Research projects must be relevant to labour market policies in low-income countries (LICs). Research in other countries may be funded, but only if the applicant justifies the reasons for doing so and explicitly describes the process by which the results extend to LICs and are relevant for policy making in LICs. This is the list of countries defined by FCDO as LICs (as of December 2022):
- Afghanistan
- Bangladesh
- Benin
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Comoros
- Congo, Dem. Rep.
- Congo, Rep.
- Côte d’Ivoire
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Gambia, The
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Haiti
- Honduras
- India
- Indonesia
- Kenya
- Kyrgyz Republic
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Mozambique
- Myanmar
- Nepal
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Occupied Palestinian Territories
- Pakistan
- Papua New Guinea
- Rwanda
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Solomon Islands
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Sri Lanka
- Sudan
- Syrian Arab Republic
- Tajikistan
- Tanzania
- Timor-Leste
- Togo
- Uganda
- Vietnam
- Yemen, Rep.
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe