relief with practical recovery outcomes.
Target Beneficiaries
Projects must specifically target internally displaced persons and highly vulnerable groups.
Special attention should be given to:
- Women-headed households
- Persons with disabilities
- Displaced families
- Vulnerable children and youth
- Communities affected by service disruption
- Households facing shelter, food, protection, or livelihood insecurity
Applicants should clearly explain how target groups will be identified, reached, and supported.
Funding Amount
Eligible projects may request funding between USD 450,000 and USD 850,000.
The maximum ceiling is USD 850,000 per proposal.
This ceiling applies whether the proposal is submitted by one organization or by a consortium.
Applicants should prepare a realistic budget that fits the project scope and remains within the funding ceiling.
Project Duration
Projects may last up to eight months.
Applicants should design activities that can be delivered within this short implementation period while producing measurable humanitarian and early recovery results.
The workplan should reflect Gaza’s operational realities and access limitations.
Who Is Eligible?
Eligible applicants must be Italian-registered INGOs listed under the AICS framework.
Applicants must also have:
- Legal authorization to operate in Gaza
- At least four years of experience implementing humanitarian projects in complex environments
- A presence in the Gaza Strip or a partnership with a local NGO or CBO
- Technical capacity for multisectoral interventions
- Ability to coordinate with UN clusters and relevant stakeholders
- Commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment
- Robust accountability and safeguarding systems
Partnership and Consortium Applications
Applicants may apply individually or as part of a consortium.
The maximum funding ceiling remains USD 850,000 per proposal, including consortium applications.
Organizations without direct presence in Gaza should demonstrate a strong partnership with a local NGO or CBO.
Partnership arrangements should clearly define roles, responsibilities, implementation arrangements, reporting lines, and accountability mechanisms.
Required Organizational Capacity
Applicants must demonstrate strong operational, technical, and accountability capacity.
Required capacity areas include:
- Humanitarian project management experience
- Multisectoral implementation capacity
- Experience in complex operating environments
- Gaza access or local implementation partnerships
- Gender equality and women’s empowerment commitment
- Safeguarding systems
- Feedback and grievance mechanisms
- Coordination with UN clusters
- Financial management capacity
- Transparent reporting and audit systems
Mandatory Accountability Documents
Applicants must submit documentation showing transparency and accountability.
Mandatory documents include:
- Annual reports
- Audit documentation
- Grievance and feedback mechanism information
- Safeguarding policies or systems
- Evidence of accountability systems
- Proof of legal authorization to operate in Gaza
- Evidence of AICS framework listing
- Documentation confirming Italian registration
- Information on local presence or local NGO/CBO partnership
These documents help demonstrate organizational reliability and compliance.
Operational Considerations in Gaza
Projects must be designed around Gaza’s operational constraints.
Applicants should consider:
- Access restrictions
- Importation limitations
- Availability of local resources
- Security and movement constraints
- Feasibility of procurement
- Local partner capacity
- Community acceptance
- Service delivery risks
- Need for flexible implementation approaches
Proposals should present practical solutions that can be implemented under these conditions.
Why It Matters
Internally displaced persons and vulnerable families in Gaza face severe challenges linked to shelter, basic services, protection, food security, livelihoods, and psychosocial wellbeing.
Humanitarian response alone is not enough when communities also need pathways toward recovery and resilience.
This grant matters because it supports projects that combine immediate relief with early recovery foundations. By integrating shelter, services, livelihoods, protection, and community support, the initiative can help affected communities move toward safer and more dignified living conditions.
How to Apply
Applicants should prepare a complete proposal that demonstrates eligibility, operational capacity, multisectoral approach, beneficiary targeting, accountability systems, and feasibility in Gaza.
Step 1: Confirm Eligibility
Applicants should confirm that they are Italian-registered INGOs listed under the AICS framework.
They must also confirm legal authorization to operate in Gaza and at least four years of humanitarian experience in complex environments.
Step 2: Define the Multisectoral Intervention
The proposal should explain how the project will combine multiple sectors.
This may include transitional housing, WASH, health, education, food security, livelihoods, protection, psychosocial support, and social cohesion.
Step 3: Identify Target Beneficiaries
Applicants should clearly describe the internally displaced persons and vulnerable groups the project will support.
The proposal should explain how women-headed households and persons with disabilities will be identified and prioritized.
Step 4: Design Locally Feasible Activities
Activities should reflect Gaza’s access, procurement, and importation limitations.
Applicants should describe how they will use locally available resources and practical delivery methods.
