Democracy Commission Small Grants Program 2025

Background
The FY 2025 Democracy Commission Small Grants Program, administered by the U.S. Embassy in North Macedonia under the Department of State, aims to support the development of democratic institutions. The program focuses on five priority areas:

1. Strengthening democratic values such as security, anti-corruption, good governance, and election transparency.
2. Bolstering civil society and fostering volunteerism or activism in local communities.
3. Addressing social division and encouraging social cohesion or combating intolerance.
4. Focusing on cyber security, media literacy, and combating malign foreign influence with sustainable results.
5. Promoting environmental and health-focused initiatives.

Applicants are encouraged to define their target audiences clearly.

Grant Details
Funding will be available for projects that address the following priority areas:

1. Strengthen democratic values, including security, anti-corruption, good governance, and transparency in elections.
2. Bolster civil society and foster volunteerism or activism in local communities.
3. Address social division and encourage social cohesion or combat intolerance.
4. Cyber security, media literacy, and/or combating foreign malign influence focused on sustainable results.
5. Environmental and health-focused initiatives.

The submission of a concise one-page statement of interest (SOI) is required to communicate project ideas and objectives. Upon merit review of eligible SOIs, selected applicants will be invited to submit full proposals.

Eligibility Requirements
Eligible applicants include not-for-profit organizations (including think tanks and civil society/non-governmental organizations) from North Macedonia only, as well as independent media from North Macedonia. All organizations must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) issued via SAM.gov and a valid registration in SAM.gov.

Period of Performance
Projects should be completed within a performance period of 3 to 12 months. The anticipated project start date is between June and September 2025.

Grant Value
The total available funding for this program is $345,000. Individual grant awards may range from a minimum of $1,000 to a maximum of $50,000 with an anticipated number of awards being around 12.

Place of Performance
All activities funded under this program must be implemented in North Macedonia.