CFAs: Strengthening Social Cohesion and Addressing Anti-Foreigner Sentiment in South Africa

Deadline: 15-Sep-2026

The UNHCR South Africa Community Grants support community-based organizations in South Africa to develop innovative initiatives that strengthen social cohesion and address anti-foreigner sentiment. The indicative grant budget is 100,000, with priority given to organizations and initiatives in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and Western Cape. The programme particularly supports refugee-led, stateless-led, women-led, youth-led, LGBTIQ+, disability-focused, and diaspora organizations working on community and digital solutions. UNHCR South Africa Community Grants – Overview The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), through its South Africa Multi-Country Office (SAMCO), is inviting community-based organizations in South Africa to submit Expressions of Interest for innovative projects that promote social cohesion and counter harmful anti-foreigner narratives. The initiative builds on UNHCR’s ongoing engagement with refugee and community groups across South Africa. It responds to growing challenges faced by refugees, asylum seekers, stateless persons, and host communities, particularly the spread of misinformation, hate speech, and harmful narratives both online and offline. Key Details

- Grant: UNHCR South Africa Community Grants

- Funder: UNHCR South Africa Multi-Country Office (SAMCO)

- Country: South Africa

- Indicative Budget: 100,000

- Application Type: Expression of Interest

- Purpose: Strengthen social cohesion and counter anti-foreigner sentiment

- Priority Provinces: Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and Western Cape

- Other Provinces: Exceptional initiatives may also be considered

- Eligible Applicants: Community-based organizations operating in South Africa

- Priority Groups: Refugees, stateless persons, women, youth, LGBTIQ+, persons with disabilities, and diaspora communities

- Key Focus: Community-led and digital approaches, misinformation, hate speech, inclusion, trust-building, and positive engagement

What Is the Grant Designed to Achieve? The grant programme aims to support community-led solutions to social tensions and harmful narratives affecting forcibly displaced, stateless, and host communities.

Its objectives include:

- Strengthening social cohesion. - Countering anti-foreigner sentiment. - Addressing harmful narratives and misinformation. - Promoting accurate information-sharing. - Building trust between communities. - Encouraging positive engagement between refugee, stateless and host communities. - Supporting innovative digital approaches. - Strengthening community resilience. - Improving digital literacy and online safety. - Giving community organizations a stronger role in developing local solutions. Why Is Social Cohesion Important? Refugees, asylum seekers, stateless persons, and host communities can face complex social and economic challenges. The spread of misinformation and hate speech can increase misunderstanding, discrimination and tension between different communities. The programme therefore encourages locally developed approaches that combine community engagement with digital communication. Community-based organizations are well positioned to understand local concerns and develop messages and activities that are relevant to the communities they serve. What Types of Activities Can Be Supported? Applicants can propose innovative, context-sensitive activities that contribute to social cohesion and counter harmful narratives.

Potential activities include:

Community Dialogues Organizing structured discussions between different community groups to address concerns, build understanding and encourage constructive communication. Peer-to-Peer Engagement Using trusted community members and peer networks to share accurate information and promote positive interaction. Trust-Building Initiatives Developing locally led activities that strengthen relationships between forcibly displaced people, stateless persons and host communities. Misinformation and Hate Speech Monitoring Community-led monitoring and analysis can help identify misinformation, harmful narratives and hate speech affecting local communities. Locally Relevant Messaging Organizations can develop messages and digital content that respond to local concerns and promote accurate information. Pre-Bunking and Resilience Building Projects may adapt pre-bunking approaches and other resilience-building methods to help communities recognize and resist harmful narratives before they spread. Digital Literacy and Online Safety Activities may provide communities with skills to identify misinformation, navigate online spaces safely and engage responsibly with digital content. Combined Online and Offline Engagement Projects can integrate face-to-face community engagement with digital outreach through different communication channels. Priority Geographic Areas Priority will be given to proposals from: - Gauteng - KwaZulu-Natal - Western Cape However, exceptional proposals from other provinces may also be considered. This broader approach recognizes that online misinformation and anti-foreigner narratives can have impacts across South Africa rather than being limited to specific provinces. Funding Available The indicative budget for the grant opportunity is 100,000. Applicants should develop a realistic budget that clearly connects proposed expenditure with project activities and expected outcomes. Because the amount is described as an indicative budget, applicants should carefully follow the official Expression of Interest requirements for any specific funding limits, budget rules or allocation details. Who Is Eligible? Eligible applicants are community-based organizations operating in South Africa. The call particularly welcomes organizations representing or led by communities such as: - Refugees. - Stateless persons. - Persons with disabilities. - Women. - Youth. - LGBTIQ+ communities. - Diaspora communities. Refugee-Led Organizations (RLOs) and stateless-led organizations are specifically included a