Deadline: 17th May 2024
Applications are now open for the Climate Gender Equity Fund to increase access to funding for gender-sensitive, women-led climate solutions that benefit women, with preference given to those that address the inextricable link between climate, gender and health.

The Climate Gender Equity Fund (CGEF) is a public-private partnership led by USAID with founding members Amazon, Reckitt, The UPS Foundation and Visa Foundation to increase access to climate finance for gender-sensitive, women-led and women-benefiting organisations addressing climate change.

There is a growing body of evidence demonstrating the critical role that women play in mitigating and adapting to climate change - women are innovators, leaders, entrepreneurs, employees and clients in climate-related areas. Women and girls, especially from under-represented and marginalised groups, are also disproportionately affected by natural and climate disasters, as they represent the majority of the world's poor and are proportionally more dependent on threatened natural resources.

In addition, the health and well-being of women and girls are inextricably linked to gender equality and are affected by climate change. For example, natural disasters such as droughts, floods and storms tend to affect women more severely, often resulting in a greater number of victims among women, especially in regions where women's socio-economic status is lower. In addition, women and girls suffer disproportionate health consequences following such climate-related disasters, for example during droughts, when there is reduced water availability and increased food insecurity. Research has also shown that in times of disasters, women provide leadership and are the first on the ground to respond in their roles as providers and carers, and play a key role as innovators in creative solutions that have a positive impact on their families and communities.

Subsidy categories

• Category 1: A gender-smart and/or women-led emerging fund manager (including investment vehicles) that invests in climate-smart solutions; or
  • The grants seek to support funds and investment vehicles that are aligned with the 2X Criteria and that promote climate solutions and increase gender equality through the development, expansion and investment in climate mitigation and adaptation businesses and solutions. These investments are not only expected to generate environmental and gender-related impacts, but preference will also be given to those that also produce positive health outcomes as a direct objective or strong co-benefit of the intervention.
• Category 2: A network organisation or intermediary that supports women entrepreneurs at the forefront of climate action.
  • Grants seek to support intermediaries that facilitate financing or provide other forms of support to women entrepreneurs working on the front lines of climate action (such as networks of women entrepreneurs, incubators, accelerators, business service providers and land-building associations). Preference will be given to initiatives that are expected to contribute to improved health outcomes, either as a direct objective or through significant co-benefits derived from advancing climate resilience and sustainability in communities.

Financing information

• The CGEF plans to award several grants under this RFP in each category with an aggregate value of up to 5 million dollars (USD) for this round of funding.
• The CGEF targets grant tickets ranging from 500,000 dollars to 1,000,000 dollars (USD), depending on the level of impact proposed, the applicants' track record in managing a similar volume of funding for climate and gender activities, and the catalytic nature of the grant funding provided by CGEF6.
• The final grant amounts will be determined, after due diligence, by 2X Global and an independent grant selection committee based on the strength of the application  and the candidate's assessed ability and track record, and may be lower or higher than the target range.
• Duration
  • For this funding round, the CGEF expects to start distributing grant funding in August 2024. Grant activities are expected to last 18-24 months.

Eligible Financing

• Organisations can propose to use grants for a variety of purposes, including building their own capacity to provide gender-smart and transformative climate finance, sustaining their organisation through vital working capital, making historic deals and/or portfolio (revolving) investments, providing pre- or post-investment technical assistance (TA) to pipeline or portfolio companies and/or, in the case of network organisations, providing grants to women entrepreneurs promoting climate-smart products or services.
• Preference will be given to proposals that include using funds to invest in or extend grant funding to women-led businesses that lead climate solutions that also lead to positive health outcomes.
• Preference will also be given to proposals that emphasise how the use of the funds will be catalytic, especially to mobilise additional private capital for women-led climate solutions.

Geographical scope

• Category 1 and 2 applicants must apply to use grant funding for work and/or investments made in countries where USAID works. Preference will be given to applicants who are deeply rooted in their operating environment and have an understanding of their context.

Election criteria

• To be eligible to receive grants from the CGEF, Category 1 and 2 organisations must meet the following criteria:
  • Be registered, legally constituted, recognised and in good standing with the competent authorities and comply with all applicable civil and tax regulations.
  • Demonstrate adequate administrative and financial systems to fulfil accountability and reporting requirements.
  • Demonstrate evidence of financial stability, including adequate financial resources (appropriate to the stage of your business) or the ability to obtain them, as well as the ability to fulfil the award conditions to guarantee the sustainability of the results. This should take into account all the applicant's existing and future commitments.
  • Have a demonstrated record of satisfactory performance.
  • Have a satisfactory record of integrity and business ethics and be qualified and eligible to receive a grant in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
  • Have a pre-existing work history in the subsidy categories and/or geographic regions of operation of this RFP.
  • Have the ability/experience in monitoring and reporting, including in relation to the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) determined by the CGEF.

Ineligibility criteria

• The following organisations are not eligible to apply for funding:
  • Partner government implementing entities, including an office, organisation or body at any level of a public administration system (ministry, department, agency, service, district or municipality), including parastatal and quasi-governmental entities, and universities.
  • Public international organisations.
  • Political parties, groups or institutions or their subsidiaries and affiliates.
  • Organisations that defend or promote anti-democratic policies or illegal activities.
  • Religious organisations whose objectives are discriminatory and religious, and whose main purpose of the subsidy is of a religious nature.
  • Any organisation included in any supplementary information regarding prohibited individuals or entities that may be provided by USAID.
  • Any organisation whose name appears in the Awards Management System, www.SAM. gov, or visual compliance screening with active exclusion.
  • An organisation that refuses to sign all the certifications and guarantees required by the CGEF.
  • Any organisation with a questionable reputation in relation to gender equality, e.g. accusations of harassment, unequal pay, etc.

For more information, visit 2X Global .