Applications are open for the Addressing Neglected Areas of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in sub-Saharan Africa (ANeSA) 2026 Call for Letters of Interest, a major implementation research funding opportunity supporting innovative, evidence-informed and gender-transformative approaches to neglected sexual and reproductive health and rights challenges across sub-Saharan Africa.

The call represents Stage 1 of a two-stage funding process for Cohort 2 of ANeSA Implementation Research Teams.

Selected applicants will work on research intended to improve the design, implementation, sustainability and effectiveness of interventions addressing underserved populations and neglected areas of sexual and reproductive health and rights.

The initiative is funded by:

• International Development Research Centre
• Global Affairs Canada
• Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Up to six grants of as much as CAD 1.2 million each are expected to be awarded.

At the first stage, applicants submit a Letter of Interest. Up to 12 applicants will then be invited to proceed to the Full Proposal stage.

Successful projects may receive funding for a period of up to 36 months.

The deadline for Letters of Interest is August 23, 2026 at 23:59 Eastern Time.

About the ANeSA Initiative

ANeSA stands for:

Addressing Neglected Areas of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in sub-Saharan Africa.

The initiative is focused on improving sexual and reproductive health and rights through implementation research.

Its Cohort 2 call seeks research teams capable of studying and strengthening interventions that are:

• Sustainable
• Evidence-informed
• Gender-transformative
• Relevant to underserved populations
• Grounded in the realities of sub-Saharan African health systems and communities

The opportunity is therefore not simply intended to finance stand-alone academic research.

The central emphasis is on implementation research, meaning research that can help understand how interventions are delivered, adapted, scaled, sustained or improved in real-world settings.

Projects should contribute to practical improvements in sexual and reproductive health and rights while generating evidence that can inform policy, programming and service delivery.

Funding Available

The ANeSA Cohort 2 funding opportunity will provide:

Up to six grants

with a maximum value of:

CAD 1.2 million per grant

The maximum project duration is:

36 months

At the first stage, up to 12 applicants will be shortlisted and invited to submit Full Proposals.

This means the competition involves two distinct stages:

1. Letter of Interest
2. Full Proposal

Not every Letter of Interest will advance to the second stage.

Stage 1: Letter of Interest

The current application stage requires eligible Implementation Research Teams to submit a Letter of Interest.

The Letter of Interest serves as the first screening stage.

Successful applicants from this round will be notified and invited to continue into the Full Proposal process.

The deadline is:

August 23, 2026 at 23:59 ET

Stage 2: Full Proposal

Applicants invited to continue will enter a second and more detailed stage.

According to the announced timeline:

• Proposal Development Workshop: February 9–11, 2027
• Full Proposal Call Launch: February 12, 2027
• Full Proposal Deadline: May 2, 2027
• Final Funding Decisions: July 21, 2027

Only invited applicants will proceed to this stage.

What Kind of Research Will ANeSA Fund?

ANeSA is seeking implementation research addressing neglected sexual and reproductive health and rights priorities.

Projects are expected to focus on interventions that are both evidence-informed and gender-transformative.

A gender-transformative approach generally means that projects should not simply acknowledge gender inequalities but should seek to address the norms, structures, systems or power relations contributing to unequal health outcomes.

The supplied call identifies five priority areas.

Applicants must address at least one.

Priority Area 1: Family Planning and Contraceptive Services

Projects may focus on improving access to:

• Family planning
• Modern contraception
• Contraceptive information
• Reproductive-health services
• Appropriate services for underserved populations

Research in this area should examine how access, quality, delivery or sustainability can be improved.

Potential implementation questions may concern how health systems reach populations that remain excluded from existing family-planning services.

Priority Area 2: Safe Abortion and Post-Abortion Care

ANeSA supports research related to:

• Safe abortion care where legally permitted
• Post-abortion care

The call refers to abortion and post-abortion care under the abbreviation APAC.

Projects must operate within applicable legal and policy frameworks.

Research may examine how appropriate services can be delivered more equitably and effectively, particularly for populations facing barriers to care.

Priority Area 3: Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

Another major priority is protecting sexual and reproductive health and rights for adolescents.

Projects may focus on both rights and access to services.

This area may include implementation challenges connected with:

• Adolescent access to services
• Youth-friendly care
• Information
• Rights
• Barriers created by institutions, social norms or service-delivery models

The call emphasizes not only health services but the broader importance of upholding adolescent SRHR rights.

Priority Area 4: Sexual and Gender-Based Violence

ANeSA will support research addressing:

• Prevention of sexual and gender-based violence
• Improved services for people experiencing sexual and gender-based violence

This priority recognizes that effective responses require both prevention and appropriate care.

Projects may therefore examine systems, interventions, services and implementation approaches aimed at reducing violence and improving support for affected individuals.

Priority Area 5: Strengthening Advocacy for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

The fifth priority area focuses specifically on:

Strengthening advocacy for SRHR.

This recognizes that access to rights and services is influenced not only by clinical delivery but also by:

• Policy
• Institutions
• Public debate
• Community engagement
• Advocacy
• Rights frameworks

Projects may therefore investigate how advocacy strategies can be implemented more effectively to support improvements in sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Focus on Underserved Populations

A central element of the call is its focus on underserved populations in sub-Saharan Africa.

