Grant Support Programme

First launched in 2013, the Grant Support Programme (GSP) has been one of the most successful projects implemented by the Agitos Foundation.

To date, EUR 650,000 has been set aside each year for National Paralympic Committees (NPCs), International Federations (IFs), International Organisations of Sports for the Disabled (IOSDs) and Regional Organisations (ROs) – the IPC membership – to apply for support.

With over two million euros supporting 126 projects from 47 NPCs, four ROs, 17 IFs and four IOSDs over the four editions so far, thousands of people have been exposed to and involved in the Paralympic Movement from grassroots development programmes right through to National Paralympic Days.

Over the years the GSP has evolved and focus areas for each edition were introduced, ensuring that funding is concentrated into areas within Para sport that are in greatest need of development and support. For the 2017 series, the focus areas have been rearranged alongside the Agitos Foundation’s new Core Theme PARA structure (see guidelines for further details).

The first edition in 2013 supported 31 projects in countries such as Colombia, Ethiopia, Iran, Mongolia, Serbia, Rwanda. It has proven to be a revolution in the way the IPC delivers Para sport development.

Building on 2013, the second edition of the GSP introduced focus areas such as Paralympic Movement awareness, athlete education and development, sport technical education for coaches, classifiers and technical officials, capacity building and leadership. Funding was given to 29 IPC member organisations for projects involving talent identification, classification and grassroots development, festivals of Para sport and multi-sport competitions.

In 2015, 64 organisations submitted applications for funding. Of those, 32 were accepted. The quality, creativity and reach of applications are increasing with every new edition.

The latest in 2016 saw 33 projects earn funding to deliver initiatives aligned with their own and the IPC’s strategic plans. Also, for the first time an initiative to provide access to Para sport for refugees with an impairment was undertaken with outstanding outcomes during its implementation. To date, 10 direct beneficiaries are practicing Para sport regularly with some showing elite level potential.

Please see a friendly note from IPC President Sir Philip Craven, as well as the guidelines and instructions to access WizeHive (the Internet based grant management application used for the application process since 2014).