Deadline: 31-Mar-23
The Caribbean Policy Development Centre (CPDC), with support from the European Union (EU) is implementing a project entitled “Strengthening Civil Society’s Capacity to Alleviate the Impact of COVID-19 on Vulnerable Communities in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean”.
In light of this, CPDC is issuing a call for grant proposals to strengthen the enabling environment for Caribbean NGOs working with the most vulnerable sectors impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This will be facilitated through improving access to financial resources, technical training and enhancing the voice of marginalized persons.
Purpose
- The project covers seven CARICOM countries; these countries include Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Saint Vincent and Grenadines. The project will build the Non-Governmental Sector’s capacity in the Caribbean by implementing several specific actions. These actions focus on strengthening NGOs’ capacity to provide key development solutions to vulnerable groups affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. These actions include activities that promote NGO’s institutional and organisational capabilities through several core thematic areas: – addressing the legislative environment through advocacy programming, promoting greater transparency within the sector, project management skills development, enhanced regional policy dialogue and improving access to small grants to name a few.
- The project comes against a background of “the multidimensional impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on marginalised social sectors, requiring development support, critical CSO interventions to achieve sustainable development. However, the meaningful participation of CARIFORUM civil society has been stymied by two main factors; the lack of capacity to effectively engage in the COVID-19 policy process and the lack of an institutionalised mechanism to facilitate dialogue between civil society and CARIFORUM governments. This Action is therefore intended to implement activities to address these challenges.
Objectives
- Major Objective
- To improve service delivery and strengthening the voice of the marginalised social sectors and groups impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic within Caribbean society by providing small scale funding for actions that enable NGOs to respond to the needs vulnerable groups adequately.
- Specific Objectives
- To support NGOs to provide essential developmental services to their beneficiaries which address development issues that directly impact on their lives and livelihood;
- To foster positive social change in the lives of marginalised social sectors/groups through the formulation and implementation of educational and advocacy strategies;
- To improve organisational capacity of NGOs to deliver project services and advocacy solutions to vulnerable groups.
Funding Information
- The overall indicative amount made available under this Call is USD 242 304.00. The Contracting Authority reserves the right not to award all available funds. Similarly, this amount could be increased should more funds become available. A minimum co-financing requirement of USD 1200.00 will be required from all grantees.
- Size of Grants Any grant requested under this Call for Proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts (not inclusive of co-financing or in-kind:
- Minimum amount: USD 12,115
- Maximum amount: USD 21,000
- Duration: The period to execute the project may not be lower than six months nor exceed nine (9) months from signing the Grant Contract. No extensions will be granted to beneficiaries. All proposed project activities must be completed within the nine (9) month period.
Expected Outcomes
- Improved access to quality services and advocacy outreach by vulnerable groups to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic;
- Enhanced voice of vulnerable groups in policy spaces on COVID-19 related issues;
- Increased NGO capacity to deliver services and advocate in response to the needs of vulnerable groups.
Eligible Activities
- Targeting populations with limited resources with affordable, innovative strategies including the provision of much-needed social and economic development actions, and health-care services;
- Research and knowledge dissemination which includes formulation and production of advocacy materials that assist in communicating to beneficiaries better or communicating sector policy positions; and
- Limited institutional capacity building actions (ICTs, staff training, M&E systems formulation etc.)
Ineligible Activities
The following types of actions are ineligible:
- Actions concerned only or mainly with individual sponsorships for participation in workshops, seminars, conferences and congresses unless proven to be an integral part of the project outcome;
- Actions concerned only or mainly with individual scholarships for studies or training courses;
- Actions which consist exclusively or primarily in capital expenditure, e.g. land, buildings, equipment and vehicles, except in special circumstances;
- Actions which discriminate against individuals or groups of people on the grounds of their gender, sexual orientation, religious belief or lack of them, or their ethnic origin;
- Actions concerned only with one-off conference with no intended follow up. Conferences can only be funded if they form part of a wider range of activities to be implemented in the project’s lifetime. For these purposes, preparatory activities for a conference and the publication of the proceeding of the conference do not, in themselves, constitute such ‘wider activities’;
- Actions supporting individual political parties; and
- Actions involving proselytism.
Location: Actions must take place in one or more of the following countries: these countries include Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and Grenadines.
Eligibility Criteria
- To be eligible for a grant, the applicant must:
- Be non-profit-making and
- Be a legally registered organisation and
- Be established in Caribbean States (Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and Grenadines) and
- Be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the project and
- Have an operational presence including a current and registered bank account with two signatories, and
- Have the demonstrated human resources to ensure the delivery of the project and
- Have a proven track record of at least three years working with the respective vulnerable group
- International organisations are not eligible.
For more information, visit CPDC.