The Fund is committed to be there for civil society organisations offering a variety of support, whether through direct grants, convening opportunities, mentoring, or creating platforms for dialogue and exchange.
WBF by doing so aspires to empower civil society organizations, amplify their voices, and ensure that champions of cooperation across the region can count on WBF as a trusted ally in moments when their ideas and energy need it most.
The Matching Grants Scheme is designed to expand project ideas from local to regional and from regional to international, ensuring full alignment with the WBF strategic objectives.
Projects supported within this scheme must address issues of concern within the WB6 region and contribute to strengthening cooperation, dialogue, and mutual understanding across borders.
The maximum grant amount available under this scheme is 10,000 EUR.
Applicants are required to complete the application form, which can be downloaded at any time from our website. For more information, please carefully review the Matching Grants Guidelines.
This scheme is open without deadlines, ensuring support for regional events whenever they take place. However, applicants are strongly encouraged to submit their proposals as early as possible, allowing WBF sufficient time to process and accommodate the grant.
KEY FEATURES
• Co-funding required: Remaining 50% must come from other donors
• Duration: Projects must last between 2 and 4 months.
• Location: Activities must occur within the WB6 region.
• Partnerships: At least two partners from two different WBF Contracting
TIMELINES
Although the Matching Grant Scheme is a rolling mechanism (open throughout the year) to ensure the fair, transparent, accountable, and timely evaluation process, the WBF Evaluation team will assess the submitted project action/proposals on a quarterly/season basis.
Specifically:
- WBF Matching Grants Autumn Season: Applications submitted September-November 2025 (for projects implementation period December-March 2026) – results by first week of December 2025.
- WBF Matching Grants Winter Season: Applications submitted from December 2025 – February 2026 (for March-June 2026 projects) – results by first week of March 2026.
- WBF Matching Grants Spring Season: Applications submitted from March – May 2026 (for June-August 2026 projects) – results by first week of June 2026.
- WBF Matching Grants Summer Season: Applications submitted from June – August 2025 (for August-November projects) – results by first week of August 2026.
PRIORITY AREAS
• Education and Scientific Exchange
• Sustainable DevelopmentARE YOU INTERESTED TO APPLY?
• Be legal, non-profit entities based in the WB6.
• Be CSOs/NGOs, public bodies, educational institutions, business or media associations, or cultural/sports institutions.
• Have prior experience in managing donor-funded or regional projects.
• Be able to demonstrate secured co-funding
• A project that has not been funded or previously rejected by the Western Balkans Fund.
For more information on the rules of the application, please read the attached guidelines
Full Applications should be sent to info@westernbalkansfund.org, with the subject WBF MATCHING GRANT APPLICATION
