We support a wide range of civil society organisations, especially community-based organisations, women- and youth-led groups, and those working with marginalised and vulnerable communities.
Grants are provided to organisations registered as a not-for-profit entity in Sri Lanka. We welcome requests from emerging groups with strong community legitimacy, even if they have limited access to traditional donor funding.
Our grantmaking focuses on the following themes:
Refer to What we do for more information.
We use a participatory and values-based approach. Proposals are reviewed not only on technical merit but also on their relevance to communities, inclusivity, and potential to shift power to marginalised voices. Our assessment matrix emphasises vulnerability, access to funding, and alignment with NTT’s values, rather than polished donor language.
No. We recognise that smaller, grassroots organisations often have the deepest connections with their communities. We value lived experience and community legitimacy over formal systems. We also provide capacity-strengthening support alongside funding.
Grant sizes are indicated when NTT issues a call for proposals.
We understand that grant sizes and durations vary depending on an organisation’s needs and the nature of the work. NTT prioritises flexible, long-term support wherever possible, rather than one-off, short-term project funding.
Calls for proposals are announced on our website and shared through civil society networks. Applicants are required to use the NTT-provided formats. Applications are welcomed in English OR Sinhala OR Tamil.
Refer to How to Apply for more information.
Our grants are for organisations with a not-for-profit registration in Sri Lanka.
Yes. We are more than a grantmaker. We invest in organisational strengthening, convene spaces for dialogue and learning, connect partners to wider networks, and amplify their voices at national and global levels.
We practise a hybrid grantmaking model. This model blends the strengths of traditional donor practices with trust-based grantmaking. While we value transparency and accountability, we also recognise that rigid compliance can exclude grassroots actors. The hybrid model, therefore, combines light, flexible processes that centre trust in organisations’ knowledge and lived realities, with selective use of traditional tools such as financial oversight or progress reviews. This balance ensures resources are accessible to smaller, marginalised groups while maintaining shared accountability and learning between NTT and its partners. Reporting processes are designed to be light-touch, flexible and reflective. The focus is on learning and adaptation rather than rigid compliance.
We shift decision-making closer to the ground, centre local knowledge and channel resources to those who are often excluded from mainstream funding. Our role is to walk alongside our partners, sharing responsibility, resources and risks.
