Qatar call for bids: Gulf Strategy Fund, 2025 to 2026
Source: gov.uk (2025-11-14)

The British Embassy Doha is inviting project proposals under the Gulf Strategy Fund in the range of £50,000 to £80,000 to be delivered by June 2026.

British Embassy Doha, in collaboration with the Qatar Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the AI Committee of the Qatar Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), and Qatar Research, Development and Innovation Council (QRDI), is pleased to invite proposals to promote collaboration between the UK and Qatar in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI), with an emphasis on advancing healthcare sciences.

Background

Building on the momentum of the inaugural UK-Qatar AI Research Commission (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-and-qatar-launch-project-to-boost-artificial-intelligence-collaboration) which brought together leading experts and institutions from across the UK and Qatar ecosystems, Phase II initiates a transition from assessment to implementation. This phase is focused on delivering practical, high-impact exemplar initiatives and pilot projects that tackle mutual challenges and opportunities in AI, establishing foundations for deeper and sustainable collaboration across both countries. The UK and Qatar are committed to utilising their respective strengths in research, innovation, and policy to promote and advance responsible AI development, aligning efforts to national strategies and global best practice, whilst strengthening collaboration across government, academia, and the private sector.

Phase I of the partnership, completed in September 2025, identified multiple priority areas for collaboration, including Cross-cutting Enablers, AI for Good, Trust and Governance, and AI and Healthcare Science, proposing a flexible framework for future UK-Qatar cooperation in AI. For this specific call, we are focusing on AI and Healthcare Science.

Healthcare sciences

Phase I advocates for collaborative research in AI within healthcare science and highlights the value of combining expertise, sharing data, and developing common infrastructure to advance safe and meaningful innovation. The report addresses the distinctive nature of the healthcare sector and emphasises the necessity of supporting commercial healthcare and scientific enterprises as they progress towards market readiness. It asserts that piloting use cases is critical for testing and refining innovative approaches. Consequently, a structured collaborative framework is required to enable the UK and Qatar to effectively identify and address challenges unique to the health sector and facilitate their adoption across varied settings.

Objectives

The objective of this call is to establish a small number of high-impact projects that leverage UK-Qatar collaboration in AI in the areas of healthcare sciences to address real-world challenges, and support the development of robust, sustainable systems and partnerships. Projects should be ambitious yet realistic in scope, well-defined, and deliverable within the project timeframes. Proposals should aim to deliver meaningful outcomes, with clear potential for scalability and alignment with the strategic interests of both countries. Projects with potential for multi-year programmes are preferred, but funding is guaranteed only for financial year 2025 to 2026.

Priority areas

Bids are invited for projects which fall within the following:

AI regulation, ethics and safety

Advance a shared regulatory and ethical framework that is sensitive to linguistic and cultural differences, enabling joint identification and resolution of regulatory and practical challenges. Areas of focus include:
- development of regulatory standards, evaluation, and monitoring across all healthcare AI domains – such as medical devices, decision support tools, large language models, and generative AI in both health professions education and for healthcare innovation
- healthcare data governance and patient privacy, ensuring compliance and trust in UK-Qatar collaborations
- ethical considerations in AI deployment in the healthcare sciences sector, including issues such as data privacy and sharing, transparency, accountability and equitable treatment
Applied AI pilots

Deliver pilots that demonstrate measurable patient and/or system benefits, supported by rigorous evaluation and adoption plans and with a clear regard for ethical and safety considerations. Priorities include:
- supporting adoption and deployment of AI in the healthcare system, including workforce readiness
- national health data warehouse management and AI-driven analytics for forecasting, enabling predictive insights and informed system-level planning
- advancing the use of multilingual healthcare focused Large Language Models
- using AI to strengthen healthcare supply chain resilience and medicine security through improved supply and demand management, risk management, forecasting and continuity planning
- enhancing patient safety and quality through AI-driven clinical decision support, error reduction, and evidence-based care pathways
- using AI to strengthen antimicrobial resistance prevention, detection and mitigation strategies
- AI in genomics and multiomics to advance precision medicine and personalised care
Funding and delivery

Projects will be funded through UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and must be delivered by 30 June 2026.

Projects with potential for multi-year programmes will be prioritised, but funding is only committed for the first year of delivery.

