ReAction – Rapid Response Grants

The Bulgarian Fund for Women is launching the ReAction Rapid Response Grants program, carrying a total budget of €300,000. This open-ended call allows Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Bulgaria to apply at any time until March 31, 2028, or until funds are fully allocated, with the submission process having started on September 11, 2025. The program is part of the CERV-2024-CITIZENS-VALUES initiative, aimed at supporting organizations that promote and protect Union values.

Eligible applicants include public benefit associations or foundations registered in Bulgaria that are independent of political, state, religious, or commercial interests. Priority will be given to smaller, grassroots, rural, and underfunded CSOs, particularly those representing women, LGBTIQ+ individuals, minorities, refugees, or involved in climate justice.

The grants provide funding of up to €10,000 per organization for projects lasting a maximum of 12 months. The focus is on addressing immediate challenges, including crisis situations, urgent advocacy or mobilization needs, holistic security for activists, organizational transitions during emergencies, and emergency support for marginalized communities.

Applications must be submitted online via the BFW’s Salesforce platform, and they will be evaluated based on relevance to the program's objectives, the urgency of the request, feasibility of the proposed response, and contribution to resilience, equality, and EU values, as well as the involvement of affected groups.

The ReAction program is designed to enable quick and effective responses to urgent challenges, advocating for the resilience and effectiveness of civil society organizations working on critical issues in Bulgaria. For inquiries, applicants can contact the helpdesk at ask@bgfundforwomen.org.

The Bulgarian Fund for Women (BFW) is launching ReAction Rapid Response Grants with a total budget of 300,000 EUR. This is an open-ended call, meaning Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Bulgaria can apply at any time until March 31, 2028, at 18:00 Brussels time, or until the funds are fully allocated. The opening date for submission was September 11, 2025. The deadline model is single-stage.

The call falls under the topic CERV-2024-CITIZENS-VALUES Call for proposals for civil society organisations active on protecting and promoting Union values: call to intermediaries (giving financial support to third parties). The grant agreement number is 101184271.

Eligible applicants are public benefit associations or foundations registered in Bulgaria, independent of political, state, religious, or commercial interests. Priority will be given to small, grassroots, rural, and underfunded CSOs, including those representing women, LGBTIQ+ people, minorities, refugees, or working on climate justice.

The funding provides rapid response grants of up to 10,000 EUR for a maximum duration of 12 months. These grants are intended to address:

Crisis situations and attacks on organizations.
Urgent advocacy or mobilization opportunities.
Holistic security for activists.
Organizational transition in emergencies.
Emergency support for marginalized communities.

The application process requires online submission via BFW’s Salesforce platform. Information about the application process is available online.

Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

Relevance to programme objectives.
Urgency and need for immediate action.
Realism and feasibility of proposed response.
Contribution to resilience, equality, and EU values.
Leadership and participation of affected groups.

For any questions, a helpdesk is available at ask@bgfundforwomen.org.

In summary, the ReAction Rapid Response Grants initiative by the Bulgarian Fund for Women offers financial support to eligible Bulgarian CSOs facing urgent situations or seeking to advance equality and EU values. The grants, up to 10,000 EUR, are designed to enable quick and effective responses to crises, advocacy opportunities, security concerns, organizational transitions, and the needs of marginalized communities. The application process is online, and proposals will be assessed based on their relevance, urgency, feasibility, contribution to EU values, and the involvement of affected groups. This initiative aims to bolster the resilience and impact of civil society organizations working on critical issues in Bulgaria.

Eligible Applicant Types: Public benefit associations or foundations registered in Bulgaria, independent of political, state, religious, or commercial interests are eligible. Priority is given to small, grassroots, rural and underfunded CSOs, including those representing women, LGBTIQ+ people, minorities, refugees, or working on climate justice.

Funding Type: Grant. Specifically, rapid response grants.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity does not specify whether a single applicant or a consortium is required. However, given the focus on small, grassroots organizations, it is likely that single applicants are common.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): Bulgaria. The call is specifically for civil society organisations (CSOs) in Bulgaria.

Target Sector: The program targets civil society organizations working on issues related to women, LGBTIQ+ people, minorities, refugees, climate justice, equality, and EU values. This encompasses sectors such as human rights, social justice, and environmental protection.

Mentioned Countries: Bulgaria.

Project Stage: The projects are expected to be in a stage where they require rapid response to address crisis situations, urgent advocacy, security needs, organizational transitions, or emergency support. This suggests a need for immediate action and implementation.

Funding Amount: Up to €10,000 per grant. The total funding available is €300,000.

Application Type: Open call. Civil society organisations in Bulgaria may apply at any time until March 2028 or until funds are fully allocated.

Nature of Support: Money. Beneficiaries will receive grants of up to €10,000.

Application Stages: 1. Applications are submitted online via BFW’s Salesforce platform.

Success Rates: This information is not provided in the text.

Co-funding Requirement: This information is not provided in the text.

Summary:

The Bulgarian Fund for Women (BFW) is launching ReAction – Rapid Response Grants, with a total budget of €300,000. This is an open call for civil society organisations (CSOs) in Bulgaria. The call is open until March 2028 or until the funds are fully allocated. The goal is to provide rapid response grants of up to €10,000 to address crisis situations, urgent advocacy, holistic security for activists, organizational transition in emergencies, and emergency support for marginalized communities. Eligible applicants are public benefit associations or foundations registered in Bulgaria that are independent of political, state, religious, or commercial interests. Priority is given to small, grassroots, rural, and underfunded CSOs, including those representing women, LGBTIQ+ people, minorities, refugees, or working on climate justice. Applications are submitted online via BFW’s Salesforce platform and will be assessed on relevance to programme objectives, urgency and need for immediate action, realism and feasibility of proposed response, contribution to resilience, equality, and EU values, and leadership and participation of affected groups. The opening date was September 11, 2025, and the deadline is March 31, 2028. The topic of the grant is CERV-2024-CITIZENS-VALUES - Call for proposals for civil society organisations active on protecting and promoting Union values: call to intermediaries (giving financial support to third parties).