Applications open for North Africa Cultural Program – Cycle II

Through a combination of open application processes and invitation-based calls, both funds aim to strengthen independent arts and culture entities, including institutions, collectives, networks, and spaces- with an emphasis on regional partnerships, and a particular focus on engaging young audiences and extending outreach to underserved or remote areas beyond urban centers. Furthermore, NACP provides tailored capacity-building, training, and mentorship opportunities to the organizations and projects it supports within the program.

About National Cultural Opportunities Fund (NCOF)

The grant offers support through institutional and programmatic support to strengthen the structures of independent arts and culture entities, increase their engagement and outreach, as well as their training and skill-building initiatives for young artists and emerging professionals. The NCOF incorporates these elements into its approach, by actively tailoring capacity building and mentorship opportunities, collaborative meetings, organizational mapping tools (OMT), and innovative leadership elements. This holistic strategy not only enhances organizational development but also ensures that these vital components are cultivated and strengthened throughout the program’s implementation, contributing to the growth and success of the initiatives and individuals involved.

• Support Schemes:
  • Institutional and/or Programmatic Grant
    • For organizations that did not receive previous support from NACP operating within North Africa, NCOF offers the Institutional and/or Programmatic Grants scheme, divided into the following components:
      • Institutional Support
        • Initiatives for institutional strengthening aimed to develop internal capabilities, including but not limited to strategic planning, fundraising, donor relations, advocacy, external communications (website, branding), audience engagement, networking and partnerships, restructuring (reorganizing the legal, operational, board and team set-up), learning and evaluation, professional accompaniment such as consultancies and mentorship, internal capacity building, and equipment that are directly related to the institutional strengthening goals of the applicant.
      • Programmatic Support
        • Main projects and programs, including but not limited to residencies, conferences, seminars, research, documentation, publications, digital platforms, exhibition platforms, events and festivals, training, capacity building for artistic and technical skills (artists, curators, promotors, technicians, etc.), or re-granting.
  • Continuity Grant and Local Alliances & Collaborations Grant
    • Continuity Grant
      • This grant is dedicated to organizations that received NCOF grants in Cycle I.
      • This support initiative aims to extend funds to previous NCOF grantees, allowing them to build on the foundations established during the initial implementation phase, for which they were originally granted funding. This may encompass support for aspects related to institutional strengthening and/or programmatic development.
      • These organizations must demonstrate good financial management practices and subsequently submit new applications, outlining clear motives for their eligibility to receive additional funding.
    • Local Alliances and Collaborations Grant
      • This grant is dedicated to support collaborations or alliances between a minimum of 3 entities from the same country, of which a minimum of 2 are previous NCOF grantees.
      • In its second cycle, the NACP aims to address critical gaps that require collaborative efforts at the local level within program countries, through local partnerships and collaborations that build up on the networking efforts and country meetings offered by Cycle I. This support intends to enable these connections leading to the development of collaborative activities aimed at addressing shared needs and advocating for common goals on local levels.
      • Local alliances and collaborations can have multiple functions and purposes. Essentially, both can represent a collaborative cultural effort involving various parties working together towards common goals and objectives in their country-specific environment. In this context, this fund is both about building new local partnerships and bringing together local cultural stakeholders to work on common missions affecting local arts and culture context or to produce local collaborative initiatives, projects, and events. These organizations can apply to form new alliances, as well as to initiate joint projects, develop policies, conduct research, promote solidarity, share resources, and influence cultural policies, among other activities.

About Regional Competitive Creativity Fund (RCCF)

The RCCF is dedicated to stimulating, developing, and implementing unique cultural projects and activities inter-regionally. The program supports collaborative artistic projects among partnering organizations in North Africa and the rest of the Arab and African regions. It aims to build networks and enhance cooperation between local, national, and international artists and arts organizations. Projects within this support scheme encompass a diverse range of artistic disciplines including film (distribution), visual arts, performing arts, literature, and music, as well as multi- and interdisciplinary initiatives. Moreover, collaborations with civil society organizations are encouraged, as long as the main applicants are active in the arts and culture sector.

• Support Areas
  • Both the Seed Funding and Established Collaborations grants aim to strengthen long-term collaborative projects and regional exchanges. Both grant schemes accept proposals for either one or all of the following areas of programmatic collaborations, including but not limited to:
    • Residencies: Collaborative artist residencies providing artists with space and resources to create, fostering community engagement through exhibitions and open studios.
    • Training: Collaborative training programs equipping individuals with practical skills to enhance their effectiveness in the arts and culture sector.
    • Research-based exchange programs: Collaborative research initiatives facilitate the exchange of ideas and experiences within the arts and culture field, leading to a better understanding of cultural impact in various contexts.
    • Workshops with communities (especially young audiences) that aim to cultivate an appreciation for the arts.
    • Distribution, dissemination, and circulation initiatives whose goal is to connect artistic and cultural productions with audiences in the Arab region, including but not limited to:
      • Existing regional distribution platforms such as festivals, biennials, digital distribution platforms, etc.
      • New/alternative distribution initiatives, such as those making use of digital technologies as a way to spread creative work.
    • Cultural and artistic programming by networks/coalitions of spaces in the different North African countries (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt) and beyond in the rest of the MENA region and globally.
    • Documentation, archiving, and sharing of data, knowledge, and contemporary practices in arts and culture, including but not limited to:
      • Market and audience mapping and documentation;
      • Initiatives that make archives and documentation accessible to artists, practitioners, and scholars for the production of publications, artworks, performances, and scholarly research studies, programs, collaborations, and the creation of networks and collaborative projects.
    • Development of frameworks for arts and culture education, cultural policies, and critical discourse on the arts in the region, including but not limited to:
      • Networks/collectives/coalitions/civil society organizations exchanging and developing cultural policy frameworks;
      • Initiatives that develop regional frameworks for arts and culture education, be it a plan to integrate arts and culture education in school curricula or models for alternative art academies;
      • Advocacy work related to areas of cultural policies and art education.
• Support Schemes
  • Seed Funding Grant for pilot collaborations in North Africa and/or the rest of the Arab and/or African regions
    • The Seed Funding Grant offers support for pilot collaborations between organizations that have not previously worked together and focuses on project planning and design. It supports new partnerships with the required time, resources, and expertise to collaboratively craft their proposals. The program aims at financing and accompanying the collaboration’s first steps, including research and project development, to ensure that the partner organizations jointly establish the foundations to collaboratively manage a larger grant, and implement the project successfully.
  • Established Collaborations Grant
    • The Established Collaboration Grant is designed for pre-existing collaborations among arts and culture organizations, or those that can demonstrate a strong and successful track record of regional and international collaborations.
    • The Established Collaboration Grant is intended to strengthen ongoing collaborative projects by providing support for their expansion, sustainability, and greater impact. This fund recognizes and reinforces collaborations that have consistently delivered impactful results through their collective efforts.
    • It is possible to apply for new collaborative projects if applying organizations can prove a strong history of effective collaboration, both within the region and internationally. If not, they are encouraged to apply for a Seed Funding Grant to develop their collaborative capacities.

