Applications are now closed.

About the Programme

The Creative KL Grants Programme aims to revitalise the historical city centre towards the creation of a creative, liveable, vibrant, and thriving hub by offering opportunities to perform creative district revitalisation and economic development work while, strengthening social, and environmental resilience within Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

It hopes to draw talent and businesses to Downtown Kuala Lumpur; and encourage creation of an environment that appeals to them to live, work, eat and play. Quality of place attributes are integral to attracting and keeping talent, and a deep pool of diverse talent will be a key selling point for bringing new investment to the creative district.

Revitalisation takes multiple forms and varying levels of targeted public investment. Therefore, Think City, with the support of the Ministry of Finance, has launched the Creative KL Grants Programme under the Budget 2023 Malaysia MADANI, to achieve that vision and address the urban challenges present within Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

Terms of Reference

For more details about the Creative KL Grants Programme, please download the Terms of Reference (TOR) below:

Download here

Focus Area

The programme prioritises projects within 250m radius surrounding the Dataran Merdeka Area, Masjid Jamek LRT Station, Jalan Hang Lekiu Area and Pasar Seni Transit Hub. These areas are primarily within Downtown Kuala Lumpur (highlighted in red). Nevertheless, applicants are welcome to propose projects beyond these mentioned areas as long as it is within the coverage outlined in the map below (highlighted in blue).

Source: Kuala Lumpur Creative and Cultural District Strategic Master Plan

Downtown Kuala Lumpur

1Traditional Shopping Street Precinct

2Education Precinct

3Heritage Triangle Precinct

4Petaling Street Precinct

5Civic Precinct

Other Significant Areas

1Chow Kit South

2Bukit Nanas

3Bukit Ceylon

4M118 Precinct

5Kg. Attap Enclave

6Brickfields

7Cultural & Institutions

8Taman Tugu

Grant Themes

The Creative KL Grants Programme supports direct costs associated to five themes:

SPACE REJUVENATION

To invigorate and bring new life to dilapidated/abandoned buildings and spaces around Downtown Kuala Lumpur by reviving, refurbishing, and repurposing them to preserve urban heritage, create positive and healthy spaces, enhance liveability and visitor appeal.

BUSINESS SEEDING AND/OR EXPANSION

To repopulate the city and contribute to the socioeconomic development of the city by assisting business owners with starting new business or relocating and expanding their existing business in Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

CREATIVE CONTENT AND/OR ACTIVATION

To support and strengthen the creative ecosystem through the creation of opportunities for artisans, cultural workers, and creative practitioners to deliver high quality content and programmes in Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

To strengthen resilience, encourage participation via programmes that are designed for local communities.

RESEARCH AND/OR PUBLICATION

To build a creative and cultural district that is well-supported by research, that will in turn enhance the visibility of the district, enhance visitor experience, and create opportunities for the community to thrive.

What can the grant support?

The Creative KL Grants Programme supports direct expenses for you to implement your proposed project that may range from RM50,000 to RM300,000 per application.

It is important to note that the programme:

prioritises projects that have a 1:1 co-investment;
prioritises projects with high impact potential;
supports projects that are inclusive to all communities, bring new users to the space, injects new creative content, diversifies usage of spaces; and
priorities projects that can completed by end of 2023.*

* A written request must be submitted to Think City by 1 November 2023 should an extension beyond this time be required.

Who can apply?

The grants programme is open to individuals, collectives, community-based orgranisations and non-governmental organisations* with project ideas that can diversify the visitor experience, create culturally aligned local economic outcome and contribute to the rejuvenation efforts of Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

*Organisations registered under Registrar of Companies, Registrar of Societies and Registrar of Businesses are welcome to apply.

When can you apply?

The grants programme is open for application from 29 May 2023 till 14 August 2023, with multiple approval rounds in between.

How can you apply?

Interested applicants can submit their application and relevant documents via the online form below and send to the official email downtownkl@thinkcity.com.my.

Application Form

Please note that it is a requirement for you to attend our townhall or grant application clinics.

