Partner with RFLD

Work with the network that African women-led organisations already trust.

RFLD links 1,143 member organisations in more than 35 African countries to funders, advocacy spaces and each other. A partnership with us reaches that whole network through one accountable institution.

1,143+member organisations
35+countries in the network, with direct programmes in 15+
5countries of registration: Ghana, Senegal, Benin, Nigeria and The Gambia
6offices, with headquarters at the Africa Office in Accra

NGOsource 501(c)(3) equivalency
Observer status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
Co-Chair of the GIZ / BMZ SEA-T Advisory Council
Independent ISA audits every year
Delivering since 2013

Three ways to partner

Each route leads to a different person and a different kind of conversation. Picking the right one before you write gets you a faster answer.

Institutional funders

For foundations, bilateral donors, family offices and donor-advised funds considering a first or larger grant, either to RFLD or to the grassroots organisations we re-grant to through the WAFF Fund.

What you can rely on

An NGOsource 501(c)(3) equivalency determination, so US funders can grant directly.
Independent audits every year under the International Standards on Auditing.
A full due diligence pack on request.
Re-granting systems with safeguarding built in.
Direct access to more than 1,143 vetted member organisations.

Programme co-creation

For civil society organisations, international NGOs and regional networks that want to design, run or evaluate a joint programme drawing on RFLD’s reach or complementing our thematic work.

Where we work together

Sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Preventing and responding to gender-based violence.
Defending civic space and protecting women human rights defenders.
Climate justice and environmental rights.
Continental advocacy at the ACHPR, the African Union and the UN.

Research and advocacy

For universities, policy research centres and advocacy organisations working on African women’s organisations, rights implementation or continental governance that want rigorous research grounded in the field.

How we collaborate

Joint research publications.
Policy briefs for the AU, the ACHPR and UN bodies.
Data sharing under RFLD’s data protection framework.
Student fellowships and visiting scholar placements.
Co-hosting regional policy dialogues.

What we commit to, and ask of you

These five commitments hold for every funder, programme partner and research collaborator. We ask the same of the people we work with.

Agree on the purpose first.: Before any grant agreement or contract, we agree on the change we are seeking, the communities it serves and the risks we are prepared to take. Partnerships built on a shared purpose last longer than ones built around a budget.
Accountability runs both ways.: RFLD answers to funders for how resources are used. We also hold partners to the commitments and timelines they agree to, and to how they treat our member organisations.
African-led, at a pace members can keep.: We work on the timelines and in the languages of African women’s organisations. When a partner needs faster delivery, we talk it through and adjust together while protecting our members’ ability to take part.
French and English carry equal weight.: Our roots are in francophone West Africa. Strategy documents, convenings and research are produced in both languages as equal versions, and partnerships need to make room for that.
Open about what we decline.: We publish our policies on AI, data protection, diversity and inclusion, along with our grantmaking criteria. We turn down funding conditions that would require excluding LGBTQI+ content or deprioritising marginalised communities.

Who funds RFLD

These institutional funders support our programmes and operations. New funders are welcome, and each relationship is shaped around the funder’s focus and what its grant makes possible.

Sida
GIZ / BMZ
David & Lucile Packard Foundation
AmplifyChange
African Women’s Development Fund
CIVICUS
Hivos
Expertise France
CIDH Africa
DefendDefenders

US donors and donor-advised funds can also give through the RFLD American Friends Fund at Myriad USA.

Start with an email.

A short note about who you are and what you have in mind is enough. We reply within three to five business days.

Who to contact for each kind of partnership
Institutional funding	Gloria AGUEH	agueh.dossi@rflgd.org
Programme co-creation	John GBENAGNON	gbenagnon.john@rflgd.org
Research and advocacy	Programmes team	programs@rflgd.org
Anything else	Admin office	admin@rflgd.org