initiative support grant

Organisations that do not have the technical and financial capacity to access funding under the Institutional Support mechanism can still qualify for support if they demonstrate innovation, creativity and the potential for organisational growth. The Foundation offers grants for specific activities or projects alongside grants for organisational capacity development.

The Initiative Support grant is targeted at smaller and emerging civil society organisations seeking to engage more effectively in the public policy debate, empower their communities, and advance their own organisational development. It is a project or activity-based grant. This call does not prescribe a particular theme and is open to applications from organisations engaged in policy work in different sectors and cross-cutting issues, including but not limited to gender equality, child and youth development, health, agriculture, education, health, HIV and AIDS, environment and natural resources, and governance. See beneficiaries of this grant

Interested organisations should be able to demonstrate that their policy engagement work ultimately yields positive outcomes for poor and vulnerable sections of society through their proactive engagement with government institutions and other actors.

Under this support scheme, applicants can submit applications to undertake projects (here referred to as Initiatives) combining various types of activities: (a) policy engagement activities; (b) service delivery activities; and, (c) activities aimed at organisational capacity development. Applicants must however demonstrate the centrality of policy engagement in the proposal, with service delivery and capacity development activities playing a reinforcing secondary role.

Organisations are requested to submit proposals with a minimum budget of
ZMK 25,000,000. The upper ceiling is set at a maximum of ZMK 400,000,000.

Initiative Support grants can be used over a maximum period of two years though it is expected that smaller grants would be used within one year. Grants used over a two year period will be governed by framework agreements between the Foundation and the Grant Partner. At the end of the first year, extension or renewal of the agreement is subject to the submission of satisfactory annual audit reports and overall performance.