Grants Competition for Non-Governmental Organisations in Ukraine

Deadline: 20-Sep-23

In order to strengthen the sustainability and effectiveness of civil society organizations that provide services to the population affected by a full-scale invasion, as well as to promote the development of organizations in war conditions, within the framework of the second phase of the program “Capable and Strong” Eastern Europe Fund announces the grant competition.

The “Capable and Strong” program is implemented by the Eastern Europe Foundation with funding from Switzerland.

The “Capable and Strong” program also offers measures for the development of public organizations to strengthen their resilience in war conditions. Partner organizations selected through the competition will be offered organizational capacity assessment, online trainings and mentoring from leading specialists at the organizations’ request. At the same time, interested organizations will also be able to receive on a competitive basis a voucher worth up to UAH 40,000, which can be spent on the development of communication and/or IT tools or receive additional training from external suppliers.

Goals of the Grant Competition

• Within the grant component of the program, CSO initiatives that provide support to victims of a full-scale invasion will be supported.
• Support is proposed to focus on the most vulnerable groups, such as internally displaced persons (IDPs) and returnees, the local population, and women and children affected by the war.
• Initiatives may relate to responding to the needs of the organization’s target audience (hereinafter referred to as CA), support of existing and/or development of new services and activities important for CA and the local community.
• Possible areas of activity within the scope of the grant competition include, but are not limited to:
  • Measures promoting the social integration and rehabilitation of IDPs include employment assistance, legal assistance, psychological support, other counseling support, etc.
  • Conducting activities aimed at learning new skills and developing competencies that will help IDPs and/or the affected local population to adapt to new conditions, including activities to support and develop entrepreneurship, increase employment, etc.
  • Measures that contribute to the involvement of IDPs and other vulnerable population groups in solving community problems (for example, conflict prevention and mediation, minimizing the risks of conflicts, etc.).
  • Measures aimed at creating/improving the conditions of stay of IDPs in the receiving territorial community.
  • Creation or strengthening of partnerships of interested CSOs and local authorities to solve local problems and challenges of wartime in order to support the affected population.
  • Creation/provision of safe and inclusive co-working spaces, spaces for work, study and/or cultural leisure for forcibly displaced persons, local population (among others – youth, children and their parents, elderly people), etc.
  • Measures to combat gender-based violence (GBV).
  • Support and services for the (multi)vulnerable population: the elderly, persons affected by domestic violence, people with disabilities, national minorities, LGBTIQ+ and others.
  • Other measures and initiatives providing support to people affected by a full-scale invasion, including IDPs and vulnerable local populations.

Terms of Support

• Lot 1: Grants from UAH 3,000,000 to UAH 4,500,000 for CSOs that have previous experience in implementing similar projects and the necessary professional potential. From lot 1, it is planned to support from 7 to 10 projects.
• Lot 2: Grants ranging from UAH 1,000,000 to UAH 1,300,000 for CSOs that have previous experience in implementing similar projects and the necessary professional potential. From lot 2, it is planned to support from 10 to 15 projects.

Duration

• Expected duration of projects: up to 5 months. In any case, all projects must be completed no later than March 31, 2024.
• Expected start of operations: November-December 2023.

Criteria

• Geography of the competition: the territory under the control of the Government of Ukraine at the time of submission of the application.
• Within this competition, only one application from one applicant can be supported.
• Civil society organizations (CSOs), namely: charitable organizations (non-business associations, institutions, foundations, etc.), public associations (public organizations, public unions), which are registered as legal entities in Ukraine and have non-profit status, are invited to participate in the competition.
• Applications from business entities (including legal entities and individual entrepreneurs), state authorities, local governments, political parties, and religious organizations will not be considered. Applicant organizations must not be in a state of bankruptcy or dissolution of legal entity at the time of application.
• Grants cannot be issued to organizations that, at the time of signing the grant agreement, are registered (have a legal address) in the territory designated as temporarily occupied (in the list of settlements in the territories of which the state authorities of Ukraine temporarily do not exercise their powers, as well as settlements, located on the dividing line).

Selection Criteria

• All applications submitted to the competition will be reviewed and evaluated by an independent panel of experts based on the following selection criteria:
  • Compliance of the planned activity with the conditions of the competition.
  • Understanding the needs of beneficiaries and the scope of their coverage.
  • Realism of the project, clear identification of risks.
  • Experience of members of the organization and involved specialists.
  • Previous successful experience of the organization in the implementation of similar projects with a similar budget.
  • Reasonableness of the budget.
• Additional preference will be given to projects whose geographic coverage includes areas affected by hostilities.

For more information, visit Eastern Europe Foundation.