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IDRC AI4D Responsible AI Empowering People Program for the Global South is sponsored by International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The AI4D Responsible AI Empowering People program is a major joint initiative by Canada International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) investing over CAD 100 million to support responsible AI development and deploym…
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Artificial Intelligence for Development | IDRC - International Development Research Centre Artificial Intelligence for Development Artificial Intelligence for Development (AI4D) partners with AI researchers, innovators and policymakers to support homegrown, responsible AI applications and policies. Artificial intelligence (AI) systems are rapidly becoming a new layer of infrastructure, with transformative potential.
Yet, as with any widely adopted technology — especially one as powerful and potentially pervasive as AI —, the benefits come with risks that must be managed and mitigated. AI can reinforce structural inequalities and bias, perpetuate gender imbalances, threaten jobs and facilitate oppressive government surveillance.
That is why IDRC supports research in the Global South around the concept of responsible AI: the practice of designing, developing and deploying AI systems that are safe, inclusive, rights-based and sustainable.
The vision: A responsible AI ecosystem The vision of the AI4D program is to support a responsible AI ecosystem where local experts are enabled to solve their own development challenges with inclusive responsible AI applications and policies. AI4D is also supporting and advancing Southern leadership in local and global governance decisions, debates and innovation fora.
The vision goes back to 2020, when IDRC and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency launched the Artificial Intelligence for Development in Africa (AI4D Africa) program.
That five-year, CAD20-million partnership set the foundations for a responsible AI ecosystem in Africa, supporting one French-language and two English-language responsible AI policy research hubs, funding the establishment of three multidisciplinary AI laboratories at public universities and spurring the development of nearly 100 locally led innovations.
AI4D beyond Africa (2025-2029) IDRC / David Hogsholt, Panos Pictures In 2024, IDRC partnered with the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) to launch the AI4D: Responsible AI, Empowering People program. This program, with an investment of more than CAD100 million, will continue building on the work of AI4D Africa.
It will also coordinate IDRC’s AI programming in Africa with work that the Centre supports in Latin America and the Middle East, such as the Global Index on Responsible AI , the Feminist AI Research (FAIR) Network and the AI for Global Health initiative , to maximize the potential for impact.
The program will also expand the geographic focus of AI4D to low- and lower-middle-income countries in South and Southeast Asia and the Pacific region. At its core, AI4D seeks to contribute to two critical outcomes: Shaping policy : Establishing responsible AI policies and regulations that minimize harm and promote inclusivity, ethics, sustainability and human rights.
Scaling innovation : Supporting and expanding impactful AI applications that address key development challenges, such as gender inequality and environmental sustainability.
Specifically, AI4D focuses on four pillars: Strengthening AI ecosystem fundamentals through two umbrella activities: fostering academic talent and skills around AI through the development of multidisciplinary AI4D university labs, and supporting and debiasing the AI data ecosystem through the creation of locally relevant datasets, which are then made accessible for sustainable use.
Supporting policy research think-and-do tanks to establish responsible AI by funding sub-regional policy think-and-do tanks as well as responsible regional AI observatories. Supporting AI solutions that address critical development challenges in priority sectors such as health, gender equality, education, climate change adaptation and agriculture through the innovation research networks and support to small-grant programs.
Appropriately scaling responsible AI innovations that have a demonstrated development impact in priority sectors. The AI4D Funders Collaborative IDRC and FCDO are convening the AI4D Funders Collaborative that is uniting with partners around the world to centre challenges in the Global South and combat technological and social inequality by supporting inclusive, responsible AI made by and for communities.
This global partnership includes IDRC, FCDO, Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Gates Foundation, working together to coordinate programming around a shared set of thematic and sectoral challenges within the AI space. To learn more, visit the AI4D and the AI4D Funders Collaborative website .
AI for equitable health systems: better data, access and health outcomes AI for Development research partners appointed to the UN’s new expert panel on artificial intelligence IDRC at the India AI Impact Summit 2026: Driving responsible AI for global impact IDRC at the 2025 Canadian Conference on Global Health AI4D expands to address safety, peace, security and social impact of AI South African researchers tackle the global problem of poor air quality Kigali roundtable spotlights responsible artificial intelligence for development partnerships From commitment to action: Advancing the use of AI in education in Africa Scaling up health-care access for pregnant women and mothers using artificial intelligence
According to the current listing, eligibility includes: Research organizations in developing countries particularly in Africa Asia and Latin America. Confirm the full requirements in the official notice before applying.
The current listing shows over CAD 100 million (approximately USD 73 million) total program investment from IDRC and UK FCDO. Individual research grants up to CAD 1 million (approximately USD 730,000) per project. The related AI for Global Health (AI4GH) initiative has a separate CAD 22.3 million budget over seven years. Verify award ceilings, matching requirements, and allowable costs in the official notice.
IDRC AI4D Responsible AI Empowering People Program for the Global South is funded by International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). Verify program details on the funder's official page before applying.
Start from the official opportunity page linked in this listing — it carries the sponsor's submission instructions.
AI4D Responsible AI, Empowering People is the second multi-year phase of the AI for Development (AI4D) program jointly funded by Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the UK FCDO. The program funds responsible AI research, AI public policy, AI talent and education, and the scaling of AI innovations addressing development challenges across Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. Funding streams cover applied AI research, networks of African AI institutions, women in AI, AI for climate adaptation, and policy capacity. Rolling calls are issued through the IDRC funding portal and regional partners.
The AI4D Responsible AI Empowering People program is a major joint initiative by Canada International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) investing over CAD 100 million to support responsible AI development and deployment in the Global South. The program funds research organizations in developing countries to generate knowledge shaping inclusive ethical and sustainable AI policies. Individual grants of up to CAD 1 million support projects studying socio-economic impacts of AI building local AI research capacity strengthening health systems through contextualized AI solutions and developing responsible AI frameworks. Recent calls have focused on AI impacts in Africa awarding up to four grants per call. The related AI for Global Health (AI4GH) initiative provides CAD 22.3 million over seven years specifically for AI health research. IDRC also partnered with the International Science Council to explore AI impacts on science systems in the Global South. This is distinct from TWAS Seed Grants which target individual early-career African researchers and from Humanity AI which is a US-based philanthropic coalition.
S. 3971 reauthorized SBIR/STTR through 2031 after the longest lapse in the program's history. Buried inside are a new $30M Strategic Breakthrough Award, per-company proposal caps arriving in FY2027, eight-watchlist foreign-risk screening, and bigger TABA budgets. Here is what each change means for who wins and who gets squeezed out.
Read articleThe May 29 OMB rewrite of 2 CFR Part 200 extends what has been a NASA-specific restriction since 2011 to every federal grant-making agency. Proposed §200.220 prohibits use of federal funds for collaboration with entities in or controlled by a 'covered foreign country' — currently the People's Republic of China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela. Proposed §200.202(e) requires senior political appointee written approval before any federal R&D award flows to a foreign entity. Together they reshape university international research operations more comprehensively than any policy change since the 2018 China Initiative. Comment deadline July 13.
Read articleS. 3971 — the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act — reauthorized SBIR and STTR through September 30, 2031 after a six-month lapse. The legislation adds Strategic Breakthrough Awards up to $30M with 100% matching, eight-watchlist foreign-affiliation screening, and FY 2027 per-company proposal caps. Companies that built their pipeline around volume submissions need a new strategy now.
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