Funding for Francophone West Africa: Call for Expressions of Interest Now Open!

October 6, 2026

WomenStrong International is delighted to announce a new funding opportunity for women-led grassroots organizations in Francophone West Africa: Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo.

By combining flexible capital, tailored support, and collective learning, this opportunity aims to strengthen the resilience and long-term sustainability of grassroots, women-led organizations at a time of unprecedented funding contraction.

WomenStrong will provide flexible, multiyear, unrestricted funding (up to US$50,000/year) to enable organizations to explore or implement self-identified strategies to build financial resiliency, income diversification and organizational capacity.

Our new grantee partners will also receive tailored organizational strengthening support — co-designed with each partner — to build financial sustainability, adaptive strategic readiness, and leadership wellbeing, ensuring organizations are equipped to navigate a rapidly changing funding landscape.

We will invite our new grantee partners to participate in a Learning Lab that connects women leaders across countries and movements, enabling exchange of practical tools/approaches, insights, and strategies to accelerate innovation and reduce isolation. We’ll ask our new grantee partners to share their insights on alternative financing and organizational strengthening strategies to inform broader philanthropic and development ecosystems on effective models for funding women-led solutions.

Grantee Eligibility

WomenStrong has specific criteria that we look for in our potential grantee partners. To be eligible for funding each organization will:

Be led by women*, who hold the majority of leadership positions.
Be led by nationals based in the country of operation.
Have a local governing body of representatives of the communities and populations it serves.
Operate in at least one of the following countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Togo.
Be registered in its country of operation as a nonprofit (or local equivalent).
Have an annual budget of less than US$1 million.
Have more than one funder at the time of application.
Be providing locally led, gender-responsive services and/or advocacy for women and girls in their communities.
Be interested in exploring and implementing self-identified strategies to strengthen their financial resilience, diversify revenue, and build organizational resilience.
Be willing to share commonalities and to explore solutions and challenges through peer exchange and organizational strengthening support.
Have at least two members of staff/volunteers and be willing to provide opportunities for at least 1 – 2 representatives (i.e. staff or volunteers) to learn and regularly participate in WomenStrong’s Learning Lab and events.

* WomenStrong supports women, girls, trans, and nonbinary people.

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Expression of Interest Form

If you think you meet these criteria and are interested in becoming a grantee partner of WomenStrong International, we would be delighted to receive a completed Expression of Interest form from you. The form is available in both French and English. If eligible, the form asks for some brief descriptions of your organization’s work – a preview of these questions is available here.

WomenStrong International’s open call for expressions of interest closes on December 1st, 2026. Click here to apply

Information Session

WomenStrong will hold a virtual Q&A for all who are interested in applying for this funding. The call will be held on November 2, 2026, at 10 EST, 3pm WAT. French and English interpretation will be available.

Please register here to attend: https://womenstrong.zoom.us/meeting/register/P7_MtdTUR4KpoA1M_GXCGQ

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