Applicants should therefore show that the proposed work responds to groups that face meaningful barriers in accessing SRHR rights, services or support.

The supplied call does not provide a complete list of populations that qualify as underserved in the summary provided.

Applicants should consult the full Call for Letters of Interest for the detailed definitions and requirements.

Who Can Lead an Application?

The call is open to Implementation Research Teams.

The team must be led by:

A researcher based in sub-Saharan Africa

who is affiliated with:

An eligible institution in an eligible country.

The Principal Applicant must therefore be affiliated with an organization based in one of the eligible countries listed by the program.

The supplied announcement directs applicants to the full Call for Letters of Interest for the detailed:

• Team composition requirements
• Institutional eligibility requirements
• Roles of team members
• Partnership requirements
• Additional eligibility conditions

Applicants should therefore not rely only on the general call summary when assembling a team.

Eligible Countries

Principal Applicants must be affiliated with organizations based in one of the following eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africa:

• Angola
• Benin
• Botswana
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cameroon
• Central African Republic
• Chad
• Congo (Brazzaville)
• Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa)
• Equatorial Guinea
• Ethiopia
• Gabon
• Gambia
• Ghana
• Guinea
• Guinea-Bissau
• Ivory Coast
• Kenya
• Lesotho
• Liberia
• Madagascar
• Malawi
• Mali
• Mauritania
• Mauritius
• Mozambique
• Namibia
• Niger
• Nigeria
• Rwanda
• Senegal
• Sierra Leone
• South Africa
• Eswatini
• South Sudan
• Tanzania
• Togo
• Uganda
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

Countries Subject to Additional Internal Approval

The announcement notes that applications from certain countries may be subject to an additional stage of internal approval within IDRC.

These countries are:

• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cameroon
• Central African Republic
• Chad
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Ethiopia
• Gabon
• Mali
• Mozambique
• Niger
• Nigeria
• South Sudan
• Uganda
• Zimbabwe

Applicants from these countries are not described as automatically ineligible.

Rather, additional internal review or approval may apply.

Project Duration

Funded projects may run for:

Up to 36 months

Applicants should therefore design implementation research that can realistically deliver meaningful results within a three-year timeframe.

A strong project is likely to require a clear plan for:

• Research implementation
• Partnership management
• Evidence generation
• Analysis
• Knowledge translation
• Sustainability

The precise expectations for work plans and budgets should be verified in the full call documentation.

Funding Organizations

The ANeSA initiative is funded by three Canadian institutions.

International Development Research Centre

IDRC supports research and innovation intended to address major development challenges.

For this call, it serves as an important institutional platform for supporting locally grounded implementation research in sub-Saharan Africa.

Global Affairs Canada

Global Affairs Canada contributes to Canada’s international development and foreign policy activities.

Its participation reinforces the international development dimension of the initiative.

Canadian Institutes of Health Research

CIHR is one of Canada’s principal health-research funding institutions.

Its involvement highlights the research and health-systems orientation of the funding opportunity.

Two-Stage Selection Process

Applicants should understand the full selection timeline before applying.

Stage 1: Letters of Interest

The current stage is open to eligible Implementation Research Teams.

Applicants submit their Letter of Interest by:

August 23, 2026

Up to 12 applicants will be selected to move forward.

Notification of Stage 1 Results

Applicants are scheduled to be notified on:

December 18, 2026

Proposal Development Workshop

Applicants invited to Stage 2 will participate in a Proposal Development Workshop scheduled for:

February 9–11, 2027

This suggests that shortlisted applicants will receive additional preparation before submitting the final proposal.

Full Proposal Stage

The formal Full Proposal call will launch on:

February 12, 2027

The Full Proposal deadline is:

May 2, 2027

Final Funding Decision

Applicants are expected to be notified of final funding decisions on:

July 21, 2027

Complete Timeline

Applicants should note the following important dates:

• Call launched: June 29, 2026
• English-focused information webinars: July 15–16, 2026
• French-only webinar: July 23, 2026
• Deadline for questions to receive a response before submission: August 9, 2026
• Letter of Interest deadline: August 23, 2026
• Stage 1 result notification: December 18, 2026
• Proposal Development Workshop: February 9–11, 2027
• Full Proposal Call opens: February 12, 2027
• Full Proposal deadline: May 2, 2027
• Final funding decisions: July 21, 2027

Information Webinars

The initiative organized several information sessions for potential applicants.

The sessions held on:

• July 15, 2026
• July 16, 2026

reached maximum capacity.

Because those sessions were delivered mainly in English, the organizers offered a third and final session in French on:

July 23, 2026

The session ran from:

9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time

and did not include English interpretation.

Attendance at a webinar is not required in order to apply.

Frequently Asked Questions

ANeSA also provides an FAQ page for prospective applicants.

The supplied information states that the FAQ is updated regularly.

Applicants should therefore consult it when preparing their Letter of Interest, particularly if they have questions about:

• Eligibility
• Team composition
• Funding
• Institutional requirements
• Application procedures
• Proposal development

Because the FAQ may be updated during the application period, applicants should review the most recent version before submitting.

