Call for Proposals: Supporting Inclusive Political Participation for LGBTIQ+ & Persons with Disabilities in Nepal

Deadline: 20-May-25

The European Commission (EC) is seeking proposals to support civil society in promoting inclusive political participation and representation of marginalised groups, in particular of LGBTIQ+ communities and persons with disabilities in Nepal.

Objectives

• The global objective of this call for proposals is to support civil society in promoting inclusive political participation and representation of marginalised groups, in particular of LGBTIQ+ communities and persons with disabilities in Nepal. Within the broader theme of political participation and representation, the call is divided into two lots, each with its own specific objective.
• The specific objective(s) of this call for proposals are:
  • Lot 1: Support targeting LGBTIQ+ communities: to strengthen and enhance effectiveness of civil society efforts to promote more effective and inclusive political participation and representation of LGBTIQ+ communities in Nepal.
  • Lot 2: Support targeting persons with disabilities: to strengthen and enhance effectiveness of civil society efforts to promote more effective and inclusive political participation and representation of persons with disabilities in Nepal.

Priorities

• The priority(ies) of this call for proposals is/are:
  • Strategic priorities:
    • Capacity building of organisations working with the target groups, i.e. LGBTIQ+ communities and persons with disabilities, including backstopping
    • Evidence generation and evidence-based policy advocacy to increase access to resources and opportunities for the target groups
    • Contribution to making institutional entities, including government departments, parliamentary mechanisms, electoral bodies, and political parties more inclusive and representative in their rules, regulations, policies and in the action; and
    • Sensitisation of Nepalese citizens on matters related to equality and political participation and representation as, in particular, of LGBTIQ+ communities and persons with disabilities.
  • In addition to the above-mentioned objectives and priorities, this call has four mandatory crosscutting issues that must be addressed in all proposals:
    • Gender equality constitutes a fundamental human right and a common value of the European Union. As such, it will be a major cross-cutting aspect of any project proposed under this call for proposals.
    • Youth constitutes a key actor of development and an integral part of the solution to promote peace and security. Civil society is an important actor in promoting youth engagement and in involving youth and youth interests in key policy processes. As such, youth will be a major cross-cutting aspect under the call for proposals and each selected project will have to ensure inclusion and engagement of youth.
    • Promoting agency and inclusion of minority and indigenous peoples, and other marginalised groups, promoting their active participation and ensuring that the systems in place respond to their specific needs. Each proposal will have to clearly stipulate and integrate into the actions the inter-sectional aspects of marginalised groups in Nepal.
    • All proposals under this call for proposals must be designed according to the Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA) encompassing all human rights, whether civil, political, economic, social or cultural. The implementation of the five RBA principles:
      • legality, universality and indivisibility of human rights,
      • participation,
      • non-discrimination,
      • accountability, and
      • transparency must be applied in each step of the project cycle from identification, over formulation, implementation and monitoring to evaluation.

Funding Information

• The overall indicative amount made available under this call for proposals is EUR 1.5 million.
• Indicative allocation of funds by lot:
  • Lot 1: Support targeting LGBTIQ+ communities: EUR 750 000
  • Lot 2: Support targeting persons with disabilities: EUR 750 000
• Size of grants
  • Any grant requested under this call for proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts:
    • minimum amount: EUR 450 000
    • maximum amount: EUR 500 000

Duration

• The initial planned duration of an action may not be lower than 36 months nor exceed 48 months

Eligibility Criteria

• In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
  • be a legal person or an entity without legal personality and
  • be non-profit-making and
  • be a specific type of organisation such as: non-governmental organisation, and
  • be effectively established in14 a Member State of the European Union or in Nepal or in any countries eligible for NDICI – Global Europe 2021-2027 and
  • be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary, and
  • be allowed to implement activities in accordance with the Nepalese legal provisions

For more information, visit EC.