FID: Pilot Stage
Pilot-stage innovation support for legally constituted organisations addressing poverty or inequality.
Rolling applicationsShare this opportunity
Is this worth your time?
A serious fit when a post-prototype innovation needs a real-world pilot and a credible evidence plan. It is not a general operating grant or the right stage for a concept that has not yet been prototyped.
Ubunifu editorial assessment, not an organiser eligibility decision.A stronger fit when...
Organisations or eligible collectives, independently or in a consortium, with a poverty- or inequality-focused innovation to test in an eligible country. The Pilot stage expects an initial prototype and readiness for real conditions.
Pause or look elsewhere when...
An individual applying independently, a request routed to the paused Preparation tracks, or a proposal that cannot explain its intended development outcome. Confirm entity requirements in the current guide instead of assuming every informal group can contract.
What the support actually means
Pilot grants are capped at EUR 200,000. Funding should support a meaningful test, not be requested simply because the ceiling exists. Larger evaluation and scale stages have different evidence requirements.
Costs and commitments: No application fee.
Your costs, time and commitments
The main call is described as year-round. Preparation applications are separately paused pending a 2027 platform. The reviewed pages do not confirm a standard decision timetable or matching requirement for every pilot; consult the current guide.
How selection or access works
The fund assesses potential impact, cost-effectiveness and a credible path to scale and sustainability. A theory of change and an approach to collecting evidence are central, not optional publicity material.
Preparation and application steps
Get these ready first
Preparation advice; the organiser determines mandatory documents.
- Document what the prototype has already demonstrated and what the pilot still needs to test.
- Use the official activity-budget template and make cost assumptions explicit.
- Identify delivery partners, intended outcomes and how follow-up evidence will be collected responsibly.
Your next steps
- Use the official stage-selection guidance before writing the proposal.
- Download the current application and budget formats.
- Submit through the official platform only when the organisation can substantiate its claims.
Questions to confirm and guide sources
Questions to confirm before committing
- Current legal/entity eligibility and permitted pilot costs.
- Evaluation expectations, payment milestones, reporting and the current review timeline.
Sources behind this decision guide
Reviewed 2026-11-05. Guidance is not a guarantee that an application window remains open.
Full programme facts and official sources
Who this is for
Legally constituted organisations, including companies and social enterprises, with eligible low- or middle-income-country projects. Independent individuals are excluded.
- Stage
- Post-prototype
- Sector
- Poverty and inequality
- Support type
- Innovation pilot grant
- Costs and commitments
- No application fee.
- Deadline
- Rolling Pilot-stage applications; confirm the current track.
- As published
- Rolling Pilot-stage applications; confirm the current track.
- Format
- Eligible-country implementation, including qualifying Kenyan projects.
- Event dates
- Project-specific delivery timeline.
- Travel and visa support
- Not a travel fellowship.
- Documents and preparation
- Problem and solution, theory of change, cost-effectiveness, monitoring and scaling case.
- How to apply
- Read the current call and select Pilot on the official platform.
- Applicant route
- Apply as an eligible organisation directly to the Pilot track.
Official sources
FID official application guidance Source checked 2026-11-05
FID stages and approach Source checked 2026-11-05
FID official application platform Source checked 2026-11-05
Check before committing
Preparation grants are paused for redesign until 2027; Pilot is a separate stage. This third-party listing does not reopen any closed Ubunifu or Goblis institutional application.
Listing, saving and community ratings do not verify the organiser, guarantee eligibility or promise selection. Check the official terms before committing time or money.