Team VipiCash at the Innovation Norway and UN Women hackathon in 2017.Photo: Innovation Norway
The Humanitarian Innovation Programme grants funding and support to develop, test and scale new solutions that can contribute to better and more efficient humanitarian action. The program facilitates collaboration with private sector in innovation processes. The 2020 call for proposals is now open.
We support innovation projects led by humanitarian organisations where the expertise and technical know-how from the private sector is applied to find solutions to humanitarian challenges. The programme supports both early stage innovation (Innovation Lab) and scaling and diffusion of solutions that have proven to be successful at the pilot stage (Scaling and Diffusion Programme). Read more about the projects that have received funding here.
The Humanitarian Innovation Programme is a grant and support mechanism, fully financed by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and administered by Innovation Norway.
Who can apply?
- UN agencies with a humanitarian mandate
- Norwegian humanitarian organisations with an international mandate
The grant scheme aims to mobilise humanitarian-private partnerships. The humanitarian organisation/agency is the applicant and receiver of the grant.
What are we looking for?
The Humanitarian Innovation Programme is looking for bold ideas that seek to improve resilience against natural disasters or improve humanitarian response in crises and conflict, specifically projects addressing issues related to
- Protection: Humanitarian organisations’ efforts that contribute to protecting people from violence, abuse and violation of international law due to humanitarian crises. Applications focusing on protection from sexual and gender-based violence are encouraged.
- Green humanitarian response: Humanitarian organisations’ efforts that contribute to more sustainable and more environmentally friendly solutions within humanitarian aid.
- Cash transfer programming: Humanitarian organisations’ efforts to provide direct distribution of money rather than traditional relief items to people affected by crises.
- Health and sanitation: Humanitarian organisations’ efforts to ensure lifesaving basic health services, including prevention/control of pandemics, efforts within women’s, children’s and young people’s health, sexual and reproductive health, mental health and psycho-social support, and the provision of facilities and services for the maintenance of hygienic conditions and the safe disposal of human waste.