Nairobi Impact Hub Initiative Notice of Funding Opportunity (Summer 2026)
General Funding Purpose
Atlas Free seeks to accelerate and resource the fight against sex trafficking and exploitation. This Funding Opportunity is part of Atlas Free’s Nairobi Impact Hub Initiative, which invests in organizations and agencies attacking human trafficking from different angles in the same place at the same time, resulting in measurable impact over three years.
Total Funding Amount | $2,175,000 |
|---|---|
Funding Term | Up to 3 years |
Number of Anticipated Awards | 4-12 |
Anticipated Award Range over 3 years | $50,000 – $700,000 |
Funding Commences | November 2026 |
Project Location | Nairobi, Kenya |
Primary Strategic Workflow:
Atlas Free categorizes its efforts around four strategic workflows: 1) Survivor Care and Intervention, 2) Perpetrator Accountability, 3) Targeted Prevention, and 4) Policy and Advocacy. We invite eligible organizations to identify which strategic flow is the Project’s primary focus, using that framework.
Measurement Focus
The Nairobi Impact Hub Initiative seeks Letters of Interest from eligible organizations proposing programming and activities that will result in one or more of the following measurable impact goals:
Rate of Sex Trafficking Victim Identification
Increase identification of human trafficking victims, including online sex trafficking victims and child exploitation, in Kibera or Dandora so that victims can receive services and the government can hold traffickers accountable.
Rate of Transnational Victim Identification
Increase identification of human trafficking victims returning to Kenya from technology-facilitated trafficking, scam compounds, sexual exploitation, and other forms of exploitation abroad.
Rate of Perpetrator Accountability
Increase government’s arrests, prosecutions, and convictions of human traffickers and sex buyers in Nairobi, Kenya.
Number of Services
Increase the availability of short-term shelter, long-term housing, and specialized services for sex trafficking victims.
Each Letter of Interest should clearly state how its project proposal will impact one of these four measurable impact goals. Although it is possible for a project to impact more than one Measurement Focus, each Letter of Interest should identify the primary Measurement Focus it hopes to improve.
Baseline, Endline, Survivor Survey, and Public Polling
In addition to annual data collection from Award Recipients, Atlas Free intends to conduct baseline and endline measurements for each of these four Measurement Focuses. Atlas Free also hopes to enable a poll of the general public in Kenya about issues related to human trafficking and a compensated sex trafficking survivor survey about conditions, services, accountability, and perceptions.
Potential Project Examples
Organizations can propose a wide range of projects that will drive measurable change in combating human trafficking in Nairobi. Some examples of possible activities include, but should not be limited to, the following:
- Develop and operate an emergency victim response with law enforcement so sex trafficking victims remain in a safe, secure, trauma-informed setting during the government investigation of the case and until placement with a service provider.
- Establish and develop a Survivor Council that works with the CTIP Secretariat and other Nairobi officials to advise and support government, civil society, and business leaders in increasing victim identification, expanding support services, and enhancing perpetrator accountability.
- Establish a plan of action with law enforcement and relevant officials on identifying online sex trafficking cases.
- Work with the Prosecutor’s Office to enhance identification, investigation, and prosecution efforts for sex trafficking, child and online exploitation, as well as patronizing a prostituted person/ buying sex, through specialized staffing, coordinated responses, etc.
- Demand reduction initiatives that focus on reduction of purchasing sex as well as addressing public perceptions and attitudes towards prostitution.
- Develop and operate a secure online reporting and referral system that enables community members, service providers, and technology platforms to report suspected online exploitation and connect identified victims to protection and support services.
- Train, educate, support, and mentor judges, prosecutors, and investigators in trauma-informed and evidence-based case management.
- Train social justice centers, community health volunteers, teachers, religious leaders, and community paralegals to identify trafficking indicators and make referrals.
- Utilize case studies and process mapping to determine gaps in identification and referral processes for sex trafficking victims, including transnational sex trafficking victims.
- Develop a program to equip human trafficking and child exploitation survivors with skills that support independent living and economic empowerment.
The examples are illustrative and should not limit the creativity of organizations or agencies with local context, knowledge, and experience.
Eligibility
- Nonprofit organizations and government agencies are eligible to apply for this Funding Opportunity.
- Although nonprofit organizations do not have to be a current Atlas Free Network Member to submit a Letter of Interest, to receive an award under this Funding Opportunity, organizations must apply for and be accepted as an Atlas Free Network Member. Contact our team, Evas@atlasfree.org, to begin the Membership Application process.
- Atlas Free Network Members already receiving funding through one of Atlas Free’s other Funding Streams are eligible to apply. Such applicants should include in their Letter of Interest all funding received from Atlas Free in the last three years.
Subgranting
This funding opportunity does not favor plans to subgrant. If an applicant intends to subgrant, it should make clear the necessity for the proposed subgrant and its missional impact.
Grant Awards
- Atlas Free intends to make grant awards over three years. Shorter award periods are possible depending on the application, but longer ones are not.
- The awards in this Funding Opportunity are not expected to fully fund a project or program. Instead, these awards are intended to meaningfully supplement an organization’s current funding and focus missional efforts. Each Award will include an allowance for administrative costs related to the grant purpose.
Input From Sex Trafficking Survivors
Atlas Free encourages applicants to partner with sex trafficking survivors as they develop and implement their projects.
Letters of Interest
For a complete guide on submitting a Letter of Interest by 17 August 2026, please review the information below.