Step 5: Prepare the Implementation Plan
The workplan should cover up to eight months.
It should include:
- Project objectives
- Activities
- Timeline
- Target locations
- Delivery approach
- Staffing
- Local partner roles
- Coordination arrangements
- Monitoring and reporting
Step 6: Develop the Budget
The budget must fall between USD 450,000 and USD 850,000.
Applicants should ensure the total proposal amount does not exceed USD 850,000.
The budget should be activity-based, realistic, and clearly linked to project outcomes.
Step 7: Demonstrate Coordination Capacity
Applicants should explain how they will coordinate with UN clusters, local authorities, humanitarian actors, local NGOs or CBOs, and relevant stakeholders.
Strong coordination helps avoid duplication and improves delivery.
Step 8: Include Accountability and Safeguarding Systems
The proposal should describe feedback, grievance, safeguarding, and accountability mechanisms.
Applicants should show how affected communities can safely raise concerns and provide feedback.
Step 9: Submit the Application
Applicants should submit the complete application with all required technical, financial, organizational, and accountability documentation.
The proposal should be practical, locally adapted, inclusive, and aligned with humanitarian and early recovery outcomes.
Selection Considerations
Applications are likely to be assessed based on eligibility, feasibility, technical quality, and expected impact.
Key assessment areas may include:
- Eligibility as an Italian-registered INGO under the AICS framework
- Legal authorization to operate in Gaza
- Humanitarian experience in complex environments
- Quality of multisectoral approach
- Relevance to internally displaced persons
- Inclusion of women-headed households and persons with disabilities
- Feasibility under Gaza’s operational constraints
- Technical capacity for delivery
- Strength of local partnerships
- Coordination with UN clusters
- Accountability and safeguarding systems
- Budget realism and value for money
- Contribution to early recovery and resilience
Tips for a Strong Proposal
Applicants should:
- Clearly show eligibility and AICS framework status
- Demonstrate legal authorization to operate in Gaza
- Focus directly on internally displaced persons
- Prioritize women-headed households and persons with disabilities
- Combine humanitarian relief with early recovery outcomes
- Design activities that are feasible under access and importation limits
- Use local resources where possible
- Explain local NGO or CBO partnerships clearly
- Include strong safeguarding and grievance mechanisms
- Coordinate with UN clusters and relevant stakeholders
- Keep the budget within the USD 850,000 ceiling
- Present measurable outcomes within the eight-month duration
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Common mistakes include:
- Applying without Italian INGO registration
- Not being listed under the AICS framework
- Missing legal authorization to operate in Gaza
- Providing weak evidence of humanitarian experience
- Proposing activities that are not feasible under Gaza’s constraints
- Not targeting internally displaced persons clearly
- Ignoring women-headed households or persons with disabilities
- Submitting a budget below USD 450,000 or above USD 850,000
- Providing weak accountability or safeguarding systems
- Missing audit documentation or annual reports
- Not showing coordination with UN clusters
- Treating the project as only emergency aid without early recovery elements
FAQ
1. What is the UNDP Gaza humanitarian and early recovery grant?
It is a grant opportunity supporting short-term multisectoral humanitarian and early recovery projects in Gaza for internally displaced persons and vulnerable groups.
2. Who can apply?
Eligible applicants must be Italian-registered INGOs listed under the AICS framework, legally authorized to operate in Gaza, and experienced in humanitarian work in complex environments.
3. How much funding is available per project?
Eligible projects may request between USD 450,000 and USD 850,000, with a maximum ceiling of USD 850,000 per proposal.
4. What is the project duration?
Projects may last up to eight months.
5. What sectors are supported?
Supported sectors include transitional housing, WASH, health, education, food security, livelihoods, protection, psychosocial support, community self-organisation, and social cohesion.
6. Which groups should projects target?
Projects must target internally displaced persons and highly vulnerable groups, with special attention to women-headed households and persons with disabilities.
7. Can consortiums apply?
Yes. Proposals may be submitted individually or by a consortium, but the maximum ceiling remains USD 850,000 per proposal.
Conclusion
The UNDP grant opportunity supports practical humanitarian and early recovery projects in Gaza that respond to urgent needs while building foundations for resilience. With funding between USD 450,000 and USD 850,000 and implementation periods of up to eight months, the call is designed for eligible Italian-registered INGOs with Gaza authorization, humanitarian experience, and strong accountability systems. Applicants should submit locally feasible, multisectoral proposals that support internally displaced persons, prioritize women-headed households and persons with disabilities, and combine immediate relief with longer-term recovery outcomes.
For more information, visit UNDP.
