The recently published Funding the Frontline: Learning from the Next Level Grant Facility Learning Report conducts a deep, strategic synthesis of Slum Dwellers International’s (SDI) implementation of the Next Level Grant Facility (NLGF) within the Voices for Just Climate Action (VCA) programme.
The NLGF is a grant mechanism providing small, flexible resources to community networks, youth groups, and women’s organisations to support locally driven climate resilience. The Urban Poor Funds (UPFs) are SDI’s long-standing community-managed financial structures, built through collective savings and governance, which enable communities to finance their own priorities. The findings indicate that SDI’s grassroots organising model, combining UPFs and federated political leverage, offers a resilient and locally grounded approach to climate resilience that can complement or strengthen traditional grant mechanisms.
The experience shows how the two instruments influenced and reinforced one another: UPFs provided a trusted foundation for mobilising resources, while the NLGF introduced flexibility and experimentation that strengthened community systems. The NLGF experience serves as a powerful proof point, asserting that community agency is not a mere beneficiary of funding, but the optimal delivery vehicle that external financial mechanisms must align with, not impede. This necessitates a fundamental re-architecture of procurement, reporting, and timeline standards to match the localised rhythm and reality of informal settlements.
Installation of bee hives as part of sustainable beekeeping, sunflower farming, and planting of fruit and indigenous trees to combat drought, food insecurity, and climate change in Kenya
Key Learnings
Several important learnings emerge from the NLGF experience that are relevant for future climate finance interventions and community-led resilience work, and these are:
Communities demonstrated strong capacity to diagnose local climate stresses, using lived experience, local data, and simple evidence tools to link shocks such as drought, flooding, or heat to actionable solutions. Groups with more experience showed better alignment between their analysis and budgets, while newer groups required additional guidance to refine logic and costing.
Fund managers played a crucial role as intermediaries between community groups and formal funding mechanisms. They absorbed the bulk of formal reporting, documentation, and data collection, while also carrying the responsibility of capacitating groups to manage budgets, plan effectively, and meet basic reporting standards. Through consistent communication, structured feedback, and early identification of challenges, fund managers strengthened project designs and assisted groups gain confidence in navigating formal funding processes. This experience demonstrates that fund managers are an essential pillar of locally led financing systems, and their role must be recognised, resourced, and supported in future funding models to maintain both effectiveness and legitimacy.
Implementation progressed despite procurement delays, weather disruptions, and uneven partner responsiveness. Groups with clear internal organisation, defined roles, and task leadership adapted quickly and maintained momentum. Accessible monitoring practices, such as photos, site visits, WhatsApp reporting, and peer validation, enabled rapid course corrections where needed.
Stakeholder engagement proved decisive. Groups with established relationships with chiefs, councillors, or municipal authorities experienced smoother project progression and sometimes attracted additional support. In contrast, newer or less recognised groups highlighted the ongoing need to build legitimacy and establish effective local partnerships.
Internal capacity shaped outcomes. Groups familiar with SDI processes navigated planning, documentation, and small-budget management more effectively, while newer groups benefited from sustained coaching, templates, and regular check-ins rather than one-off training sessions.
The interaction between UPFs and the NLGF revealed both synergies and tensions. UPF practices, savings discipline, collective decision-making, and financial accountability provided a strong foundation for managing grant resources. At the same time, the NLGF introduced dynamics that occasionally disrupted established norms of contribution and entitlement, highlighting the importance of aligning new funding mechanisms with local financial cultures and expectations.
Zambia Community Group Member funded by the NLGF : Hydroponic farming
Building on the NLGF experience, SDI has integrated the same approach in the REDAA (Reversing Environmental Degradation in Africa and Asia) project, continuing to provide grants to local groups supported by fund managers. This demonstrates that the lessons learned were not theoretical but practical, influencing SDI’s operational model and ensuring that prior learning is applied in new contexts.
Overall, the NLGF experience, and its continuation through REDAA, serves as a proof point that community agency is not a mere recipient of funding, but the optimal delivery vehicle for external finance. It reinforces the need for procurement, reporting, and timelines that align with community rhythms and realities, strengthening the effectiveness and sustainability of locally led climate resilience initiatives.
To download and read the full report, please click here.