Contact Information

Applicants with questions can contact the ANeSA team at:

SRHR-SDSR@idrc.ca

The call indicated that questions should ideally have been sent by August 9, 2026 to receive a response before the application deadline.

Applicants may still consult the call documents and FAQ for unresolved questions.

How to Apply

To apply for this funding opportunity, you’ll need an account on SurveyMonkey Apply. If you don’t have an account yet, or need help with your existing one, please refer to their Account setup guide.

Applicants should avoid waiting until the final day to establish or test their account.

APPLY HERE

Application Deadline

The Letter of Interest deadline is:

Sunday, August 23, 2026 at 23:59 Eastern Time

This is the deadline for Stage 1.

Applicants invited to Stage 2 will face the later Full Proposal deadline of:

May 2, 2027

The two deadlines should not be confused.

Preparing a Strong Letter of Interest

The complete required format should be taken from the official call, but applicants can prepare strategically around the priorities clearly identified in the announcement.

1. Demonstrate Fit With at Least One Priority Area

The project must address one or more of ANeSA’s five priorities.

Do not describe a broad SRHR project without explaining precisely which priority it addresses.

2. Make the Implementation Research Question Clear

ANeSA is specifically seeking implementation research.

Applicants should therefore go beyond asking whether an intervention works.

They should consider questions such as:

• How can the intervention be delivered effectively?
• What prevents implementation?
• How can it be adapted?
• What conditions are necessary for sustainability?
• How can successful interventions be integrated into systems?
• How can uptake among underserved populations be improved?

3. Show Gender-Transformative Potential

The call specifically emphasizes gender-transformative interventions.

Applicants should clearly explain how the project responds to gender inequalities rather than treating gender as a superficial variable.

4. Focus on Underserved Populations

Describe the population being served and the barriers it faces.

The proposal should make clear why the population is underserved and why current systems or interventions have not adequately addressed its needs.

5. Demonstrate Institutional and Team Capacity

Because the call targets Implementation Research Teams, applicants should show that their team has the expertise required to deliver the research.

Relevant capacity may include:

• Implementation research
• SRHR
• Gender analysis
• Health systems
• Community engagement
• Policy
• Research methodology

The exact required team composition should be confirmed in the full call.

6. Consider Sustainability Early

The initiative seeks sustainable interventions.

Applicants should therefore explain how the work could remain useful after the project period ends.

7. Connect Research With Evidence Use

The strongest projects should not produce evidence that remains isolated within academic publications.

Applicants should consider how findings could influence:

• Health policy
• Service delivery
• Programmes
• Community practice
• Advocacy
• Health-system decision-making

Why ANeSA Matters

Sexual and reproductive health and rights remain closely connected to:

• Health equity
• Gender equality
• Human rights
• Adolescent wellbeing
• Maternal health
• Violence prevention
• Access to contraception
• Health-system quality
• Social and economic development

However, significant gaps remain in many contexts, particularly among populations facing multiple forms of exclusion.

ANeSA seeks to address those gaps through research focused on implementation, recognizing that evidence about what should work is not enough if effective interventions cannot be delivered equitably, sustainably and at scale.

The programme therefore creates an opportunity for researchers and institutions based in sub-Saharan Africa to lead studies directly connected to the realities of communities and health systems in the region.

Important Facts at a Glance

Initiative: Addressing Neglected Areas of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in sub-Saharan Africa

Abbreviation: ANeSA

Current stage: Stage 1 – Letters of Interest

Funding: Up to CAD 1.2 million per grant

Number of grants: Up to six

Stage 2 invitations: Up to 12 applicants

Project duration: Up to 36 months

Research type: Implementation research

Geographic focus: Sub-Saharan Africa

Letter of Interest deadline: August 23, 2026 at 23:59 ET

Full Proposal deadline for invited applicants: May 2, 2027

Funding decision: July 21, 2027

Contact: SRHR-SDSR@idrc.ca

Conclusion

The ANeSA 2026 Call for Letters of Interest represents a major funding opportunity for sub-Saharan Africa-based researchers and institutions working to strengthen sexual and reproductive health and rights.

With up to six grants worth as much as CAD 1.2 million each, the initiative will support implementation research projects lasting up to three years.

Funded work must address at least one of five priorities:

• Family planning and contraceptive access
• Safe abortion where legally permitted and post-abortion care
• Adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights
• Sexual and gender-based violence
• SRHR advocacy

Projects should be sustainable, evidence-informed, gender-transformative and focused on underserved populations.

The call is specifically designed around locally led research. Principal Applicants must be researchers based in sub-Saharan Africa and affiliated with eligible institutions in one of the listed participating countries.

The process begins with a Letter of Interest, after which up to 12 applicants will be invited to develop Full Proposals. Ultimately, up to six teams are expected to receive funding.

The Letter of Interest deadline is August 23, 2026 at 23:59 Eastern Time.

Applicants should consult the official Call for Letters of Interest and FAQ carefully, particularly for the detailed team-composition, institutional and proposal requirements that are not fully specified in the summary announcement.

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