Dates for these sessions will be announced on the Think City website and communicated through all relevant Think City platforms.

FAQ

ELIGIBILITY

The grants programme is open to individuals, collectives, community-based orgranisations and non-governmental organisations with project ideas that can diversify the visitor experience, create culturally aligned local economic outcome and contribute to the rejuvenation efforts of Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

*Organisations registered under Registrar of Companies, Registrar of Societies and Registrar of Businesses are welcome to apply.

Priority will be given to Malaysians and Malaysia PR holders. However, we welcome international applications should you be residing in Malaysia and have a stake in a local business, property or project in Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

Yes, you are welcome to apply if your proposal targets to benefit the community within the defined Downtown Kuala Lumpur area and is within the grant themes outlined in the Creative KL Grants Programme Terms of Reference.

Yes, you are welcome to apply. Should you be successful in securing approval for the Creative KL Grants Programme, you will be required to complete the outstanding Think City funding programme and reporting. Upon successful completion of the other Think City funding programme, you will only be able to commence the project that is supported through the Creative KL Grants Programme. You will also still be required to complete the projects utilising the Downtown Kuala Lumpur Grants Programme within the stipulated timeline.

Yes, you are welcome to apply. We highly encourage co-investments in projects. Please be sure to share the secured funding in the budget template of the application form and provide a letter of confirmation as supporting document.

You may if you would like but we would only approve one project per applicant per grant cycle.

Yes, you are eligible to apply for the grant. However, the lead applicant must assume full administrative responsibility as well as be actively involved in the whole process.

APPLICATION

Interested applicants can submit their application and relevant documents via the online form at Application Form or to the official email downtownkl@thinkcity.com.my .

Please note that it is a requirement for you to attend the physical/ online briefing sessions or our grant application clinics. Dates for these sessions will be announced on the Think City website and communicated through all relevant Think City platforms.

Should you have any difficulties in the application process, please do not hesitate to contact Think City at downtownkl@thinkcity.com.my or call/ Whatsapp +60132518930.

The grant can support projects within Downtown Kuala Lumpur of the following categories:

  • Space rejuvenation
  • Business seeding and/or expansion
  • Creative content and/or activation
  • Community development
  • Research and/or publication

For more information, please refer to the Creative KL Grants Programme Terms of Reference and attend the townhall sessions or grant application clinics organised by Think City.

Submissions will be accepted beginning 29 May 2023 till 14 August 2023, with multiple approval rounds within this period.

All applications are jointly assessed and approved through a highly competitive evaluation process. Successful and unsuccessful applicants will notified within four (4) weeks of every closing date.

All projects must be completed before 31 December 2023. However, if the project is delayed due to unforeseen circumstances, you can request for an extension of your grant term which must be submitted to Think City by 1 November 2023.

Think City will not be able to accept appeals. All decisions are final.

FUNDING

All project funding will be considered on a case-to-case basis, based on proposed output and the potential project impact.

The Creative KL Grants Programme supports direct expenses for you to implement your proposed project that may range from RM50,000 to RM300,000 per application.

It is important to note that the programme:

  • prioritises projects that have a 1:1 co-investment;
  • prioritises projects with high impact potential;
  • supports projects that are inclusive to all communities, bring new users to the space, injects new creative content, diversifies usage of spaces; and
  • priorities projects that can completed by end of 2023.*

*A written request must be submitted to Think City by 1 November 2023 should an extension beyond this time be required.

No. The grant programme is aimed to support direct expenses of projects that will aid in driving creative and culture-based economy development and strengthening social, economic and environmental resilience within Downtown Kuala Lumpur.

The total amount allocated to approved grant recipients is meant to support expenses and execution of the project within the stipulated time period outlined in the Grant Agreement.

Eligible expenses include:

  • Project mobilisation and preliminary works
  • Materials required for the purpose of fulfilling the project objectives
  • Production, construction and/or publication costs related to project implementation.
  • Marketing and promotional activities

This list may not be exhaustive. Please contact Think City should you require further clarification.

Implementing Partners

Do You Have Any Questions?