Projects may be in the range of £50,000 to £80,000; however, applications for smaller projects will also be considered.

Eligibility and procedural requirements

Eligibility

only applications from non-profit organisations, non-governmental organisations, or government entities are eligible. Participation in Phase I is not a requirement for submitting a proposal for this call
- the project must be led by a single lead implementer holding full accountability for project delivery and budget. A lead implementer may, subject to British Embassy Doha’s agreement, sub-contract some activities to a third party
- project proposals must demonstrate substantial collaboration between UK and Qatari institutions. Accordingly, applications are open to organisations based in the UK or Qatar. Priority will be given to institutions which can demonstrate experience in collaborations between UK and Qatar
- applicants must also demonstrate competency/experience in AI. This would ideally include competency/expertise in the specific theme most relevant to the project’s scope as outlined above
- project proposals must: be complete; demonstrate clear project design; and include a plan for measuring impacts and results (Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL)
- ethics and do no harm: bids must include adequate ethical risk assessments, including in relation to any potential issues around data, safeguarding, AI safety, and other relevant ethical issues
How to apply

We would encourage potential applicants to discuss project ideas with the British Embassy Doha Programmes Team before submitting an application or to seek further clarification. Contact the Programmes Team, xxx@xxx.xx with any questions.

To submit a proposal complete and submit the following:

project proposal form (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6916fc34db01ecfcf96fc98b/PrOF_Project_Proposal_Form__PPF__-_Over__10k.odt) (ODT, 61.1 KB)

Activity Based Budget template (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6916fc4d493305b49ce6e7d1/PrOF_Activity_Based_Budget__ABB_.ods) (ODS, 9.91 KB) (ABB) – this template must clearly indicate the planned expenditure, including delivery, administrative, and staffing costs itemised

Timeline

14 November 2025: call for bids opens.

21 November 2025: (optional) expression of interest deadline. To submit this, applicants should send an email to xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx) with a brief description of their project purpose, scope and expected deliverables.

28 November 2025: (optional) concept note (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6916fc1ebc34c86ce4e6e7b5/Concept_Note.odt) (ODT, 8.71 KB) submission deadline.

5 December 2025: full proposal submission deadline.

Mid-late December 2025: communication of funding decisions.

January 2026: new projects delivery starts.

Deadline for submitting applications (with Project Proposal Form, and ABB) is 5 December 2025.

Process

Projects will be assessed as per the below Appraisal Criteria, for approved projects, and prior to awarding grants, the Embassy will begin the mobilisation process b, including:
- due diligence assessments
- preparation and signing of an accountable Grant Agreement (AGA) / or Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
Appraisal criteria

Further guidance

In awarding and overseeing programme funds British Embassy Doha is obliged to comply with all Cabinet Office and FCDO rules and guidance, including but not limited to those set out in the FCDO Programme Operating Framework (PrOF). Potential implementing partners should especially take note of the following requirements:
- FCDO can only pay for costs that are incurred after signature of the Grant Agreement (GA) or MoU and between the start and end date stated in a funding agreement. No payment can be made in advance of need. All projects must align with the Paris Agreement and assess climate and environmental impact and risks, taking steps to ensure that no environmental harm is done
- all projects must demonstrate how their interventions will impact gender equality, disability inclusion and those with protected characteristics
- all projects involving paid-for communications activity must receive clearance from the Professional Communications Assurance (PCA) team prior to signing a GA / MoU
- all approved projects will be expected to comply with FCDO mandated reporting requirements using templates provided, including: (i) Monthly Actual Based Budget (ABB) forecasts; (ii) Quarterly Monitoring Reports (QMR) and (iii) Project closure report (PCR)
- all projects activities must be completed within the financial year for which the funding is approved. Projects should plan to complete activities by February or very-early March to allow for financial processing to be concluded before the end of each financial year
Background to the GSF

The GSF is a UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO) fund within the FCDO’s International Programme. It supports Qatar’s ambitious ‘National Vision 2030’ agenda for modernisation, economic diversification and climate action, while enhancing mutual prosperity by promoting inward investment and creating opportunities for UK companies, especially in the education, climate, culture, tourism, sport and finance sectors. The GSF is also expected to align with the UK Government’s strategic priorities in Qatar.

Contact

Sumaia Mashal Science and Technology Country Lead British Embassy, Doha xxx@xxx.xx