Deadline: 16-May-23

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has launched the fourteenth call for applications to the International Fund for Cultural Diversity (IFCD).

Through an open and competitive process, projects will be selected based on their ability to generate concrete and lasting results towards the development of the creative sectors in developing countries that are Parties to the 2005 Convention.

Sectors of Intervention

• Projects may have a transversal (cultural policies, strategies, copyright, etc.) or sectoral focus.There are seven eligible sectors:
  • Audio-visual/cinema
  • Design
  • Media arts
  • Music
  • Performing arts
  • Publishing
  • Visual arts

Funding Information

• US$ 100,000 is the maximum amount that can be requested
• Duration: Minimum 12 months – maximum 24 months

Eligible Projects

• Projects submitted by public authorities and institutions that:
  • Develop tools that contribute to decision-making and planning (mappings, sustainable statistical collection and processing systems, sectoral strategies, etc.)
  • Create/strengthen public cultural agencies and institutions essential to the development of cultural industries, including developing the expertise of civil servants
  • Establish/strengthen financing and market development mechanisms for cultural goods and services
  • Implement international cooperation agreements and treaties aimed at a more balanced exchange of cultural goods and services
  • Create/strengthen the pedagogical and organizational capacities of educational, vocational and technical training institutes in the cultural and creative sectors
  • Promote the development of cultural industries in the digital environment, in accordance with the Open Road Map for the Implementation of Guidelines to Promote the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in the Digital Environment
  • Strengthen participation in cultural life, in particular measures to promote engagement of vulnerable groups (including persons belonging to minorities and indigenous peoples) in the creation, production, distribution and access to diverse cultural expressions
  • Create and implement measures or policies to promote gender equality in the cultural and creative sectors.

Eligibility Criteria

• Public authorities and institutions from eligible countries (developing countries that are Parties to the 2005 Convention)
• Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from eligible countries (developing countries that are Parties to the 2005 Convention) that meet the definition of civil society
• International non-governmental organizations (INGOs) registered in countries Parties to the 2005 Convention, that meet the definition of civil society in the Operational Guidelines and that present projects that have an impact in developing countries at the sub-regional, regional or inter-regional level
• Projects submitted by non-governmental organizations (NGO) that:
  • Strengthen capacities of civil society focusing on policy participation, communication and/or networking
  • Contribute to inform policy making, including monitoring and evaluation activities to determine the impact of cultural policies and measures to promote cultural industries
  • Strengthen the pedagogical and organizational capacities of educational, vocational and technical training institutes in the cultural and creative sectors
  • Create new financing opportunities and promote access to national and international markets for cultural goods and services
  • Promote the development of cultural industries in the digital environment, in accordance with the Open Road Map for the Implementation of Guidelines to Promote the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in the Digital Environment
  • Strengthen participation in cultural life, including measures to promote engagement of vulnerable groups (including persons belonging to minorities and indigenous peoples) in the creation, production, distribution and access to diverse cultural expressions
  • Create and implement measures to promote gender equality in the cultural and creative sectors
• The IFCD invests in projects that lead to Structural and sustainable change through:
  • The introduction and/or elaboration of policies and strategies that have a direct effect on the creation, production, distribution of and access to a diversity of cultural expressions, including cultural goods, services and activities
  • The reinforcement of human and institutional capacities of public sector and civil society organizations deemed necessary to support viable local and regional cultural industries and markets in developing Countries.

For more information, visit UNESCO.