Matching Grants

Matching Grants are intended to assist Rotary clubs and districts in carrying out humanitarian projects that will benefit a community in need, but which are of a size that puts them beyond the capacity of an individual club to fund. The projects must involve active Rotarian participation.

Matching Grants “match” Rotary clubs or districts in at least two countries. The club or district in the project country is the host partner, and the club or district outside the country is the international partner.

As the name of the grant indicates, Matching Grants provide a match to funds raised by Rotary clubs and districts. Approved applications will receive a 50% match on every dollar of cash contributions from the participating clubs and a 100% match for every dollar of District Designated Fund (DDF) contributions. (DDF represents the 50% of Paul Harris Fellowship contributions that are returned to Districts and clubs after three years).

Matching Grants are divided into two types: Matching Grants and Competitive Matching Grants. They are categorized according to the amount of funds requested from The Rotary Foundation. Matching Grants range from an award amount of US$5,000 to $25,000. Competitive Matching Grants range from an award amount of US$25,001 to $150,000.

Rotarian involvement is the backbone of any successful Matching Grant project. It is expected that the partners, host and international, will communicate with one another for the life of the project. Both partners must establish committees to oversee the project. The host and international partners must work together to plan and implement the project. Wherever feasible, it is expected that the partners will visit the project site. The partners are responsible for submitting regular reports to TRF and ensuring that proper stewardship guidelines are being maintained.

Matching Grant applications are accepted from 1 July to 31 March in any given Rotary year. Applications are approved from 1 August to 15 May.

The Rotary Club of Bangkok South has been active for many years with overseas partners in undertaking projects via Matching Grants. Additionally, due to our success in obtaining numerous Paul Harris Fellowships in most years, we generally have a steady annual allocation of District Designated Funds to contribute to Matching Grant applications.

Some of our recent Matching Grant projects are listed below. To learn more about any of them, please click on the link provided.