Grants - Frequently Asked Questions

Africa No Filter is a donor collaborative funded by Ford Foundation, Bloomberg, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Luminate, Open Society Foundation, Comic Relief, British Council and the Hilton Foundation. We support the development of nuanced stories that shift existing, stereotypical narratives about Africa through research, grant making and advocacy.

Africa No Filter is committed to supporting storytellers within the Media, Arts & Culture, Content Creation and Advocacy sectors who are presenting contemporary, nuanced and empowering narratives about Africa and/or challenging stereotypical narratives about Africa through their work. We do not award grants to projects just because they are good, popular or creative. Successful applicants must be able to demonstrate how their work potentially shifts perceptions of Africa and/or a country on the continent.

Narratives evolve from stories which when told consistently overtime, ladder up to narratives. ANF theory of change suggests that to shift narratives we need to crowd in new stories that offer alternative perspectives. So, does your story offer an alternative, not often seen perspective of Africa? If it does, then it will contribute to shifting narratives. Some examples of Africa No Filter grantees can be found here

Africa No Filter prioritizes the funding of storytellers and stories that present an alternative perspective of Africa and showing Africans as changemakers. Currently, we are not looking to fund stories that perpetuate stereotypical narratives about the continent.

We do not. Only applications from our community, the African Narrative Collective, will be accepted.

Visit our Who/What We Fund for information on our new grantmaking process. We will only consider submissions from our community, the African Narrative Collective. 

If you need more clarity, please email info@africanofilter.org for assistance.

Please refer to the specific grant call out you are applying for as amounts vary depending on the grant, but as a rule of thumb, the maximum amount that can be applied for is $25,000 for project support grants, capacity building grants and operational support grants, $15,000 for convening grants and $2,500 for Kekere grants.

For all other grants, please visit the relevant page.

Our maximum grant limit is $25k

The eligibility criteria for each grant are listed on Who/What We Fund webpage. The common thread for all our applications is that we want to support narrative-changemakers/storytellers on the continent.

No, you do not have to be in Africa, but your project must be demonstrating a focus on Africa and the Diaspora and you should be part of our community. Interested persons from the diaspora are encouraged to apply.

Not at all! We continue to strive to ensure inclusivity and diversity with our grants process and are now receiving applications in French and Arabic for each application. Francophone, Lusophone and Arabic speaking Africans are encouraged to apply!

Yes of course! Individuals are encouraged to apply but you must have a track record and experience to show for the project you are applying for.

Yes, it can! You only need to show evidence of how it will be implemented.

No, we do not. This includes the purchase of computers, cameras, microphones and any other equipment needed to implement projects.

No, we do not.

The grant duration is typically up to 1 year. Please check the terms of the specific grant you are applying for.

Our Project-Support Grants support the delivery of creative projects on the continent by storytellers and media platforms that are using art, innovation, tech and creativity to challenge stereotypical narratives about Africa. Grants must be for a specific project, with a clear start and end date and project milestones. Operational Support grants cover operational costs to keep the organisation going whilst it conducts its work. The grant supports organisations seeking to build a stronger, more sustainable infrastructure.

Yes, you can.

The organization that is serving as the fiscal sponsor, and is eligible to apply for funding, should be the organization submitting the application.

Rarely. When we do fund them, they are generally initiated by Africa No Filter. We focus our support on projects for which applicants have already began working on with evidence of initial impact.

Yes, an organization needs to be registered to apply for a grant application. All organisations are taken through a due diligence process which requires providing documentation to verify your organisation and organisational activities. Successful candidates will be informed of this prior to receiving their grant.

After submitting your application, you’ll get an automated email confirming their submission has been received. Please ensure you check your junk/spam inbox to avoid missing this email. Your application will then be reviewed against our scoring criteria by the Africa No Filter Team. You can also check the status of your application on your application portal.

It depends on the grant application. Callouts for specific projects will indicate the date in which applicants will be notified. It typically takes 6-8 weeks AFTER the submission of applications for us to get back applicants.

Yes, we do. All applicants shall receive an email on status of their applications. However, due to the volume of applications, we are unable to give detailed feedback to unsuccessful applicants.

Yes, however you will not be awarded more than one grant as we want to support as many storytellers on the continent as possible!

Yes.

There is no waiting period for organisations or individuals that have been declined for a grant.

Please reach out to us on grants@africanofilter.org for any further questions.

Any tips for me as an applicant?

• Be concise!
• Be different
• Be cost effective
• Be jargon free
• Don’t re-use ANF language 😊
• Demonstrate impact!