The Fund for Gender Equality (FGE) conducts a global, bi-annual grant-making cycle that aims to award grants to programmes that seek to advance women’s economic or political empowerment. The Fund prioritizes programmes that:

• Link local implementation to national or regional commitments for policy and legal reform
• Articulate a rights-based approach
• Engage into strategic partnerships
• Focus on engaging traditionally excluded groups of women

The Fund will also look at added-value elements such as:

• Initiatives to monitor SDG implementation locally
• Innovation and ICT for gender equality
• Evidence-based interventions
• Sustainability
• Engaging men and boys

The Fund’s grant-making approach is a demand-driven process that mobilizes resources for women, putting money directly into the hands of gender equality advocates who can then negotiate a meaningful gender equality agenda at local, national and regional levels. It is an established mechanism that aims to place women at the centre of the awards and of the policies that affect their lives.