Deadline: 5-Oct-20
The Irish Aid is seeking applications for its Civil Society Fund (CSF) to support Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to carry out development projects of between one and three years’ duration.
It is primarily aimed at Irish development NGOs but a limited number of international NGOs are also supported on the basis of identified policy gaps, mainly in the area of human rights.
The Civil Society Fund accepts applications annually from Irish and invited international civil society organisations for grants for development projects of between one and three years duration.
Funding Information
- The minimum annual grant is €50,000 and maximum annual grant is €400,000, subject to the limit of 60% dependency on the Department.
Who are their project partners?
- The Civil Society Fund (CSF) provides support to Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to carry out development projects of between one and three years’ duration. It is primarily aimed at Irish development NGOs but a limited number of international NGOs are also supported on the basis of identified policy gaps, mainly in the area of human rights. Grants totalling €1.9 million over three years were awarded under the 2020 Civil Society Fund to support a diverse range of projects. Below is a list of our current Partners.
Ineligible Expenditure
The following activities are ineligible for CSF support:
- Activities which may discriminate against any groups or persons on the basis of gender, marital status, family status, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, race, ethnicity, etc;
- Activities in contravention of international human rights norms and standards;
- Core funding;
- Development Education activities in Ireland;
- Evangelisation or proselytization;
- Fundraising ;
- Individual or family sponsorship;
- Interventions that are primarily welfare support(s);
- Major infrastructural schemes;
- Membership of an umbrella or representative body;
- Organisational development;
- Public awareness in Ireland;
- Retrospective Expenditure (i.e. costs incurred prior to the project start date agreed with the Department);
- Standalone activities that are not part of a wider project;
- Study or research fellowships (excluding short-duration training of staff, partners and beneficiaries within the region);
- Response to sudden-onset acute emergencies (however, interventions for chronic or protracted humanitarian crises are eligible).
Eligibility Criteria
- The applicant organisation must be either Irish, or a non-Irish organisation which has received an invitation to apply for funding.
- Irish applicant organisations must hold a Registered Charity Number for a minimum of two years as of 5 October 2020. International NGOs must be in receipt of a relevant invitation from the Civil Society Fund and must also be registered as charities in the countries of their headquarters since 5 October 2018.
- Irish applicant organisations must have ongoing operations in Ireland that relate to the direct management and oversight of overseas development projects.
- International NGOs must have HQ operations that include responsibilities for the direct management and/or oversight of overseas development projects.
- Missionary organisations and religious orders are not eligible to apply and should instead contact Misean Cara.
- If the organisation is part of a larger international family, it must have its own constitution or governance document and an independent board of trustees (i.e. the board must be locally appointed and be free and able to make independent decisions on strategic and operational issues).
- Irish organisations must submit a Tax Clearance Certificate with the Eligibility Form. Non-Irish organisations must provide an equivalent assurance.
- Applications cannot be accepted from any organisations which have been approved by the Department to receive a grant in 2021 from either the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Civil Society Fund or Programme Grant.
For more information, visit https://www.irishaid.ie/what-we-do/who-we-work-with/civil-society/civil-society-fund/