An Equitable Funding Approach for Displacement Settings

Thhe EU-UNOPS Lives in Dignity Grant Facility addressed the systemic challenge of traditional funding models that create unequal power dynamics between partners, where sub-granting or consortium approaches typically position international organizations as "lead" partners, limiting local organizations' access to direct funding, decision-making, and capacity development while missing opportunities to leverage diverse expertise and contextual knowledge from multiple local actors. The Lives in Dignity (LiD) Grant Facility tested a revolutionary approach that disrupted traditional hierarchies in humanitarian-development funding by providing each partner with direct funding agreements with UNOPS while requiring collaborative implementation through a unique partnership agreement against a common results framework, facilitating more equal participation throughout the project cycle design, delivery, and overall ownership. The model required at least two partners per project, with at least one being a local actor, and specifically incentivized diverse partnerships with public entities like local authorities and academia, as well as private sector organizations, promoting comprehensive whole-of-society approaches that combined complementary expertise to address displacement challenges. Key achievements included creating specialized partnership agreements that all partners signed alongside their direct funding contracts, enabling local partners to cover core costs and invest in institutional strengthening, facilitating knowledge sharing and leveraging expertise from various actors toward common goals, positioning local actors as equal decision-makers rather than implementation agents, and enhancing project credibility and stakeholder engagement through meaningful local leadership. The initiative demonstrated that more equitable funding models can advance localization principles while leading to more effective and sustainable projects, with local partners reporting exceptionally high appreciation for an approach that enhanced their credibility with stakeholders, improved understanding of funding processes, and built organizational capacity.