Deadline: 24-Apr-25
Norad is seeking proposals for the Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative to contribute to achieving NICFI’s main objective; reduced and reversed loss of tropical forests contributes to a stable climate, protects biodiversity and enhances sustainable development.
Objectives
- Preference will be given to proposals that are expected to contribute to one or several of the following strategic areas of the grant scheme:
- Supporting ambitious policies for sustainable forest and land use in tropical forest countries
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Supporting national and local governments in implementing key policies to address forest loss, including integrated land use planning that protects valuable forests, strengthened law enforcement, and fiscal and sector policies in line with sustainable land use.
- Contributing to increased support to ambitious policies as well as monitoring the implementation of the goals related to forests and nature under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the Paris Agreement.
- Increasing the understanding of the value of ecosystem services from tropical forests and the costs of continued forest loss from deforestation and forest degradation.
- Engaging new constituencies to increase support for policies and initiatives aimed at reducing deforestation and improving sustainability.
- Supporting alignment around high-integrity standards for forest carbon at the national and jurisdictional level (e.g., the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions), and supporting the development of or transition to integrated jurisdictional REDD+ systems in tropical forest countries.
- Supporting innovative action to protect forests at jurisdictional scale, including innovative ways to mobilise finance.
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Improved rights and livelihoods for Indigenous Peoples, and local communities in tropical forest countries
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Supporting the implementation of policies and regulatory frameworks to advance the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, as part of countries’ REDD+ strategies and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)/ National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs).
- Securing land and tenure rights for Indigenous Peoples, as well as other forest-dependent communities, for sustainable management of large and contiguous territories, where possible.
- Developing and promoting measures that will enable more direct access for Indigenous Peoples, and other forest-dependent communities, to national and international finance instruments, while contributing to the effective implementation of NDCs and NBSAPs.
- Enabling the full and early involvement of Indigenous Peoples, as well as other forest-dependent communities, in the design of, and implementation of jurisdictional forest carbon markets and associated benefit-sharing arrangements, to enable countries and jurisdictions to address and respect the Cancun Safeguards, in accordance with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
- Developing, promoting, or providing more effective protection and enhanced security for Indigenous Peoples, including recently contacted or in voluntary isolation, and other environmental human rights defenders at risk.
- Improving livelihoods, improving market access, and developing deforestation-free value chains, including in partnership with the private sector. Priority should be given to jurisdictions and areas where livelihood efforts will strengthen the integrity of Indigenous Peoples’ territories, as well as those of other forest-dependent communities.
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Reduced forest crime
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Strategies to address organised crime’s impact on forests. This may include developing information that exposes, documents, and raises awareness of organised crime that harms tropical forests in Southeast Asia, Central Africa, or Latin America, and support efforts by governments or the private sector, including financial institutions, to reduce deforestation.
- Strategies to reduce the impacts of illegal gold mining in Latin America. This may include the provision of information to support government efforts to respond or to shed light on the environmental, human, and social consequences of illegal mining.
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Sustainable commodity production, trade, and finance
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Increasing knowledge and raising awareness about the local and global consequences of deforestation from commodity production and trade on climate, nature, production capacity and food security among policymakers, private sector companies, financial institutions, and consumers.
- Creating and strengthening enabling conditions to promote the transition to deforestation- and conversion-free production and investment portfolios at scale. This may include efforts to improve traceability, support for producers, or financing institutions and business models to facilitate sustainable production.
- Encouraging and scaling the adoption of deforestation- and conversion-free sourcing and financing practices in domestic and emerging markets.
- Supporting implementation of and compliance with government policies and regulations to promote deforestation- and conversion-free production and consumption.
- Engaging regional and local banks to facilitate financing that promotes the transition to zero deforestation and conversion, with the aim of transitioning to deforestation- and conversion-free financing practices locally.
- To support the work under this strategic area, successful applications will address one or more of the points below:
- Supporting ambitious policies for sustainable forest and land use in tropical forest countries
Funding Information
- Norad aims to enter into approximately 20 grant agreements for the period 2026 – 2028. Applications between NOK 15-75 million per year will be prioritised.
Target Group(s)
- The final target groups for the grant scheme are population groups in developing countries. Specific target groups must be identified for all projects funded under this scheme.
- Applicants must be able to demonstrate how the project will benefit the target group(s). Applicants must also show how much of the funding is expected to reach national or local organisations, including Indigenous Peoples’ organisations in tropical forest countries.
Geographic Focus
- The priority geographic focus for funding is countries with which NICFI has established formal strategic partnerships. This includes Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, DR Congo, Gabon, Ethiopia, and Indonesia.
Who can apply?
- Potential grant recipients are:
- Potential grant recipients for this call are non-profit, non-governmental organisations. If applying as part of a consortium, please note that all members must be eligible grant recipients.
- Applicants must be able to document that they meet the following criteria:
- The applicant can document the necessary technical and administrative competence and capacity to implement the project, including a monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning system (MEAL).
- The applicant can document good contextual understanding and good insight into the issues concerned, e.g. through previous work within the theme.
- Applicants working through partners must be able to document that they have established and tested operational guidelines for the selection of, and cooperation with, implementing partners. Information about known partners must be provided.
- The applicant can document systems and routines for risk management and internal control. This includes systems and procedures for the prevention, detection and management of suspected corruption and mismanagement of funds.
- The applicant has a Code of Conduct or similar ethical guidelines. As a minimum, such guideline must include principles and routines to detect, prevent, and address sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment (SEAH).
Performance Criteria
- Norad will use the following performance criteria to measure results from projects receiving funding under this call:
- Results from supported initiatives shall demonstrate contribution to systemic change, reversing the trends of deforestation, in line with the main objective and sub-goals, set in the strategic framework for NICFI, with emphasis on the following outcomes:
- Rights and livelihoods for Indigenous Peoples, and local communities, in tropical countries, have been improved;
- Forest crime has been reduced;
- Supply chains and financial markets are deforestation- and conversion-free;
- Ambitions and support for sustainable forest and land use management in tropical forest countries have increased.
For more information, visit Norad.