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Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Program – Ethiopia

Deadline: 5-Jul-24

The U.S. Embassy Addis Ababa is pleased to announce an open competition to submit applications for community-initiated projects that aim to address identified grassroots level needs and/or support community self-reliance.

The overall purpose of the Special Self-Help program is to respond to requests from local communities through short term and small-scale community driven projects. Hence the communities should be the originators of the project idea and must be involved in planning and implementation of project activities.

Priorities
  • The priority projects for 2024 Special Self-Help Program (SSHP) for Embassy Addis Ababa are:
    • Projects focused on creating income generation opportunities (IGA) for poor and vulnerable households to earn sustainable incomes through rural or urban agriculture, livestock, poultry, home-based fish farming or other innovative livelihood activities, vocational skills or small-scale projects that improve productivity or enable better use of locally available resources etc.
    • Interventions that contribute to environmental protection; through promoting the cultivation of indigenous varieties of plants and crops, production of organic composts, improving waste management practices or processes, supporting the production and use of clean cook stoves for households to reduce forest degradation and decrease pollution in the environment will be accepted.
    • Projects supporting persons with disabilities (PWDs) through interventions that improve access to services, create PWDs accessible service centers, facilitate inclusion of PWDs in various sectors, provide assistive technologies for PWDs with special needs are considered.
Funding Information
  • Total Amount Available: $ 35,000 (Subject to availability)
  • Award amounts: $ 7,000 per project
  • Program Performance Period: Proposed programs should be completed in 12 months or less.
  • Number of awards anticipated: 5 awards
  • Anticipated program start date: October 1, 2024
Eligibility Criteria
  • SSH funds are meant for activities that serve the community at large.
    • Strong preference is given to registered local community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, traditional community associations, youth, and women associations, etc. that are providing services to the communities and are led by the communities themselves. Organizations with previous experience of implementing similar projects and demonstrated financial management experience are given preference.
    • Other not-for-profit grassroots level organizations with the required experience may also apply, if they have community-generated projects and can provide evidence of significant community participation in volunteer time and labor, materials, equipment, or donated space.
  • General criteria for Self-Help projects;
    • The Self-Help Program is responds to the needs/requests from the local communities. The program idea and proposed interventions must be generated by the communities themselves. As owners of the program, the communities should take part in planning and implementation of project activities at all stages;
    • Self-Help projects must foster community self-reliance;
    • Self-Help activities should have significant impact, benefiting the greatest number of people possible. Projects benefitting a limited number of people are not encouraged;
    • Self-Help activities must have community participation and contribution through volunteer time and labor, donated land, equipment, and materials;
    • Activities must help improve basic economic or social conditions at the local community at large or village level;
    • Self-Help projects must be viable and sustainable in terms of finance, required skills and program participants to continue running the activities.
    • Self-Help projects must respect environmental norms. Proposed activity should not adversely affect protected environmental areas nor jeopardize endangered species and their habitat;
    • Self-Help activities must fall within the ability of the local community to implement. Activities that are too complex are not acceptable.

For more information, visit U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia.