Vitol Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Vitol Foundation focuses its global development grantmaking on education, economic security, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) initiatives. It responds to natural and manmade disasters around the world and prioritizes global health-related grants for access to quality healthcare, water, sanitation and hygiene, as well as Universal Healthcare Access.
IP TAKE: Vitol Foundation staff members play a role in grantmaking decisions. Since the foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funding, grantseekers should contact the staff to network and attract their funding attention. Make sure, however, to have a succinct elevator pitch and a 1-2 page outline ready to go should they request more information. Preparation is key here. It is fairly responsive, so stay patient as it receives many requests.
This foundation is a member of the Big Bang Philanthropy Group. A tough nut to crack, but particularly good for larger foundations.
PROFILE: The Vitol Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the global energy and commodities company Vitol. Though the company first began making grants in 2002, it did not establish the foundation until 2006. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the Vitol Foundation operates out of London and works “fund organisations and ideas that support children and families living in deprivation to escape the cycle of poverty and reach their potential in life.” To these ends, the foundation focuses its grantmaking on health, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), education and livelihoods, and humanitarian relief.
Grants for Global Development, Global Health, and Humanitarian Aid
Vitol’s funding for global health and development “invariably” supports programs in “low, and low to middle income countries, where the challenging effects of chronic under-development, conflict and natural disasters are commonplace.” It seeks to partner with organizations in the private sector, national governments, public institutions, and international groups that work to “reinforce and improve existing in-country systems” or promote “innovation […] to bring about lasting and sustainable change.” It prioritizes support for projects that are “transformational and impactful, effective and efficient, sustainable, scalable and replicable.”
All of the foundation’s grants adhere to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and focus on the following areas: Education, Enterprise & Livelihoods, Health, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), and Humanitarian relief. Its education program prioritizes children’s access to early education, primary and secondary schools. It also supports organizations that work to keep children in school for as long as possible. The foundation's secure livelihood program centers on strengthening market systems and helping young people transition from school to meaningful employment. Its global health-related grantmaking targets projects strengthening health systems through training and infrastructure development; supply chain improvement, improving health data collection; access to quality reproductive health care including adolescent sexual health care; and affordable evidence-based health innovations. Lastly, the foundation’s WASH program focuses on clean water access and on sanitation and hygiene.
Past grantees include Last Mile Health, which received funding for its work delivering health care to remote villages and communities, the Touch Foundation, which received a grant for its Treat, African Union Medics in response to the West Africa Ebola crisis, International Rescue Committee to support its efforts with conflict-related displacement in South Sudan, and Train program, which is creating replicable and sustainable healthcare systems in the Lake Zone of Tanzania. To learn more about Vitol grantees, explore its annual reports.
Important Grant Details:
Grants typically range anywhere from £10,000 to £500,000. Vitol does not accept unsolicited grant applications or requests for funding. Instead, the foundation relies on “recommendations from experts, donors, other partners, and suggestions from staff.”
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
LINKS:
