International Communities

Summary of the programme

This programme is closed for applications.

The International programme is Big Lottery Fund’s way of helping disadvantaged communities overseas.

This £72 million programme will support work that tackles the causes of poverty and deprivation, and brings about a long-term difference to the lives of the most disadvantaged people across the globe.

£60 million was available for the following:

• International Communities
• International Strategic
• International Small Grants

£12 million to help Tsunami long-term reconstruction.

International Communities

We want communities to be at the heart of the International programme. We will fund projects that:

• improve access to better and more relevant primary education for the most disadvantaged boys and girls
• improve health for the most disadvantaged people, specifically through improved mother and child health, improved reproductive health, improved measures to prevent HIV/AIDS and mitigate its impact, improved measures to prevent and control locally significant diseases and improved mental health
• improve allocation of natural resources to benefit the most disadvantaged people, specifically through improved access to safe water and sanitation, improved access to land and reduced vulnerability to environmental shocks and stresses
• improve human rights for the most disadvantaged people, specifically through an improved environment in which to exercise their civil and political rights and the enabling of human rights defenders to campaign peacefully for civil and political rights
• improve access to sustainable financial resources for the most disadvantaged people.

International Communities will fund projects in Africa, Asia, (including the Pacific and Central Asian republics) the Middle East, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Central and Eastern Europe (including the Russian Federation and the Caucasus, excluding members of the European Union).

Funding for the sustainable development and reconstruction of areas affected by the Tsunami will be delivered through International Communities.

In particular, we want to fund projects that:

• restore livelihoods and empower communities
• serve the needs of particularly vulnerable groups, and rebuild local organisations and communities