The OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) is an inter-governmental financial institution established by the member states of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
The Fund aims to facilitate cooperation among OPEC’s members and other developing countries as an expression of South-South solidarity. In particular, OFID aims to help the lower-income countries in their pursuit of social and economic advancement.
The Fund’s operational areas include public sector lending; private sector lending; trade finance; and grant making.
Grant Programs for Agriculture, Energy, Environment, Natural Resources
OFID makes grants to support technical assistance for small-scale social projects, to fund research and capacity building, and to provide emergency aid. Other grants support special accounts (HIV/AIDS, Palestine, and Energy Poverty).
1 — Technical Assistance. Grants for technical assistance support projects in agriculture, energy, water and sanitation, and other development sectors. Most grants range from about US$100 thousand to over US$1 million.
2 — Capacity Building and Applied Research. OFID supports applied research with an emphasis on capacity building and knowledge exchange (workshops, conferences, etc.) in themes that include agriculture, water resources, energy, climate change, land degradation, and others. Most grants range from about US$20 thousand to US$100 thousand.
3 — Energy Poverty. This program focuses on small-scale energy solutions, primarily to off-grid rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Grants for workshops and other knowledge exchange usually are less than US$50 thousand. Grants for technical assistance are larger, passing US$500 thousand in some cases.
APPLICATION: Grants are available to international, national, regional, and non-governmental organizations. Activities in all developing countries, except OPEC’s member countries, are eligible for OFID’s assistance. The highest priority is for initiatives that benefit the world’s least-developed countries.
Applicants complete a grant application form, and include their organization’s registration certificate. Applications can be submitted at any time; there is no calendar deadline.
Geographical Distribution of Grant Activities in Developing Countries
Worldwide, except in OPEC countries (see below).
Note: OPEC’s member countries are Algeria, Ecuador, Gabon, Indonesia, Iraq, Islamic Republic of Iran, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.
Over many years, OFID contributed support to other grant-making development organizations, including the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC).
OFID publishes an annual report in multiple languages.
Contact Us provides information for OFID’s office in Vienna (Austria).
February 2021