Deadline: 29-Aug-2025
The UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub (UKHIH) and Elrha are seeking a consultant or research partner to explore innovative funding and financing models that could strengthen the humanitarian research and innovation ecosystem.
The overall aim is to identify, assess, and design funding and financing approaches that strengthen humanitarian research and innovation across different funding instruments and stages of the innovation cycle, culminating in practical recommendations, pilot options, and a reusable assessment tool. The objectives include defining decision criteria with UKHIH/Elrha and the working group, mapping current practice and instruments in humanitarian research and innovation funding, scanning candidate models from humanitarian and adjacent sectors, developing evidence via case studies of shortlisted models, assessing feasibility for UKHIH/Elrha including operational, legal, financial, and partner-readiness considerations, designing practical options including a prototype assessment tool and pilotable concepts, providing recommendations and a roadmap, and ensuring sector engagement and learning.
This opportunity is designed to provide a structured approach to addressing the fragmented funding environment that currently limits humanitarian research and innovation. The program will map and evaluate financing mechanisms used in other sectors such as health, education, climate adaptation, and development, and assess how these could be adapted to the humanitarian context. Models such as blended finance, outcome-based arrangements, pooled funds, and impact investment will be examined to determine feasibility and suitability.
The commissioned provider will work collaboratively with UKHIH, Elrha, and peer organisations to ensure outputs are relevant, inclusive, and grounded in sector realities. Deliverables will include an inception report, a landscape review and typology, case studies, a feasibility analysis with recommendations, a prototype assessment tool, and a final synthesis report. By the conclusion, the commission is expected to provide clear, evidence-based recommendations, pilot concepts for testing, and strengthened sector knowledge.
Proposals are open to service providers legally registered in any country, with no restrictions on organisational type. Applicants must demonstrate expertise in innovative financing, analytical skills, familiarity with humanitarian systems, experience with donors and private sector actors, and a commitment to ethical and inclusive practice. The total contract value is expected to be no greater than £45,000 GBP, and the work must be completed between September 2025 and January 2026.
Submissions must include a technical proposal, cost structure proposal, certificates, and organisational information questionnaire, and must be submitted electronically in English no later than 23:59 UK time on 29 August 2025.
For more information, visit UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub.
