Norad Strategic Civil Society Partners (Plusspartner)

Enriched bilateral · Found: 2026-05-06 11:53

Application-based scheme for strategic partnerships with large civil society organisations. Currently closed to new applications from 27 March 2026 until 31 December 2026. Provides simplified grant applications and flexible financing for approved partners.

Source: https://www.norad.no/en/for-partners/partner/strategic-civil-society-partners/

Funding Details

Funder

Norad

Funding Goal

Strategic partnership scheme for large civil society organisations that meet minimum criteria for volume, systems, capacity and expertise. Approved Plusspartners receive simplified application processes, flexible financing, higher-level results reporting, and trust-based collaboration with Norad across all grant schemes that Norad manages.

Funding Amount

No fixed grant amount — Plusspartner approval is a status that gives preferential treatment in grant applications. Approved organisations compete for specific grant calls. One example: NOK 137 million/year for 5 years was awarded to one Plusspartner in the 2025 civil society call.

Deadline

2026-12-31 (moratorium ends; applications reopen after this date) (Fixed)

How to Apply

Formal application-based approval process. Applications submitted when the call is open (currently in moratorium until 31 December 2026). Approval as Plusspartner is formalised through a single administrative decision with right of appeal. Rejected applicants may reapply after 12 months. Once approved, organisations can apply for individual grant calls with a simplified application process. More information at the Norad website.

Target Region

Global — Norad funds projects in developing countries worldwide. Plusspartner organisations typically work in Africa, Asia, Latin America and fragile/conflict states.

Contact

Norad — Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation. Postal: Pb. 1303 Vika 0112 Oslo. Email: postmottak@norad.no. Phone: +47 22 30 40 50

Last Checked

2026-05-06 11:56

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• Organisation must be a large civil society organisation (Norwegian or international) with demonstrated strategic capacity and systems
• Organisation must demonstrate volume, systems, expertise, and implementation capacity through the Plusspartner assessment process

Project Scope

• Approval is thematically scoped — simplified application procedures only apply to topics assessed and approved in the Plusspartner evaluation

Constraints

• Currently in moratorium — no new applications accepted from 27 March 2026 until 31 December 2026
• Plusspartner approval does NOT itself grant funding; approved organisations must still apply for specific grant calls
• Rejected applicants must wait 12 months before reapplying; during moratorium, even eligible organisations cannot apply

Summary

The Norad Strategic Civil Society Partners scheme, known as Plusspartner, is a formal approval framework that designates large and strategically important civil society organisations as trusted partners of Norad. Approval as a Plusspartner does not itself guarantee grants but gives preferential treatment in how applications are processed and how grants are managed. The thematic scope of Plusspartner covers all Norad-managed grant schemes, including civil society strengthening, humanitarian aid, education, health, SRHR, gender equality, environment and climate, ocean and marine issues, governance, and human rights. Organisations can apply for any Norad call through the standard process, but Plusspartner status enables simplified application procedures in thematic areas that were assessed and approved during the Plusspartner evaluation. Key benefits of Plusspartner status include: simplified application forms (short descriptions rather than detailed logframes and budgets); flexible financing with up to 20% reallocation between thematic budget lines and 30% between countries without requiring approval; up to 20% of total grant as free programme funds across agreed target areas; higher-level results reporting focused on outcomes rather than activities; and a more trust-based strategic dialogue with Norad. Eligibility requires large civil society organisations — both Norwegian and international — with significant implementation volume, robust organisational systems, demonstrated professional expertise, and strong track records. Norad reserves the right to approve organisations that align with Norwegian development policy priorities. Currently, the scheme is in moratorium: no new applications are being accepted from 27 March 2026 until 31 December 2026. Organisations with pending applications will still receive decisions. Approved Plusspartners are unaffected by the moratorium. After the moratorium ends, the scheme is expected to reopen and new applications will be possible.

Historical Context

The Plusspartner model was adopted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and implemented by Norad. The scheme was published in May 2024. It was updated in March 2026 when Norad announced a moratorium on new applications from 27 March 2026 to 31 December 2026 due to reduced capacity to carry out assessments. The 2025 civil society call awarded NOK 1 billion+ to 10 organisations, several of which are likely Plusspartners. Norwegian Red Cross (NOK 209M), Norwegian Church Aid (NOK 423M/year for 5 years) and others are known to benefit from Plusspartner status.

Why it was added

discovered from funder #412: Norad — strategic civil society partner scheme

Sources

• https://www.norad.no/en/for-partners/partner/strategic-civil-society-partners/
• https://www.norad.no/en/for-partners/guides-and-tools/calls-for-proposals2/

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