Funding Information

• National Cultural Opportunities Fund (NCOF)
  • Institutional and/or Programmatic Grant
    • The grants are offered to organizations based on the following tiers:
      • Up to 60,000 USD over three years for organizations with annual budgets equal to or below 50,000 USD
      • Up to 90,000 USD over three years for organizations with annual budgets between 51,000 and 80,000 USD
      • Up to 120,000 USD over three years for organizations with annual budgets equal and above 81,000 USD
    • Entities can apply for either institutional or programmatic support or can choose to apply for a combination of both. Entities in both support schemes will also be entitled to administrative support for running and staff costs (rent, salaries, administrative expenses).
  • Continuity Grant and Local Alliances & Collaborations Grant
    • Continuity Grant: The Continuity Grant offers up to 60,000 USD per institution, over a period of three years.
    • Local Alliances and Collaborations Grant: The Local Alliances and Collaborations Grant offers up to 85,000 USD per alliance, for a period of three years.
• Regional Competitive Creativity Fund (RCCF)
  • Seed Funding Grant for pilot collaborations in North Africa and/or the rest of the Arab and/or African regions
    • Please note: The support is rolled out over two periods. Projects selected during the first period will receive financial support for 6 months and become eligible to apply for additional support during the second period.
    • Period I (6 months):
      • Partnering organizations wishing to collaborate for the first time are required to submit a preliminary application with a concept note of the project they wish to develop.
      • In addition to receiving a grant of up to 10,000 USD, selected partners will be invited to participate in capacity-building and networking meetings. The first period of the Seed Funding Grant will offer technical support to the selected projects through training sessions, expert meetings, workshops, research, and more, all of which contribute to establishing their sustainable collaboration.
    • Period II (up to 2 years): At the end of period I, the selected projects will be invited to submit a full proposal. All proposals will be evaluated by an expert jury committee that will select up to 6 projects to benefit from an established collaborations grant of up to 100,000 USD, over two years.
  • Established Collaborations Grant
    • The Established Collaborations Grant offers grants of up to $150,000 USD over three years. The grant amount will be determined based on the project’s scope, scale, and requirements. Funded projects can allocate resources to the development and implementation of activities such as scaling up operations, fostering innovative initiatives, reaching new beneficiaries, and disseminating knowledge.
    • Support Periods: The funding period is for three years. Proposed projects should be implemented by June 2027.

Eligibility Criteria

• National Cultural Opportunities Fund (NCOF)
  • The National Cultural Opportunities Fund is open to applications from local independent arts and culture entities, including organizations, collectives, exhibition platforms, online platforms, spaces, networks, and social enterprises whose main field of work is arts and culture.
  • Limited to this particular program only: Applicants with existing open grants from another AFAC program are eligible to submit applications.
  • Recipients of the NCOF grant cannot apply for other AFAC programs before closing their open NACP grant.
• Regional Competitive Creativity Fund (RCCF)
  • The RCCF grants are open to applications from North African independent arts and culture entities in the five program countries, including organizations, collectives, exhibition platforms, online platforms, spaces (with programs having potential wide outreach and connectivity), networks, social enterprises whose main field of work is arts and culture.
  • One application is to be received from a partner organization operating within North Africa, with a condition of having a minimum of one other partner organization from North Africa and/or the rest of the Arab and/or African regions. Collaborations between organizations from different North African countries are strongly encouraged.
  • Limited to this particular program only: Applicants with existing open grants from other AFAC programs are eligible to submit applications.
  • Organizations that received NCOF & RCCF support in Cycle I of NACP are encouraged to submit a joint application for the Established Collaborations Grant resulting from the meeting opportunities offered in Cycle I.
  • Recipients of the RCCF grant cannot apply for other AFAC programs before closing their open NACP grant.

Ineligibility Criteria

• AFAC will not consider applications submitted by:
  • Individual applicants;
  • Organizations with less than two years of operation;
  • Organizations affiliated to members of the Board of Trustees of AFAC, their business partners or family members;
  • Organizations affiliated to AFAC staff members, their business partners or family members;
  • Entities with executive staff being members of the NACP jurors’ committees for 2023.

For more information, visit AFAC.