Historical archive

Grants for projects under chapter 164, Peace, reconciliation and democracy, item 71, ODA-approved Balkan countries

Historical archive

Published under: Stoltenberg's 2nd Government

Publisher: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announces an opportunity to apply for grants for peace- and state building projects in the Western Balkans.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announces an opportunity to apply for grants for peace- and state building projects in the Western Balkans.

The projects must be in line with the objectives of the grant scheme, as set out in the budget proposal (Proposition No. 1 2013-2014).

Parts of the grant scheme are administered through separate programs/funds with their own guidelines and application deadlines.

Information on the following programs/funds can be found at:

Embassy Fund for small scale projects

The Norwegian Embassies in Sarajevo, Belgrade and Prishtina manage their own funds for smaller projects.

Norwegian Fund for Civil Society Development (NFCSD)

A separate fund for support to civil society organizations in the Western Balkans shall in particular support civil society in Bosnia Herzegovina, Kosovo and Serbia. But applications from other ODA-listed countries in the Western Balkans might be considered. For applications in Bosnia Herzegovina applications should be sent the Embassy in Sarajevo, for Kosovo and Albania applications should be sent the Embassy in Prishtina, applications in Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia should be sent the embassy in Belgrade. For guidelines and deadlines please consult the Embassies’ web pages.

Bilateral Programs

A part of the available funds will be managed under the State-to-State agreements with Serbia, Macedonia and Montenegro. Announcement of opportunity to apply for these funds will be posted on the relevant Government websites in the partner countries.

Multilateral finance institutions 

Norway will continue to support various multilateral funding- and finance mechanisms for economic development in the Western Balkans region.

Application to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for grants for Peace and State building in the Western Balkans

Application deadline is Friday 14 March 2014. Applications received after deadline will be considered for support in the second half of the year if means are still available.

Applications shall be sent e-mail address postfordelingen.ud@mfa.no with copy to vest-balkan.seksjonen@mfa.no.

More information about application requirements can be found in the grant scheme rules, in application form S51and in the electronic guide which is available at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs home page at www.government.no

Relevant information can be found from the following web pages:  

Geographic and thematic priority areas in 2014

The allocation for 2014 has been reduced to NOK 355 mill. Funds are available for Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, and for regional initiatives.

Private business sector and other commercial entities are in principle not eligible for grants, but may participate in procurement tenders announced by the NMFA or the authorities in Balkan beneficiary countries. Grants may be used for the purpose of awarding tenders under the Norwegian Public Procurement Act of 16 July 1999 and the Public Procurement Regulations (7 April 2006 No. 402). Commercial entities are consequently invited to check for procurement announcements on the Norwegian database for public procurement (Doffin) or the EEA- database Tenders Electronic daily (TED), or for similar announcements in beneficiary countries’ databases.

Application for support to projects in the following thematic areas will be prioritized:  

  • Rule of law, good governance, justice sector and anti-corruption measures
  • Administrative reforms, public sector capacity building, incl. gender
  • Security sector reform
  • Human rights, reconciliation, integration, and protection of minorities
  • Education for minorities
  • Migration
  • Energy, climate and resource management/capacity to negotiate
  • Economic development
  • Regional cooperation and regional organizations
  • Civil society development

Further information:

All enquires about the grant scheme should be sent to:  

Western Balkans Sections, e-mail: vest-balkan.seksjonen@mfa.no