Introduction
With Prosperous Future – Grant Program for Civil Society Cooperation in the Nordic-Baltic Region (Prosperous Future), the Nordic Council of Ministers (NCM), aims to enable and strengthen people-to-people cooperation in the Nordic-Baltic region by supporting civil society and democratic development towards sustainable and resilient societies.
Prosperous Future supports broad collaboration between civil society organisations from Denmark, Finland, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland, Norway, Sweden, and Aaland Islands with civil society in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, as well as with partners from civil society organisations with relation to Ukraine, as well as democratic, independent partners with relation to Belarus and Russia.
Project Eligibility Criteria
1. General Requirements
Vision 2030
All projects supported by the Nordic Council of Ministers will contribute to the achievement of Vision 2030, which is the Nordic countries’ joint vision for the Nordic Region to become the most sustainable and integrated region in the world by 2030. In Prosperous Future this vision encompasses the Nordic-Baltic region.
Please read Vision 2030 here: Action plan for Vision 2030.
To fulfil Vision 2030, the Nordic Council of Ministers has established a set of strategic priorities. This means that all projects will fulfil one or more of the following priorities:
- A green region – together, we will promote a green transition of our societies and work towards carbon neutrality and a sustainable circular and bio-based economy.
- A competitive region – together, we will promote green growth in the region based on knowledge, innovation, mobility, and digital integration. Project applications connected to innovation and digitalisation are encouraged.
- A socially sustainable region – together, we will promote an inclusive, equal, and interconnected region with shared values and strengthened cultural exchange and welfare.
Nordic Co-operation Programme for the Ministers of Co-operation 2025–2030
Projects shall contribute to the achievement of the political priorities, specifically, Goal 3, and Sub-goal 3.1, as defined by the Ministers of Nordic Cooperation (MR-SAM) for the period of 2025–2030.
- Goal 3: Nordic perspectives must be secured both regionally and internationally.
The MR-SAM contribute towards boosting knowledge of Nordic values, experiences and solutions by providing support for common Nordic initiatives, both within areas adjacent to the Nordic Region and globally.
- Sub-goal 3.1: Strong regional co-operation and knowledge exchange with central actors nationally, regionally and internationally.
Through project activities, knowledge exchange and strong collaborative relationships within the areas adjacent to the Nordic Region, as well as other select parts of the world to a certain extent, the goals of the vision are to be promoted beyond the confines of the Nordic Region.
Please read theNordic Co-operation Programme for the Ministers of Co-operation (MR-SAM) 2025–2030 here: https://pub.norden.org/politiknord2024-717/index.html.
Mainstreaming of Environment and Climate, Gender Equality, and Child’s Rights and Youth Perspectives
Projects funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers shall mainstream an environmental and climate perspective, a gender equality perspective, and a child’s rights and youth perspective.
Project applications should address how the three cross-cutting perspectives, environmental and climate, gender equality, and a child rights and youth perspective, are included in the project.
Please read the Guidance for the mainstreaming of cross-cutting perspectives in the Nordic Council of Ministers, here: Guidance for the mainstreaming of cross-cutting perspectives in the Nordic Council of Ministers.
Nordic Added Value
In the context of Prosperous Future, Nordic Added Value means that supported projects should contribute to strengthening cooperation across the Nordic-Baltic region and the adjacent areas, incl. through the establishment of broad partnerships and networks, and to learn from each other and gain greater knowledge on issues of mutual interest.
Funding Framework
- The call for applications is open from 28th of November 2025 until 30th of January 2026.
- A minimum amount of 45.000 EUR, and a maximum amount of 65.000 EUR per project can be applied for.
- The total budget to be granted through the fourth round is approximately 990.000 EUR.
- The project duration period is from 1st June 2026, at the earliest, until 30th of September 2027, at the latest.
