Fund to Tackle Gender-Based Violence in Egypt: Call for Concept Notes

Deadline: 9-Jan-23

To mark 16 days of activism this year, the British Embassy in Cairo is launching the UK Fund to help efforts to tackle gender-based violence in Egypt.

The UK (Laha w Maha/ For Her, With Her) Fund will be funded through the UK Conflict Stability and Security Fund (CSSF), a cross UK government programme that delivers projects to address violence and instability around the world. The UK Fund is informed by evidence on best practice from UK Aid’s flagship programme What Works to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls.

Gender-based violence can affect everyone, but disproportionately affects women and girls globally. In both the UK and Egypt this year they have witnessed tragic crimes against women and girls. Sadly, changing the views that often drive gender-based violence can be difficult. Accessing services like legal, psychological, and medical support can also often be challenging.

Reporting crimes can mean not being believed. Seeking justice when there is not an admission of guilt by the offender can sometimes entail a lengthy and frightening delay until a trial takes place. These crimes are therefore often hidden. The UK is committed to supporting both the response for victims and survivors and placing a clear focus on preventing these crimes from happening in the first place. Everyone has a role in doing this.

The UK Fund is open to creative collaborative proposals from a wide range of actors in Egypt with a major focus on 2 core strands of effort: Prioritising Prevention and Supporting Survivors. These include:

• Religious institutions
• Charities
• Local community groups
• Schools and universities
• Business and private sector
• Local government.

Priorities

• Prioritising Prevention: addressing the root causes, reducing prevalence and tolerance of gender-based violence
  • Focus areas under this strand include, but are not limited to:
    • Changing attitudes: working with those who hold influence, particularly with men and boys, to challenge those who think the victim is to blame, or that violence and abuse is acceptable or a private matter
    • Changing behaviour: helping victims feel more confident to report abuse, empowering individuals to play their part in tackling the issues by encouraging active bystander action
    • Educating across the spectrum of what gender-based violence is: violence can be physical, emotional or through coercive behaviour, financial, and institutional
    • Addressing inequitable gender beliefs: including stereotypes of gender roles and stigma
    • Supporting safety: including online, in public spaces, transport, workplaces, schools and universities
• Supporting Survivors: strengthening availability and specialism in service provision for survivors of gender-based violence
  • Focus areas under this strand include, but are not limited to:
    • Increasing geographical reach of community and local support services, crisis centres or refuges to rural and underserved areas
    • Legal support: availability and specialism in prosecuting gender-based violence
    • Medical support: including training for emergency services
    • Psychological and trauma support through specialist counsellors
    • Tailored support to specific groups: for example, based on sex, ethnicity, age, disability, including specialist service helplines under a “by and for” model.

Funding Information

• Projects will begin in April 2023 and run up until March 2025. Individual project budgets should not be more than £250,000.

Eligibility Criteria

• UK Fund welcomes bids from Egyptian women-focused organisations across civil society, religious institutions, local community groups, schools, and universities. If you are unsure of your ability to apply, contact us at withherforher. All lead bid organisations (if the bidder is looking to work with a consortium of organisations) will have a track record to justify the technical and organisational capacity required to implement.
• Concept note bids and budgets should detail how at least 70% of funding bid will be targeted at directly supporting women and girls. Concept notes should detail how they can meet the specific needs of rural and underserved demographics, prioritising inclusion.
• Concept notes should clearly outline:
  • Evidenced need
  • Ambition and projected impact
  • Timeframes
  • Estimated costs
  • Risks
  • Sustainability
• Organisation’s ability and track record operation, including how your organisation is equipped with the expertise and resources for this project as well as your organisation’s proposed approach to delivering, measuring progress and monitoring short-term impact
• Concept notes should take a multi-stakeholder approach, working in consortium with smaller organisations or groups where possible to encourage reach across various demographics.

Other Requirements

• FCDO requires applicants to have the necessary permissions to operate in Egypt
• 70% of funding should be targeted at women and girls
• Bidders should have sufficient financial resilience and a proven track record of transparently and effectively managing donor funded projects
• CSSF will conduct a due diligence assessment on the successful potential partner including reviewing safeguarding measures
• Projects will be delivered through a Grant Agreement and therefore the organisation cannot profit from the received grant funding. Read further information/guidance on what that agreement might look like
• Additional project documentation, including a full itemised budget and results framework will be completed by the successful bidder/s invited to submit full proposals.

For more information, visit CSSF.