The Open Call for proposals, entitled “Resilient Voices: Supporting Exiled Journalism” aims to fund media organizations serving audiences in Belarus and Azerbaijan to sustain and grow their vital work, to inform the public in these countries, where citizens have limited access to independent, fact-based information.

Through the Open Call, the International Fund will award grants to individual media organizations of approximately US $75,000–200,000 in funding over a period of 12 months, with an opportunity for renewal for an additional 12 months. Only in exceptional cases will grant funding representing more than 30% of an organization’s average annual turnover be considered. Media organizations are encouraged to develop proposals and an approximate funding request which takes this proportion into consideration.

As the world’s first and only independent, multilateral financing mechanism dedicated to supporting independent journalism, the International Fund for Public Interest Media is uniquely positioned to facilitate the scale up of support to independent media across the Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries. The Fund already has a significant track record of working in the EaP region, with grants awarded to media organizations in Moldova, Ukraine, Armenia and Georgia. 2025 marks the first year in which the International Fund will expand its support to media in exile from Belarus and Azerbaijan, which are striving to keep audiences informed in their respective countries.

The JX Fund supports exiled media from countries where independent reporting is no longer possible due to repression, persecution, and censorship. Since 2022, the JX Fund has supported 21 independent Belarusian media through grants and structural support.

Independent media interested in submitting a funding proposal are encouraged to confirm their organization’s eligibility by submitting the Eligibility Verification form through the International Fund’s secure portal. Organizations that meet the eligibility criteria will be invited to proceed to the next step of the application process.

The selection process will take 9–10 weeks and will involve the following steps:

1. Eligibility Form: Applicants are required to submit answers to an eligibility checklist.

2. Full Application Submission: Organizations that meet the eligibility criteria will receive an email with a link to access and submit their full funding proposal.

3. Eligibility Review: The International Fund and the JX Fund will conduct an initial review of all proposals received to confirm alignment with eligibility criteria, and review against additional compliance obligations.

4. Juror Review and Recommendation: Following the initial review, two external panels of independent experts (one per country) will review the proposals and recommend organizations for grant support by the International Fund. The independent panel review process will be based on a set of assessment criteria and supported by information provided in the proposal.
Selection criteria will cover four areas:
(i) Editorial focus on news coverage of social relevance;
(ii) Ability / capacity to sustain operations, including the quality of the proposed plan of use of funds;
(iii) Audience reach and engagement in a country of origin (Belarus and Azerbaijan); and
(iv) Financial need of the organization.

5. International Fund Board Approval: The final list of recommended awardees will be submitted to the International Fund’s Board for approval on a no-objection basis. This is a standard process for all grants awarded by the International Fund.

Key dates and deadlines:

July 12: Deadline for submitting the initial Eligibility Verification Form
July 25: Deadline for submitting full applications through the International Fund portal
September 19th: Date by which all evaluation steps will be completed and grant awards communicated to media organizations..

Please note:
This opportunity is only for media organizations with an average annual turnover of at least €225,000. If your organization is operating in exile from Belarus (not Azerbaijan) and has an average annual turnover of less than €225,000, the open call for applications by the JX Fund may be of interest to your organization.

In case of questions, please contact:

For media exiled from Azerbaijan:
Kateryna Chystoforova ([email protected])

For media exiled from Belarus:
[email protected]

The International Fund for Public Interest Media and JX Fund are delighted to launch this Open Call for funding and encourage all eligible media organizations to apply.