Tenders are invited for Funding Landscape Analysis for Trócaire Local and National Partners in DRC. Closing Date: 14 Feb 2026 Funding Landscape Analysis for Trócaire Local and National Partners in DRC About Trócaire Trócaire is the official overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland. Trócaire was established to express the concern of the Irish Catholic Church for any form of human need, but particularly for the needs and challenges faced by communities in the global south. Together with our partners, we work towards supporting women, men and communities for long-term change. In Ireland, we raise awareness about the causes of poverty through our outreach programmes in the education sector, through parish networks, and through our public campaigns and advocacy work. More information about Trócaire is available at www.trocaire.org. Contextual Background The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) remains one of the worlds most complex humanitarian and development contexts, marked by persistent insecurity in the eastern provinces, and the recurrent displacement of millions. The multidimensional fragility in the country has shaped both the priorities and modalities of international engagement, making the DRC one of the largest recipients of humanitarian aid globally. In recent years, the international financing landscape in DRC has undergone significant transformation. Donor priorities have progressively shifted towards more integrated, nexus-oriented approaches that bridge humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding objectives. The global emphasis on locally led action has created renewed momentum for channelling resources directly to local and national actors. However, despite rhetorical support, local organisations in DRC continue to face systemic barriers to accessing institutional funding, including stringent compliance requirements, limited visibility, and insufficient organisational systems to meet donor due diligence standards. At the same time, donor funding patterns have reflected broader geopolitical and economic trends. Traditional institutional donors the European Union, FCDO, and UN agencies remain dominant players, yet their sectoral and geographic priorities are evolving in response to new crises, climate risks, and stabilisation efforts. There is a discernible rebalancing of funding towards areas such as governance reform, resilience building, climate adaptation, and gender equality, alongside sustained investment in health, education, and protection. Meanwhile, global fiscal pressures and shifting political priorities in donor capitals have led to funding cuts and increasing competition among actors for limited resources. Against this backdrop, there is growing recognition that the sustainability and legitimacy of aid interventions in depend on strengthening the role of national and local organisations. Local actors possess deep contextual knowledge, long-term community presence, and adaptive capacities that position them as key drivers of change in fragile settings. Yet, their access to direct funding remains disproportionately low. Hence, the need for a strategic mapping of funding opportunities and an in-depth understanding of the evolving donor ecosystem to better position local and national organisations within this landscape. The donor mapping exercise therefore seeks to provide a forward-looking analysis of the funding environment in DRC, identifying both current and emerging opportunities for local actors. It aims to capture shifts in institutional donor priorities, thematic focus areas, and geographic allocation, while exploring alternative financing models such as private sector partnerships, climate funds, foundations, and locally led pooled mechanisms that could support more sustainable and diversified resource mobilisation. Beyond identifying opportunities, the analysis will examine the structural and operational factors that influence the competitiveness of LNAs in securing funding, including strategic alignment, organisational capacity, and evidence-based positioning. Objectives The objectives of the donor mapping exercise are: To analyse current and emerging trends in institutional donor funding, sectoral priorities, and geographical distribution, identifying funding opportunities for partner organizations in DRC while ensuring alignment with the governments national development priorities. This will include assessing shifts in the funding landscape in response to the crisis and identifying potential alternative sources of funding. The mapping will explicitly identify institutional donors and funding mechanisms with clear localisation commitments (including examples of minimum allocations to local partners where publicly stated), as well as bilateral and embassy-level small-grant windows that may provide accessible entry points for local and national organisations. To explore and recommend alternative funding sources, including non-traditional donors, private sector engagement, and innovative financing mechanisms, to support partner organisations in diversifying their resource base and reducing reliance on a single funding stream. To assess the factors that enhance the competitive edge of partner organisations in securing funding, including strategic positioning, programmatic focus, operational efficiency, and alignment with donor and government priorities, and provide recommendations on strengthening these aspects. To develop actionable recommendations that improve partner organizations resource mobilization efforts, systemic challenges, while strengthening their positioning in a changing funding environment. Scope of Work The donor mapping exercise will involve the following tasks with a focus on undertaking the landscape analysis in line with Trócaires and partners thematic and geographical focus areas in country: Analysis of institutional funding trends Analyse donors demonstrated commitment to localisation: evaluate policies versus practice (e.g., stated localisation targets, mandatory sub-granting or percentage allocations to local partners, simplified compliance pathways, localisation criteria in calls), and rank donors by relative accessibility and friendliness to local and national actors. Assess the shift in the funding landscape due to existing and potential funding cuts, identifying implications for local and national organisations. Review donor eligibility criteria, funding cycles, and application processes. Explore alternative funding sources Identify and assess non-traditional donors, private sector engagement, and innovative financing mechanisms as potential funding sources. Analyse the feasibility of these alternative sources in supporting partner organisations financial sustainability Provide insights into emerging funding models that could reduce reliance on traditional funding streams. Assess competitive positioning of local and national partners Examine the entry points for local and national partners to secure funding, including strategic positioning, programmatic focus, and operational efficiency Strategic Recommendations: Develop actionable recommendations to improve partner organizations resource mobilization strategies, including their strategic positioning and better alignment with donor priorities. Provide recommendations for Trócaires future support to DRC partners to access funding as direct as possible, including advocacy strategies and technical support initiatives in resource mobilization. Methodology The donor mapping exercise will be qualitative in nature. Desk Research: Review and analysis of funding trends, policies and sectoral priorities of key bi-lateral and multilateral donors, using publicly available reports, strategies, and plan. existing donor reports, funding data, donor websites, and secondary research on funding flows in DRC. Review and analyse alternative funding mechanism, their sectoral priorities. Assess quality of the funding provided by these institutional and non-institutional donors Synthesis and development of recommendations Integrate findings form the desk review and stakeholder consultations to develop a comprehensive assessment of the funding landscape Provide actionable recommendations to support partner organisations in diversifying funding sources, strengthening their competitive positioning and enhancing resource mobilisation strategies Provide guidance on positioning local and national organisation to better align with the evolving funding landscape Deliverables The consultant will submit the following outputs: Inception Report: An inception report outlining the methodology, refined scope and timelines to be submitted within one week of commencing the consultancy. A Report on the mapping of funding opportunities: A comprehensive report (20-30 pages) that includes: A comprehensive analysis of institutional and non-institutional donor landscape in DRC, detailing active donors, funding priorities, and geographical focus. Assessment of emerging shifts in the funding landscape and its implications for local and national organisations with a focus on alternative funding sources Analysis of factors influencing the competitive positioning of partner organisations in securing funding and entry points for engagement. Actionable recommendations to strengthen partner resource mobilisation taking into account the current context of funding crisis PowerPoint Presentation: Visual representations of donor funding trends, sectoral priorities, and access requirements in the form of charts, maps, and graphs to facilitate easy interpretation of findings. Timeline The consultancy will span 20 days over a period of two months, starting February 2026. Required knowledge and experience. The consultant should possess the following qualifications: Advanced degree in international development, public policy, or a related field. Proven Tender Link : https://reliefweb.int/job/4196287/terms-reference-funding-landscape-analysis-trocaire-local-and-national-partners-drc
