A/HRC/19/30 E/CN.6/2012/13 35. In 2011, the Fund developed and began to implement a fund-raising strategy to meet the Secretary-General’s challenge, as part of the “UNiTE” campaign, to raise $100 million for distribution in grant-making in 2015. For grants awarded in 2011 to complete the fifteenth grant-making cycle, the Fund benefited from the generous support of the Governments of Spain (lead donor), Australia, Austria, Finland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United States. In 2011, the Government of Germany also made a multi-year contribution for the first time in the history of the Fund. 36. Recognizing that the private sector has a critical role to play in ending violence against women and girls, the Fund is expanding its partnerships with companies interested in the activities of partner organizations. In 2011, Johnson and Johnson continued to be the lead private-sector partner of the Fund. It has supported the partnership designed to bolster knowledge and learning about the intersection of HIV/AIDS and violence against women, with a special focus on the capacitybuilding of grantees. In addition, the MAC AIDS Fund has contributed to the Fund for the first time to support a capacity-building workshop for new HIV/violence against women cohort grantees. The United Nations Federal Credit Union hosted a second fund-raising event for the Fund in December 2011. The Credit Union, one of the Fund’s private-sector donors, engaged its membership by launching a matching donation challenge, with all proceeds benefiting grantee programmes. The non-profit organization Zonta International contributed to the Fund for the seventh consecutive year. The Fund was also supported by the UN-Women National Committees in Iceland, Japan, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Canada, in addition to contributions from individual donors. VI. Grant-making cycle 2011 37. Fund grants are awarded annually in an open, competitive and transparent process that ensures high-quality programming and rigour in the selection of grantees. The Call for Proposals invites holistic initiatives that focus on reaching particularly excluded or disadvantaged groups through approaches tailored to diverse needs. Priority is placed on applications that highlight multisectoral approaches and collaboration among various stakeholders, evidence of what works to optimize the use of resources, and investment in systematic and comprehensive documentation and evaluation aimed at generating and sharing knowledge. Through its grant-making process, the Fund channels global expertise and resources to the local level, where they are needed most. It also highlights the potential for the scaling-up of successful initiatives, while emphasizing the development of national capacities to foster sustainability. Analysis of applications 38. In 2011, a total of 2,572 concept notes were received, requesting a total of $1.2 billion. This compares with a total of 1,643 concept notes received in 2010, requesting a total of $857 million, reflecting increases of 56 per cent in the number of applications and 38 per cent in the amount of funds requested in just one year. In 2011, the highest number of concept notes and the greatest amount of funds requested came from Africa (35 per cent), followed by Latin America and the Caribbean (29 per cent) and Asia and the Pacific (21 per cent). Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, Arab States and cross- 11-63260 11