ARHANT SOCIAL FOUNDATION

Request for Proposals — Phase One

Early Childhood Care & Development (ECCD) and Primary Education | Nepal · Bangladesh · Pakistan, India

      1. About the Arhant Social Foundation

The Arhant Social Foundation (ASF) is a US-based private charitable foundation committed to expanding opportunity for marginalized women and children living in underserved communities across the United States and in low- and middle-income countries around the world. Guided by a belief in equality and unlimited human potential, the Foundation works to dismantle the barriers that limit access to quality education, enrichment programming, and economic empowerment — investing in the conditions that enable individuals and families to build dignified, stable, and selfdetermined lives. We support evidence-based innovative solutions that demonstrate creativity, efficiency, and high quality.

The Foundation seeks to partner with established nonprofits that have deep community roots, a demonstrated record of impactful programming, and a clear path to scale. Grants are provided for both operating and program support, with an emphasis on cultivating long-term partnerships that deepen impact over time.

Our Work in South Asia

The Arhant Social Foundation is committed to advancing equitable access to early childhood care and development and foundational education for the most underserved children and communities across South Asia. The Foundation believes that the earliest years of a child’s life — from birth through the primary grades — are the most critical window for development, and that investing in this window yields the greatest and most lasting returns. For children aged 0–6, ASF prioritizes play-based learning, responsive caregiving, and early stimulation as the foundations of healthy development. For children in Grades 1–3, the Foundation supports foundational literacy and numeracy programming that builds on early learning and ensures children do not just enter school but succeed in it.

ASF recognizes that children’s development cannot be addressed in isolation. Across its South Asia portfolio, the Foundation takes a holistic view — linking early learning with health and nutrition, so that children who are well-nourished and developmentally stimulated arrive at school ready to thrive. Grants in this area support nutrition-integrated ECCD programming; Government supported immunization programs, and community health initiatives that address the root conditions that hold children back.

At the heart of ASF’s work is an unwavering commitment to keeping children safe. Every organization the Foundation funds must meet its child protection and safeguarding standards — no exceptions. ASF places special emphasis on reaching those most often left behind: girls, children with disabilities, and children from the most marginalized communities. Because when children are protected, nurtured, and given the chance to learn through play, they thrive — and that is what the Foundation exists to make possible.

ASF also understands that lasting change requires more than strong programs — it requires strong systems. The Foundation invests in strengthening the community and local government structures that sustain ECCD and primary education services long after a grant period ends. This includes building the capacity of local NGOs and CBOs, mobilizing caregivers and communities as active partners in early learning, and fostering accountability mechanisms that ensure quality and equity over time.

Through this grant cycle, ASF invites NGOs and community-based organizations working in Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) for consideration under Phase One of this RFP process. 

Organizations shortlisted from Phase One will be invited to submit a full proposal in Phase Two. Final grant decisions will be communicated to all applicants by the date indicated in Section 6.

2. Funding priorities

The Foundation’s current funding strategy prioritizes scaling and strengthening interventions with demonstrated effectiveness over early-stage pilot or experimental models. Preference will be given to interventions that have already demonstrated measurable success at a community or regional level and a clear pathway for sustainable scale. 

ASF will prioritize proposals that address one or more of the following thematic areas. Each theme includes multiple sub-themes; applicants may address one or more sub-themes within a theme.

Theme 1: Early Childhood Care & Development (ECCD) | Children aged 0–6

The Foundation seeks to support evidence-informed ECCD programs that improve school readiness and holistic child development outcomes from children aged 0-6. Integrated approaches that incorporate nutrition, health, responsive caregiving and community-based support systems are encouraged where relevant to the local context.

Priority areas may include:

• Play-based learning and early stimulation for children aged 0–6
• Responsive caregiving and parental engagement in nurturing care
• Training and professional development of early childhood educators and caregivers
• Access to quality ECCD services in rural, semi-urban, and underserved communities
• Collaboration with community health workers or other local service delivery systems to support early childhood development  

Theme 2: Access to Education | Foundational learning, Grades 1–3

The Foundation seeks to support evidence-informed programs that strengthen foundational literacy and numeracy for children in Grades 1-3. Programs that integrate child wellbeing, caregiver engagement, nutrition, or community-based supports to improve learning outcomes are encouraged.

