Deadline: 01 June, 2026, 11:59 p.m. GMT
ISDAO is flexible and supports activists so they can work in areas that are rarely funded by donors and that aim to advance and strengthen movements for social change, inclusion, and justice. Recognising that very few resources are dedicated to innovative and creative activism, ISDAO is launching the fifth cycle of the Asanka Fund.
For ISDAO, within the scope of this grant, creative initiatives are those that go beyond traditional forms of activism. This includes, but is not limited to, all innovative initiatives undertaken by individual LGBTQI activists to support LGBTQI activism in at least one of ISDAO’s focus countries.
ISDAO encourages innovative strategies for advocacy, mobilisation, and movement-building, including strategies aimed at shifting narratives through literature, video, digital content creation, photography, choreography, film, radio, painting, drawing, and all forms of art in general at the local and regional levels.
Eligibility criteria
Asanka grants will be awarded to:
- Individual LGBTQI activists based in one of the ISDAO focus countries or originating from one of the ISDAO focus countries, whose work is rooted in and connected to the local movement in the region or in one of the ISDAO focus countries. These focus countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, and Togo.
Please note that :
- Individual LGBTQI activists are people who identify as members of the LGBTQI community and are recognized as such by their peers.
- For this fund, only initiatives proposed by individual LGBTQI activists will be accepted.
- Concept notes submitted by groups or organizations are not eligible for funding.
Individual activists from francophone countries, as well as members of the LBQ, trans*, and intersex communities, are strongly encouraged to apply.
- Type of funding: Grant
- Range of grants: Maximum amount of $7,500
- Grant Timeline: 1 year (12 months) maximum period
Application and Instructions
- We are currently accepting concept notes in French and English. Any application submitted after the deadline will not be considered for submission to the Asanka Fund decision-making panel.
- Please DOWNLOAD the appropriate form and read the guidelines carefully before beginning your application.
- Please make sure your application is complete and that all questions have been answered. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that the application is complete before submitting it.
- After the deadline, ISDAO cannot consider applications that are incomplete or missing certain information, and we cannot accept any additional information or revisions after the deadline.
- Please complete the more detailed eligibility test on the form to determine whether you are eligible to apply for this grant.
- Attach the complete document to a single email and send it to asanka@isdao.org by 11:59 p.m. GMT on June 1 at the latest
Our process for the awarding of grants
- Step 1: Open Call for Concept Notes
Individual activists will be asked to submit their concept notes within three (3) weeks
- Step 2: Submission of Concept Notes
Concept notes are accepted from individual activists based in the West African subregion or in the diaspora who propose creative initiatives focused on storytelling and/or advocacy about LGBTQI people
- Step 3: Translation of concept notes
All Concept Notes are translated into English or French
- Step 4: Notifying Ineligible Applicants
After an internal screening for eligibility, all ineligible applicants are notified via email - Step 5: Shortlisting by the decision-making panel
Concept notes are reviewed by the panel virtually, respecting principles of confidentiality and absence of conflict of interest - Step 6: Interviews
Shortlisted applicants are invited to an interview with the decision-making panel to present their creative initiative and answer any questions about the project - Step 7: Virtual decision-making
The decision-making panel scores each applicant interviewed and makes a collective decision on which projects to fund, based on the Asanka criterion and priorities. Final decisions by the panel are communicated to the ISDAO team - Step 8: Notification to Candidates
The ISDAO team sends a notification to pre-approved applicants and requests detailed budgets and references: this is the due diligence stage - Step 9: Signing of grant agreements and transfer of funds
Funds are transferred to the fiscal hosts of the grant recipients’ choice within two to three weeks of signing the agreement