A Letter of Commitment in English from all partner organisations is required. The letter must be uploaded as an attachment to the application. You can download the template here: https://www.ncmprosperousfuturegrants.org/images/templates/ANNEX%20Letter%20of%20Commitment.docx
Applications, incl. Letters of Commitment must be submitted in English using the web portal at www.ncmprosperousfuturegrants.org before the application deadline.
2. Eligible Projects
Projects supported through Prosperous Future should be in line with the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Vision 2030 and the political priorities.
Eligible projects may span a wide variety of topics, for example:
- Democratic development
- Human Rights
- Education
- Culture
- Children & youth
- Gender equality
- LGBTI
- Sustainable development
- Innovation
- Digitalisation
Projects may include a wide variety of activities, for example:
- Conferences, seminars or workshops,
- Capacity building
- Facilitation
- Exchange of ideas, knowledge and best practices between civil society organisations,
- Establishment of new networks
- Expansion of established networks
3. Eligible Costs and Audit
Eligible costs:
- Network activity expenses: Costs for organising and conducting activities such as conferences, seminars and workshops, incl. venue.
- Travel (Economy Class): Costs for transportation of participants and organisers.
- Accommodation (Economy Class): Costs for lodging for participants and organisers.
- Subsistence/Per Diem: Daily allowances for participants and organisers as per applicable laws.
- Expert fees: Compensation for consultants or experts involved in the project.
- Salaries for project leaders and accountants: Costs for project management and financial administration personnel, provided that these relate to the project.
- Communication/PR costs: Expenses for outreach and public relations activities related to the project.
- Self- and co-funding is an advantage but not a requirement.
- OH: If overhead is included, a maximum of 7% of the budget is allowed for NGO’s. Partners will have no or limited base funding.
- The budget and the final financial statements must be stated in Euros (EUR)
Please note that an independent audit of the project is required (except for organisations audited by the Nordic countries’ national auditor’s office).The cost for an independent audit must be included in the budget and accounted for in the financial statements of the final report.
Prosperous Future does not grant funding for:
- Commercial projects or activities intended to generate a financial profit
- Regular operations, such as operating expenses necessary to run the organisation (i.e, production costs, purchase of equipment, such as computers and furniture, or payment of salaries that are not directly linked to the project or activities that form part of the application)
4. Eligible Partners
As Prosperous Future supports broad partnerships and cooperation across the Nordic-Baltic region and the adjacent areas, special requirements apply for the partnership structure that differ from the Nordic Council of Ministers’ general rules on participation. The requirements for the partnership structure are outlined below.
Who can apply?
Funding can be applied for by non-profit civil society organisations in all areas of society, for example:
- Associations
- Foundations
- Charities
- Civic organisations
- Interest organisations
- Labour organisations,
- Faith communities,
- Social enterprises, or other forms of NGOs.
To be able to apply for funding, the organisation must be registered in one of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and Aaland Islands), the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), or Poland.
The applicant is considered to represent the country in which the organisation is registered.
- Group 1: Civil society organisations from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Faroe Islands, Greenland, Aaland Islands
- Group 2: Civil society organisations from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland
- Group 3: Independent partners from civil society with relation to Ukraine, as well as democratic, independent partners with relation to Belarus, or Russia
Eligible partner structure
- Minimum one partner from a Nordic country (group 1), and
- Lead partner (the applicant) must be from group 1 or group 2, and
- As a minimum, there must be partners from three different countries, and the partners must be from at least two of the three above-mentioned groups.
- Priority is given to high-quality projects with at least one partner from each of the three groups.
- Partner organisations are considered to represent the country in which the organisation is registered.
- Partners with relation to Ukraine must be civil society organisations or community institutions.
- Partners with relation to Belarus or Russia must be from democratic, independent civil society organisations and cannot be state institutions, public authorities or institutions, or related thereto.
- Partners from Group 3 will, besides the organisation’s place of registration, also be assessed with regard to the initial purpose of the organisation.
- Partners with relation to Russia must be based and operate outside Russia. Projects cannot take place in Russia.