Priority will be given to programs that:

• Demonstrate evidence-based approaches to foundational literacy and numeracy in primary grades (Grades 1–3)
• Target areas with low school readiness indicators with an emphasis on first-generation learners or underserved populations
• Integrate teacher training and professional development of primary school teachers
• Community and family engagement in school readiness and early learning
• Address barriers to learning related to nutrition, health access, attendance, or child wellbeing
• Include measurable child learning outcomes

Cross-Cutting Program Requirements

All proposed programs under Themes 1 and 2 must demonstrate the following organizational and programmatic elements

Child Protection and Safeguarding

• Organizations must maintain and actively implement a formal Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy to keep children safe from harm, abuse, and exploitation 
• Staff and volunteers are trained on child protection and know how to report concerns
• Programs targeting and children from marginalized communities, must demonstrate safe, inclusive and accessible participation
• Organizations must designate a safeguarding focal point responsible for oversight and compliance

Systems Strengthening & Community Engagement 

• Preference will be given to programs that strengthen existing communities and local government delivery systems rather than creating parallel structures
• Programs should demonstrate meaningful engagement with caregivers, communities, schools, and or local government systems to support sustainability 
• Organizations should demonstrate capacity to monitor program quality, and accountability 

Evidence and Scalability

Preference will be given to organizations that can demonstrate:

• Evidence of prior learning improvements 
• Use of evidence-based or research informed interventions
• Prior implementation success at meaningful scale
• Strong monitoring and evaluation systems
• Potential for replication through government or community systems
• Organizations are required to submit documentation — such as internal or external evaluations, learning reports, or relevant research — that speaks to the evidence base informing their program approach and its alignment with the themes described above 

       3. Eligibility criteria

To be eligible, applying organizations must meet all the following requirements: 

• Be a legally registered NGO or INGO in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, or Pakistan
• Have a minimum of at least 5 years of programming in ECCD, primary education, or a closely related field
• Have an annual operating budget of at least $3,000,000 USD for the past three fiscal years with a minimum of 10 full-time employees across all programs and operations
• Demonstrated experience managing an institutional grant exceeding USD $300,000 annually within the past three years 
• Provide audited financial statements for the three most recent fiscal years conducted by an independent external audit
• Demonstrate operational presence and direct program management capacity in proposed implementation geographies. Sub-granting is permitted where operationally necessary; however, applicants must identify all sub-grantee partners in their proposal, describe each partner’s role and on-the-ground implementation responsibilities, and demonstrate the lead organization’s capacity to oversee and manage the sub-granting relationship.
• Organizations must demonstrate established monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) systems including routine collection of outcome-level data
• Applications should demonstrate prior implementation reaching substantial beneficiary populations and/or multi-district program operations. 
• Have a formal Child Protection Policy in place and a designated safeguarding focal point within the organization

Note: Government ministries are not eligible to apply in this cycle. Faith-based organizations are eligible only if programs are non-denominational and open to all community members regardless of faith.

 Process and timeline

Shortlisted organizations from Phase One will be invited to submit a full proposal in Phase Two. Not all applicants will advance. Arhant Social Foundation will notify all applicants of LOI outcomes by the date indicated above. Feedback will not be provided on unsuccessful LOIs at the Phase One stage.

Submission instructions

LOIs must be submitted electronically by the deadline. Late submissions will not be considered. 

• Submit to: [grants@arhantsocialfoundation.org]
• Email subject line: LOI Submission — ECCD & Primary Education South Asia 2026

       Questions and clarifications

Questions regarding this RFP should be submitted in writing to

[grants@arhantsocialfoundation.org] no later than Tuesday, June 24, 2026. Responses to all questions received will be compiled and shared with all registered applicants via email. Individual inquiries will not be responded to after this date.

To register interest and receive Q&A updates, please email [grants@arhantsocialfoundation.org] with the subject line: RFP Interest — ECCD & Primary Education South Asia 2026.

For detailed information, please check the complete version of the RFP attached below