Guidelines and procedures for applications for funding from PGTF

What is the deadline for submitting applications for funding from PGTF?

Applications should be submitted not later than 30 April of each year.  Late project proposals will not be considered.

What is the amount of PGTF support available?

The maximum amount of PGTF support available for any given project in 2024 will be US$35,000.

Is there a PGTF funding application form?

Prospective applicants should fully fill in the mandatory project proposal model format and summary checklist in any of the working languages of the Group of 77 (Arabic, English, French and Spanish).

Applications that are not submitted fully in compliance with the requirement of the model format and summary checklist will not be considered.

What additional documents should be provided?

In the case of nationally executed projects, applications should be accompanied by letters of endorsement from the countries that will benefit directly and/or participate in the activities of this project. Such endorsement letters should contain a clear indication of the institution, as well as name, position and signature of the person providing the endorsement.   

In the case of project proposals submitted by institutions (e.g., non-governmental organizations, regional and sub-regional organizations, etc.), a copy of the relevant decision of the respective governing bodies and countries involved in the project should be provided.

What are the eligibility criteria for PGTF projects?

Applicants should familiarize themselves with the Guidelines for Utilization of PGTF before preparing and submitting a funding application.

Major project eligibility criteria include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Project proposals submitted for funding from PGTF should address the sectoral priorities contained in the Caracas Programme of Action on Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries, that is Trade, Technology, Food and Agriculture, Energy, Raw Materials, Finance, Industrialization and Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries, as well as in the Havana Programme of Action in the areas of South-South cooperation.
• Projects utilizing the PGTF should be of such a nature that they lead to balanced and general benefits for the member countries of the Group of 77 and China.
• These projects should be designed so as to have a maximum multiplier effect, and in the case of regional projects, serve as pilot projects for other regions. In this context, projects which are purely national in nature will not qualify for funding. Also, bilateral projects will not be eligible.
• The Fund should not be used as a substitute for resources available to the United Nations agencies for undertaking activities in favour of South-South cooperation.
• The projects that are selected should not duplicate existing projects in developing countries and should make optimum use of capacities which already exist in developing countries at the national, regional and inter-regional levels.
• Any project, in order to be considered for PGTF assistance must necessarily have a cooperative component, i.e. any activity which involves deliberate and voluntary sharing, pooling or exchange of economic or technical resources, knowledge, experience, skills and capabilities between three or more developing countries for their individual or mutual development.
• For large projects that go beyond the capacity of the PGTF, the Fund may be in a position to finance only a component of these projects.
• All project proposals should include inputs from other sources of an amount at least equal to the resources requested from PGTF. These inputs should be secured by the sponsors prior to submission of the proposal to PGTF.
• No more than one (1) project proposal per annum may be submitted for funding from the PGTF by any given institution or organization.

What is the procedure for submission of PGTF funding applications?

Project proposals by governmental or non-governmental organizations should be submitted to PGTF through their respective National Focal Points for South-South Cooperation or competent national authorities, as appropriate.

Applications should be forwarded with a cover letter or note verbale on official letterhead addressed to the Chair of the Group of 77. Applications should be delivered to the following mailing address:

Executive Secretariat of the Group of 77
United Nations Secretariat Building
Room S-0518
New York, NY 10017
United States of America

A soft copy of the application may also be submitted electronically to the following email address:

How and when are applications considered?

The applications for PGTF funding are examined by a Committee of Experts between 1 July and 15 August of each year. The Committee’s recommendations for funding are submitted for final approval to the Annual Ministerial Meeting of the Group of 77 held in late September of each year at UN Headquarters in New York.

How are PGTF resources disbursed?

If funding is approved, the beneficiaries will be notified officially by the Chair of the Group of 77 in October/November and requested to submit a detailed draft project document (based on the project proposal using the identical format) in electronic format to the UN Office for South-South Cooperation hosted by UNDP.

Once the draft project document is reviewed and adjusted as appropriate, it is sent by the UN Office for South-South Cooperation to the relevant UNDP country office requesting it to finalize and sign the project document and record it in Atlas (UNDP’s Enterprise Resource Planning system). 

After the UNDP country office returns a copy of the signed cover page of the project document and informs the UN Office for South-South Cooperation of the project number in Atlas, the latter releases the authorization for the 90% of the approved funding. The remaining 10% is released contingent upon the project sponsors submitting the final substantive and financial reports.

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