Introduction
STAR Ghana Foundation is a national centre for active citizenship and philanthropy. It works to strengthen civil society and enable citizens to engage with the state to ensure accountable, transparent and responsive governance at all levels of governance. STAR Ghana Foundation builds on the successful STAR-Ghana programme, a multi-donor funded (DFID, EU and DANIDA) voice and accountability support initiative established in 2010.
With funding from DFID and the European Union, STAR Ghana Foundation is seeking to support a range of citizens’ actions and initiatives towards achieving credible, peaceful and inclusive presidential and parliamentary elections in 2020 and a smooth transition subsequently.
The Foundation is consequently issuing a Call for Proposals from interested and eligible organisations, including NGOs, CSO coalitions and alliances, citizen groups, media organisations and coalitions, faith-based organisations, academic institutions, private sector/business associations and community-based organisations to achieve these objectives.
The Elections 2020 Call and Key issues
The Overall Aim of the Elections 2020 Call is: to increase the effectiveness of citizens’ actions for credible, peaceful and inclusive presidential and parliamentary elections. The focus will be on supporting joined up citizens’ actions, at all levels of governance, including innovative alliances and collaborations between different sections of civil society to achieve traction and results across the elections value chain.
Expected Outputs:
Citizens mobilised at local and national levels and engaging effectively with relevant stakeholders towards addressing the issues of vigilantism and other election-related conflicts;
Increased responsiveness of Election Management Bodies (EMBs) to the issues, needs and concerns of excluded social groups (, particularly persons with disability, women, young people and hard-to-reach communities) around their effective participation in all stages of the elections ‘value chain’.
Increased capacity of citizens’ groups to influence political parties and presidential and parliamentary candidates around issues of inclusive and sustainable development.
Key Issues to note
Proposals should focus on any one, or combination, of the three issues indicated below.
- Proposals seeking to address any issues outside of these three will be rejected.
- Addressing vigilantism and election-related conflicts
- Inclusion and active participation of GESI-groups in all stages of the elections (value-chain)
- Influencing manifestos at constituency and national levels, including debates.
- Proposals focusing on issues a. and c. above must in addition demonstrate how issues of gender and social inclusion will be mainstreamed;
- The Call is particularly targeted at formal or informal alliances or coalitions of civil society organisations (CSOs) including innovative alliances involving NGOs, media organisations, private sector associations, academia and faith-based organisations. Individual organisations are eligible to apply but they must demonstrate how they will collaborate with other actors to achieve the objectives of their proposals.
- Collaboration or engagement with relevant state actors is important to achieving the objectives of this Call. Applicants will therefore be required to be explicit about which state actors or agencies they will be engaging with and how this will be done.
Call Components
The call has been split into two components. Strategic component and Local Partnership Component. The strategic component will focus on national and regional level actions around the three key issues indicated above and post-election issues. Projects shall have a maximum duration of 16 months and grant fund support not exceeding GHC 450,000. The Local partnership component on the other hand, will support actions/projects at community and district levels around the three key issues indicated above. Projects shall have a maximum duration of 16 months and grant fund support not exceeding GHC 250,000.
Eligible Organisations
The call is open to all registered CSOs, including private sector/business associations, CSO networks/coalitions, faith-based organisations, media coalitions/organisations and community-based organisations (CBOs). Political parties and CSOs linked to political parties are ineligible.
Local Component
- Registered CSOs, including CBOs, working at the community or district level;
- Registered private sector associations and other interest groups, including farmer-based organisations, local business associations, youth associations and faith-based organisations;
- Formal or informal CSO coalitions and networks. Informal coalitions/networks must be led by a registered CSO;
Strategic Component
- Registered CSOs, including research and advocacy organisations working at national and regional levels;
- Registered private sector/business associations working at national and regional levels;
- Formal and informal CSO coalitions and networks, including faith-based organisations and other interest groups. Informal networks must be led by a registered organisation.
- Registered Media organisations and networks;
- Academic institutions.
Principles
Grants will primarily be awarded to coalitions/networks and alliances. Applications must clearly demonstrate the following:
- How the project provides value for money
- Relevant track record of the coalition/network, or the lead organisation in the case of an informal alliance, particularly around citizen mobilisation for advocacy and/or elections programming.
- Evidence of partnerships or other collaborations or engagements with relevant state actors to implement the proposed project
- Innovation
- How gender and social inclusion issues will be mainstreamed and addressed in the project
Application Process
Download Application form and other relevant documents here to prepare your application.
Visit the STAR Ghana Foundation Online Application Portal to complete the Online Application Form with relevant information from the downloaded (filled) application form, and upload other supporting documents.
Application Deadline
The deadline for receipt of applications is at 11.59pm on Friday, 30th August 2019. No applications will be considered after this date. We expect to complete assessments and award grants by the end of September 2019.
Additional information
Interested organisations are invited to information sessions to be held as follows:
- Southern Sector - Accra (W.E.B. Dubois, East Cantonments): Wednesday, 14th August 2019, 10am – 12 noon
- Northern Sector - Tamale (GILLBT Training Centre, Kanvilli): Wednesday, 14th August 2019, 10am – 12 noon
Contact us
Telephone: 0302774488
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit our website: www.star-ghana.org
Contact us from Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 5:00pm