UN Women is a United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. With a mandate to support member states in achieving global standards for gender equality, UN Women collaborates with governments, civil society, and other UN agencies to design and implement strategies that empower women socially, politically, and economically. It plays a crucial role in addressing structural barriers to gender equity, promoting women’s leadership, and ensuring women’s rights are fully integrated into all development and humanitarian efforts. UN Women actively promotes inclusive and sustainable development, with particular emphasis on women’s access to resources, opportunities, and decision-making. The organization also engages in critical advocacy and knowledge-building efforts to foster global action on issues affecting women and girls. Through initiatives like the Women Empowered for Climate Resilience through Agricultural Innovation (WE-CAN) project, UN Women seeks to strengthen gender-responsive approaches in climate action, particularly in agriculture, which is a vital livelihood source for millions of rural women. By empowering women smallholder farmers, UN Women contributes significantly to food security, climate adaptation, and equitable development outcomes, ensuring that women are not only beneficiaries but also active participants and leaders in climate-resilient agricultural systems.

This grant opportunity, launched under the WE-CAN project by UN Women, aims to support gender-responsive agricultural innovation in Madhya Pradesh. The selected organization will work to empower women smallholder farmers by promoting climate-smart agricultural practices and testing innovative solutions like on-farm biosensors for biofertilizer application. The initiative will engage 15 women as lead farmers and their households over two agricultural seasons. Additionally, 50 women smallholder farmers will participate in piloting the biosensor technology. The overarching objective is to build resilience and enhance productivity while fostering women’s leadership in climate-adaptive farming. The grant supports the development and adoption of sustainable techniques that respond to both environmental and gendered challenges in agriculture. Organizations selected for this funding are expected to take a participatory, research-based approach in collaboration with local communities and stakeholders. The grant not only emphasizes technical innovation but also focuses on social inclusion, training, and capacity-building. It encourages scalable impact and long-term benefits through grassroots implementation. Funding will range between INR 31,00,000 to INR 37,00,000, supporting program design, training, monitoring, and community engagement. The initiative reflects UN Women’s commitment to gender equality in climate solutions, agriculture, and sustainable development.