About us

Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Program (SGP) – Arab Republic of Egypt The GEF is the world's largest international mechanism that provides grants to governments in developing countries through United Nations organizations to implement projects that enable countries to fulfill their obligations under international environmental agreements to which they are signatories, such as the Convention to Combat Desertification, the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Convention on Climate Change. The Small Grants Program (SGP) is the GEF's mechanism for funding civil society organizations, complementing the larger government projects funded by the Facility. The Small Grants Program (SGP) began with the establishment of the GEF in 1992. It is currently implemented in 128 countries and is managed globally as a single large project by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in accordance with the rules governing the work of civil society organizations in each country. The Small Grants Program was selected to be part of Egypt's portfolio of projects submitted to the GEF during its sixth cycle, which began in 2016, by the GEF National Committee, which includes representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, as well as relevant ministries such as Agriculture, Water Resources and Irrigation, Industry, and Electricity. This recognition is in recognition of the project's importance and success in building the capacity of civil society organizations and implementing serious and distinguished projects in the field of environmental work. Small Grants Program: The Global Environment Facility/SGP Small Grants Program (GEF/SGP) in Egypt has been funding environmental and development projects implemented by civil society organizations registered with the Ministry of Social Solidarity since 1992. The program has successfully implemented approximately 320 projects in most Egyptian governorates, with a total funding of more than seven million US dollars. The program aims to improve the living, economic, and environmental conditions of local communities, provide sustainable employment opportunities for young men and women, and provide technical support to build the capacity of civil society organizations to fulfill their mandated role in serving their local communities. This is achieved through numerous successful partnerships, most notably linking many of these projects to larger projects implemented by the Ministry of Environment with funding from the GEF in some Egyptian governorates. The program operates through a national strategy that aims to achieve integration with the National Environment Plan of the Arab Republic of Egypt. The program is managed in Egypt by a national director who organizes the work of a national steering committee comprising representatives of the relevant ministries (the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Social Solidarity, and the Ministry of International Cooperation), a representative of the United Nations organizations involved in the Global Environment Facility, and a select group of national experts specializing in the program's key funding areas (climate change, biodiversity conservation, land degradation prevention, pollution reduction in international waters, and the reduction of persistent organic pollutants). The committee develops the program's national strategy, reviews project proposals submitted by associations, approves those that meet the program's technical and financial criteria, and then follows up on the implementation of these projects. No project is funded until the association has obtained the administrative approval required by the Ministry of Social Solidarity to accept the grant.