This new funding opportunity is available for UK-based organizations and those civil society organizations previously funded by the Department for International Development (DFID), regardless of their location. So, if your NGO has implemented projects previously with the support of DFID or is currently its partner, then you can apply to this new funding for activities leading to the eradication of poverty. This is part of the £50 million budget which has been allocated by the UK Government to fund NGOs under the White Paper on International Development, Building our Common Future.
Applicants are required to demonstrate the following:
- Steps taken to restructure and reduce their own administrative costs to protect existing front line programmes. While recognising that the recent economic crisis has hit civil society income, the £50m fund is not intended to cover this loss.
- A rigorous assessment of the expected outputs and outcomes of the funding, demonstrating how they contribute to DFID’s standard indicator set of 6 outcome and 14 output level indicators (see ‘related documents’)
- How the proposal will profile the support being provided by DFID.
Proposed projects under this program should:
- Protect the poorest in the downturn: improve service delivery, social protection and food security for the poorest, particularly in conflict affected and fragile countries;
- Strengthen in-country advocacy and policy development on off track Millennium Development Goals in particular gender equality and women’s empowerment, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health, and ensuring environmental sustainability. Proposals to promote basic services free at the point of delivery would also be of particular interest.
- Improve the impact, capacity and contribution of civil society organisations to work together and with governments at global, national and local levels to eradicate poverty and promote sustainable growth. Links to the MDGs should be made explicit.
A proposal with no more than 5 pages in length should be submitted by email. The format for the proposal is given at the DFID website. All proposals have to be submitted by 10 January 2010. For more information, visit this link.
