We support innovation projects led by humanitarian organisations where the expertise of the private sector and the involvement of affected people is used to solve humanitarian challenges.

The Humanitarian Innovation Programme supports innovation partnerships between the humanitarian and private sector, both at the early stage and after successful piloting. Applicants can either apply for funding to conduct an innovation friendly or innovative procurement to co-develop a solution with a private sector partner (innovation lab grant), or to scale an existing innovation developed with a private sector partner (scaling grant). Read more about innovation friendly procurement here. Please see the requirements for both grant schemes at the bottom of the page.

Objectives and target group for the programme

HIP Norway is a grant and support mechanism, financed by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and administered by Innovation Norway.

HIP Norway aims to strengthen efforts to:

• Save lives, alleviate distress and safeguard human dignity in humanitarian crises.
• Provide people in need with the necessary protection and assistance in line with humanitarian principles.

To contribute to achieving the overall goal, HIP Norway will support projects that develop and scale innovative solutions that will contribute to smarter, better, more sustainable, and cost-effective emergency aid.

The target group(s) for the projects supported through the programme are people affected by humanitarian crises.

Overall, HIP Norway is evaluated based on the number of innovation partnerships established, the number of new solutions developed, successful pilots in humanitarian contexts, new innovative solutions being used that have a direct impact on end users, the number of solutions that have contributed to smarter, better, more sustainable and/or more cost-efficient response, and the number of innovations that have been scaled up in a humanitarian context.

Who can apply?

1. UN agencies with a humanitarian mandate
2. Norwegian humanitarian organisations with an international mandate (The organisation must be registered at the Brønnøysund Register and have both an office in Norway and a Norwegian board)
3. Consortiums of multiple humanitarian organisations. In such collaborations, the main applicant has to come from category 1 or 2, and the other organisations can either come from these categories, or not, e.g., national NGOs etc.
4. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement

We encourage humanitarian organisations to collaborate on joint applications.

HIP Norway mobilises and supports humanitarian-private partnerships. The humanitarian organisation/agency is the applicant and receiver of the grant.

Focus areas

HIP Norway is looking for bold ideas that seek to improve resilience against natural disasters or improve humanitarian response in conflicts and disasters. The programme supports projects within one or more of the following focus areas:

• Green humanitarian response: Efforts that contribute to more sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions within the humanitarian sector.
• Health and sanitation: Efforts to ensure lifesaving health services and the provision of facilities and services for the maintenance of hygienic conditions and the safe disposal of human waste.
• Protection: Efforts that contribute to protecting people from violence, abuse and violation of international law due to humanitarian crises. Applications focusing on protection from sexual and gender-based violence are encouraged.
• Innovative finance: Innovative financing refers to a number of non-traditional mechanisms for raising additional funds for humanitarian and development assistance. This may be through innovations such as micro-contributions, impact bonds, public-private partnerships and market-based approaches/ business models.
• Food security: Responses during and after a humanitarian crisis addressing issues of food availability, access, utilization, and stability.

Call for proposals 2024

NOK 100 million is allocated to new Innovation Lab and scaling projects in 2024.

• Applications to the Innovation lab scheme may range from NOK 4-6 million (or up to NOK 8 million for multiagency projects with three or more partnering organisations)
• Applications to the Scaling grant scheme may range from NOK 2-10 million

The total funding allocated for each grant scheme is subject to applications received.

Call timeline and process

The application deadline is 28. June 2024, 12PM CEST (Noon).

Shortlisted projects will be invited to a 20-minute digital pitch/interview in front of an Innovation Norway panel on one of the following dates: 17-19 September 2024. All applicants are encouraged to mark these dates in their calendars. The pitch/interview will consist of 10 minutes to answer 3-5 questions about the project received in advance, and 10 minutes for follow-up questions from the panel. We ask that relevant leadership is represented at the pitch; head of department/ section/ country office or similar.

Timeline for 2024 application process

The application form

• What is the humanitarian challenge you are seeking to address?
• What is innovative about this project?
• What are the activities and milestones?
• What is the target group and what will be the direct impact for people affected?
• What is the potential for scale?
• What capacity and knowledge are you seeking from your private sector partnership(s)?

The form needs to be completed in the digital portal to be considered.

*Please note that the name of the project and the contact person you enter when applying will be directly transferred to the grant letter and cannot be changed afterwards. Please make sure that the name of the organisation is the correct name for the legal entity that will receive the grant.

Read the requirements for the relevant grant scheme

The application form for submitting proposals will be available from mid April

A PDF version of the call for proposals can be downloaded here

A Word version of the application form for Innovation lab applicants be downloaded here

A Word version of the application form for scaling applicants be downloaded here

A PDF version of the call for proposals online information session on 22nd April 2024 can be downloaded here

The deadline for this year's Call for Proposals is now closed