Education Out Loud has conducted the last open call for applications covering the extension phase 2024-2026. For news about any future open calls for applications consult this website or sign up to our newsletter. 

Civil society organisations in Global Partnership for Education (GPE) partner countries working on improving transparency and effectiveness of national education policies are eligible to apply for Education Out Loud grants.
Through EOL, grants are available for national and international civil society organisations and networks in eligible countries worldwide, during the period between January 2020 and December 2026.

EOL has three Operational Components (OC), with grant sizes varying for each component. Read more about the three components below.

You can also read more about how Education Out Loud supports civil society advocacy and accountability on GPE’s website.
 

Component 1

Strengthen national civil society engagement in education planning, policy dialogue and monitoring

Grant size: Up to 137,000 US dollars per year

Eligible applicants:

Operational Component 1 (OC1) builds on the strengths of the previous Civil Society Education Fund (CSEF) which was active between 2009 and 2019. This component has acted as a successor to CSEF, providing continued support to national and regional education coalitions.

The OC1 call for proposals has been by invitation only. To be eligible for funding, applicants must be National Education Coalitions (NEC) who are members of regional coalitions of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE) and operate in GPE partner countries. The latest call for proposals in 2023 constituted an extension to the EOL phase 2020-2023. Thus, the majority of eligible applicants are grantees of the previous project cycles.

The funding will support National Education Coalitions to:

• Be more inclusive, particularly of marginalised groups
• Have better capacity to engage in policy dialogue
• Participate in and effectively influence policy processes

All calls for proposals for OC1 are now closed.
 

Component 2

Strengthen civil society roles in promoting the transparency and accountability of national education sector policy and implementation

Grant size: Up to 250,000 US dollars per year

Eligible applicants:

National civil society organisations working on local and national education policy and implementation can apply for Operational Component 2 (OC2). Organisations should be based and working in one or more partner countries eligible for GPE funding. National organisations could include trade unions, women’s groups, youth groups, minority groups, school management committees, etc. Applying organisations must be registered. Organisations without registration status must work with registered organisations to access funds.

National chapters of international NGOs, and national education coalitions (funded under OC1) are not eligible for OC2 funding.

OC2 will support and enable civil society organisations to:

• Improve the availability of data and evidence to affect policy change and monitoring of government commitments
• Increase their capabilities to mobilise citizens to demand and shape education policies that meet their needs
• Generate and exchange knowledge to strengthen CSOs and to use evidence effectively for advocacy

All calls for proposals for OC2 are now closed.
 

Component 3

Create a stronger global and transnational enabling environment for national civil society advocacy and transparency efforts

Grant size: Up to 320,000 US dollars per year

Eligible applicants:

One civil society organisation may apply for Operational Component 3 (OC3) funding on behalf of global, regional, or multi-country civil society alliances that include at least one national civil society actor in GPE partner countries. Grant activities must take place in more than one country, as part of a strategy to influence global and regional policy frameworks. The lead applicant must be a formally registered organisation. Consortia can include actors not traditionally working in education if they have education as a cross-sectoral priority or skills and tools which can be scalable in the education sector. Groups working with, on behalf of, or are directly from marginalized groups will be given priority.

OC3 will enable transnational civil society alliances to:

• Develop and work together around strategic policy changes related to SDG 4, and increase their strategic advocacy
• Change policies and practices at regional or global level through transnational advocacy
• Create or strengthen mechanisms to follow up on global, regional or national commitments related to the right to quality education

All calls for proposals for OC3 are now closed.
 

A full list of GPE partner countries can be found here: GPE partner countries.

A list of eligible partner countries for the three Operational Components can be found under ‘Guidelines for Applicants’ as soon as the calls are published. 
 

Timeframe

Education Out Loud’s total funding envelope covers 133 million US dollars. The funds are allocated by the Global Partnership for Education to the grant manager of Education Out Loud, Oxfam Denmark.

Education Out Loud opened the first call for proposals for OC1 in August 2019 and a second round closed in November 2021. The latest call for proposals for the OC1 extension phase covering 2024-2026 closed in July 2023.

One round of call for proposals for OC2 covering 2020-2014 has been conducted, it closed in June 2020. The call for proposals for the OC2 extension phase covering 2024-2026 closed July 2023.

The first call for proposals for OC3 closed in January 2020 and the second round closed in September 2020, to support the work of grantees through 2021-2024. The call for proposals for the OC3 extension phase covering 2024-2026 closed May 2023.
 

How and where to apply

Calls for proposals for the three Operational Components will be published on the Education Out Loud website. Guidelines for eligibility, applications, and registration for applicants will be posted in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese. Check the pages for the individual calls to access these files.

For more information on Education Out Loud, see or download this EOL Factsheet.