Strategic Fund Supporting Women’s Rights and Gender Justice in Nigeria

ActionAid Nigeria, with support from Global Affairs Canada under the Renewed Women’s Voice and Leadership Project, is inviting Expressions of Interest for the Strategic Opportunity Fund. The fund provides rapid-response grants to support emergency action, critical advocacy, and protection for women human rights defenders advancing the rights of women and girls in Nigeria.

ActionAid Nigeria is inviting Expressions of Interest for the Strategic Opportunity Fund to support timely, high-impact interventions that advance gender equality and gender justice in Nigeria.

Funded by Global Affairs Canada through the Renewed Women’s Voice and Leadership Project, the fund is designed as a fast and flexible mechanism to respond to urgent, emerging, or time-sensitive challenges affecting women and girls.

What Is the Strategic Opportunity Fund?

The Strategic Opportunity Fund is a rapid-response funding mechanism that enables women’s rights organisations, women’s networks, and women human rights defenders to implement short-term interventions with immediate and measurable impact.

It supports urgent action to protect rights, sustain advocacy, and address gender-related crises or strategic opportunities in rapidly changing contexts.

Key Objectives of the Fund

The fund aims to:

• Advance the rights of women and girls in Nigeria

• Promote gender equality and gender justice

• Support systemic and structural change

• Enable rapid response to emergencies and advocacy opportunities

• Protect and sustain women human rights defenders

• Ensure inclusion of structurally excluded and marginalised groups

Funding Categories and Grant Amounts

Applicants may apply under only one of the following funding categories.

Emergency Intervention Fund

• Maximum grant: Up to N10,000,000 per project

• Number of grants: Up to 12 annually

This category supports rapid responses to urgent or unforeseen situations that negatively impact women and girls, including natural disasters, conflict-related crises, political instability, or sudden policy or legal changes.

Critical Intervention Fund

• Maximum grant: Up to N6,000,000 per project

• Number of grants: Up to 13 annually

This category supports short-term advocacy and strategic actions aimed at influencing policy, amplifying women’s voices, and strengthening women’s movement building.

Women Human Rights Defenders Intervention Fund

• Maximum grant: Up to N17,711,495 per project

• Number of grants: Up to 4 annually

This category provides protection, emergency assistance, and support to women human rights defenders facing threats, intimidation, or violence due to their activism, ensuring their safety, wellbeing, and continued engagement.

Who Is Eligible?

The call is open to:

• Women-led organisations operating in Nigeria

• Women’s rights organisations and networks

• Women human rights defenders based in or working within Nigeria

Applicants must demonstrate the ability to implement short-term, time-sensitive interventions with clear outcomes for women and girls.

Priority Groups and Inclusion Focus

Priority is given to initiatives that support structurally excluded and marginalised groups, including:

• Women and girls with disabilities

• Women and girls in conflict or crisis-affected settings

• Women and girls on the move, including returnees

• Female inmates

• Survivors of gender-based violence

• Out-of-school girls

• Elderly women

• Women in politics

Proposals should clearly explain how these groups are meaningfully included and supported.

What Types of Interventions Are Supported?

The Strategic Opportunity Fund supports interventions that are:

• Strategic and time-sensitive

• Capable of delivering measurable impact within a short timeframe

• Aligned with gender equality and gender justice principles

• Designed to contribute to systemic or structural change

• Complementary to existing initiatives rather than duplicative

Interventions may include emergency response actions, advocacy campaigns, protection measures, or strategic engagement activities.

Why It Matters

Women and girls in Nigeria often face heightened risks during crises, political transitions, and periods of instability.

By providing fast, flexible funding, the Strategic Opportunity Fund enables women-led actors to respond effectively, protect rights, sustain advocacy momentum, and address urgent gender justice issues as they arise.

How to Apply

Step-by-Step Application Process

1. Identify a strategic, urgent, or time-sensitive issue affecting women and girls.

2. Select the most appropriate funding category based on the intervention’s purpose.

3. Design a short-term intervention with clear objectives and measurable outcomes.

4. Demonstrate alignment with gender equality, gender justice, and systemic change goals.

5. Show organisational or individual capacity to deliver results quickly.

6. Submit an Expression of Interest under one funding category only.

7. Implement the intervention promptly if selected.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Applying under multiple funding categories

• Proposing long-term projects that are not time-sensitive

• Failing to demonstrate measurable impact

• Weak alignment with gender equality and gender justice objectives

• Limited focus on structurally excluded groups

• Insufficient evidence of capacity for rapid implementation

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the Strategic Opportunity Fund?

It is a rapid-response funding mechanism supporting emergency action, advocacy, and protection for women and girls in Nigeria.

Who can apply for this fund?

Women-led organisations, women’s rights networks, and women human rights defenders operating in Nigeria.

How much funding is available?

Funding ranges from up to N6,000,000 to N17,711,495 per project, depending on the funding category.

Can applicants apply to more than one funding category?

No. Applicants may apply under only one funding category.

What types of situations qualify for emergency funding?

Natural disasters, conflict-related crises, political instability, and sudden policy or legal changes affecting women and girls.

Are women human rights defenders specifically supported?

Yes. A dedicated funding category provides protection and emergency support for women human rights defenders facing threats or violence.

Is priority given to marginalised groups?

Yes. Strong priority is given to initiatives supporting structurally excluded groups, including women with disabilities, survivors of gender-based violence, and women in conflict settings.

Conclusion

The ActionAid Nigeria Strategic Opportunity Fund provides critical, rapid funding to protect rights, sustain advocacy, and advance gender justice for women and girls in Nigeria.

By empowering women-led organisations and human rights defenders to act swiftly in moments of urgency, the fund plays a vital role in addressing systemic inequalities and ensuring that no woman or girl is left behind.