- Partners from countries other than the above-mentioned, can be part of a project; however, their expenses cannot be covered by this grant.
The applicant organisation and the partner organisations must have a democratic structure and transparency as regards both their members and activities.
Please note that individuals cannot apply for funding.
5. Assessment Criteria
Implementation, including
- Coherence of the project in relation to the objectives of the programme, including a clear, actionable and well-defined change model (ToC)
- Project feasibility and results framework (A SMART goals framework - are results realistic? Coherence of activity plan – and between objective, activities, results, and timeline?)
- Risk analysis, identifying and assessing potential threats to achieving results.
- Innovative nature of the project (does the project include new approaches, and new and relevant topics/questions?)
Strategic focus, including
- Support for Vision 2030 and the strategic priorities: a green, competitive, socially sustainable region
- Support for Nordic Ministers for Cooperation’s Political Priorities 2025-2030, Goal 3 and Subgoal 3.1
- Mainstreaming of the cross-cutting perspectives: Environmental and climate, gender equality, and child rights and youth
- Results in Nordic Baltic added value and synergies (Does the project foster long-term cooperation, use specific competencies, or ensure transfer of knowledge between the participating organisations?)
Quality of partnerships, including
- Are partners from all three groups included?
- Capabilities of the lead partner and other partners
Financial sustainability, including
- Budget (Is the budget realistic, cost-efficient, transparent and is co-funding/self-funding included?)
Effective communication effort, including
- Does the project have an effective communication plan?
Thematic and geographical diversity will also be taken into account in the overall selection of the projects to receive a grant.
6. Assessment and Selection Process
- When the application deadline has passed, the Nordic Council of Ministers' Secretariat (NCMS/NCM Office in Lithuania) makes an initial assessment of the received applications, i.e, do they meet the eligibility criteria and assessment criteria. The project applications are rated and ranked, and a shortlist is sent to an Advisory Group consisting of advisors from the ministries of foreign affairs of the Nordic countries.
- Based on the initial assessment, the final rating and prioritisation of applications is decided by the Advisory Group.
- Based on the recommendation from the Advisory Group, the Head of Department of Gender Equality, International Cooperation, Natural Resources & Culture at NCMS, will take the final decision regarding the projects to receive a grant.
- The NCMS/NCM Office in Lithuania and the Advisory Group will, where relevant, make assessments of partners, including regarding the independence of partners with relation to Russia. Applicants may be asked to provide further information, including. CV of project partners and participants.
- The total amount to be granted in this round is maximum 990.000 EUR. However, it may be decided to grant a differing amount and to transfer the remaining amount to the next round.
- It is expected that results will be made available to applicants approximately 12 weeks after the application deadline. In the situation of a large number of applications, it may take longer. Applicants will be informed in due time.
- Decisions are not subject to any appeals.
- A list of granted projects will be made available on the dedicated website.
7. Reporting
As a new feature (currently under development), the final report is to be submitted in English using the web portal at www.ncmprosperousfuturegrants.org, no later than 60 days after the end date of the project.
The report consists of a content report and a financial report, including an independent project audit.
The content report is based on the headings and information provided in the application when you applied for funding.
In the financial report, it is required to follow up on the agreed project budget.
Originals of receipts and/or tickets should be kept by the applicant organisation for 5 years and should be provided in the situation where the project is taken out for a control.
The financial report should not include copies of receipts and/or tickets. However, you may be asked to provide a copy of the documentation in case of a control.
8. Audit
For projects funded through the Prosperous Future, there is a special requirement to budget with and conduct an independent project audit, even though the project budget is under the general threshold for projects funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers.
Please read the instructions here: Conclusion: How to prepare a final report on your Nordic project | Nordic cooperation.
9. Contact
Please note that the administration of Prosperous Future has been transferred to the Nordic Council of Ministers' Office in Lithuania. Therefore, enquiries regarding the application should be sent to the new official e-mail address for Prosperous Future:
For technical support regarding the web portal, please send an email to: