Update to applicant organisations under the CSO Strategy 2025–2029

In June 2025, Sida's Director-General Jakob Granit took a decision that clarifies that party-affiliated organisations in Sweden (PAOs) will not be eligible for new agreements under the CSO strategy, that the organisations' own funds may not include public funds, and that Sida, despite the strategy's requirements for flexibility and recurring calls for proposals, can sign three-year agreements with the possibility of extension.

The first decision means that Sida is reinterpreting the strategy statement ‘Support under this strategy may not be given to political parties in ODA countries or to their associated organisations’. An ODA country is defined as a country that is eligible to receive official development assistance (ODA). The new interpretation means that party-affiliated organisations even in non-ODA countries are considered to fall under the category of ‘associated associations’ and thus will not be eligible for new agreements under the CSO strategy.

Since Sida recently decided on a new interpretation of the PAO strategy 2024–2027, this means that PAO applicants under the CSO strategy will in future be referred to apply for support under the PAO strategy and other relevant strategies. These applications will be prepared in accordance with the procedures, time and budget frameworks that are relevant for each strategy. Sida refers to the country, regional and thematic departments responsible at the agency for this.

The second decision means that Sida is revising its definition of own funds. The new definition excludes the possibility of including other public resources in the own funds that are to make up 15 per cent of the activities carried out by civil society organisations based in countries other than developing countries with support from the strategy. Sida's definition of own funds, which will be applied as soon as possible but no later than 1 January 2026, is that ‘own funds shall consist of cash collected, for example in the form of donations, sponsorship, membership fees, lottery proceeds and revenue from the sale of goods and services’. Sida may apply exceptions to this restriction when special reasons exist.

The third decision clarifies that Sida, despite the strategy's requirement for flexibility and recurring calls for proposals, can sign three-year contracts with the possibility of extension. The strategy prescribes contract lengths of between 1 and 5 years and regular calls for proposals. This balances the requirement for predictability and aid effectiveness with the endeavour for renewal and a greater diversity of CSO partners within the strategy. In addition, funding is secured to enable regular targeted calls for proposals in priority thematic and geographical areas during the strategy period.

The organisations that have applied for support in the strategy's first call for proposals were informed on 13 June 2025 of the contract length and indicative amounts. Indicative amounts are preliminary amounts to guide Sida's further processing of applications and facilitate planning for the applicant organisations. The amounts do not constitute a pre-approval of the application or a promise of funding. Funding is dependent on Sida's decision on support. The amounts may change if financial conditions, governance or Sida's judgement change.

Following the above-mentioned decision, the Director-General of Sida, Jakob Granit, sent letters on 13 June 2025 to applicant organisations in the first call for major grants.

All applicant organisations in the first call have also received individual emails from the responsible unit at Sida about contract length, indicative amounts and the definition of own resources. The mailing also informs that Sida will procure an audit of the organisations' external communication. The review covers the organisations' public communication on websites and social media during the period 1 December 2024–31 May 2025 and aims to ensure that aid is not given to actors who conduct or support anti-democratic activities, violent extremism, Islamism, anti-Semitism, terrorism, activities that undermine the rights of women and girls, and hate speech directed at individuals or groups.

Sida plans, in accordance with the CSO strategy, to conduct a new call for proposals for major support in 2027, corresponding to the one made in 2024. The plan is to sign new agreements from 2028.