“Sankofa” Small Grants Programme 2021

Terms of Reference for Project Proposals

Deadline: March 10th, 2021 at 4PM GMT

Civil society organizations (CSOs) and local communities have a recognized role in the promotion, protection and preservation of culture and heritage in society today and this goes all the way to a national, sub-regional and local level.

The Embassy of France to Ghana aims for the second year to encourage the strengthening of civil societies and communities among other actors in Ghana towards the better preservation, promotion and rehabilitation on culture and heritage. To this end, the Embassy encourages the submission of proposals on awareness raising, capacity building and actions by CSOs in Ghana. Multi-action projects will be preferred to one-off projects.

In this light, the French Embassy in Ghana is seeking high quality project proposals that seek to preserve, promote, advocate and educate on culture and heritage in the following three areas:

• PROTECTING HERITAGE SITES such as, but not limited to, historic buildings, archaeological sites, already protected under international conventions (UNESCO) or not protected, or Ghana national parks;

• PROMOTING AND DEVELOPING RESPONSIBLE TOURISM in places of particular interest (with strong touristic potential, archaeological, cultural and scientific interest, etc.)

• BUILDING LOCAL COMMUNITIES CAPACITIES to deal with the interest of these tangible/intangible heritage sites (promotion, training, education, economical exploitation, etc.)

What actions are eligible?  

• Advocating and implementing educational activities in favor of heritage preservation (creating tours, academic materials for schools/general public, or communication tools such as books, video, animation films, comics…);
• Training guides of cultural, touristic, natural and or historical in relation with public authorities / academia.
• Empowering citizens to participate in the local protection of cultural and heritage monuments through high level advocacy.
• Enhancing the active roles of local communities towards their participation in tourism and towards sustainable tourism development (production of crafts or derived products with a sustainability and commercialization plan, light renovation works…);
• Organizing events of exhibitions showcasing tangible/intangible heritage and outstanding value of a particular site (including light works/repairs for museums).

General Requirements

Visibility

The applicants must take all necessary steps to publicize the fact that the French Embassy to Ghana has financed or co-financed the project. As far as possible, projects that are wholly or partially funded by the French Embassy must incorporate information and communication activities designed to raise the awareness of specific or general audiences of the reasons for the action and the French government’s support for the action concerned, as well as the results and the impact of this support.

1. Any Civil Society Organization (CSO) legally registered to operate in Ghana can apply

Conditions for CSOs:

1. CSO’s that are legally registered and recognized in Ghana;

or

1. CSO’s that are affiliated to known coalitions and networks;

or

1. CSO’s with offices in the regions, and especially in the districts where they plan to implement the project. Credible national CSO’s may also collaborate with local CSO’s located within their preferred project districts to apply for a Project.
2. What kinds of proposals are expected?

• Proposals should clearly define context, objectives, beneficiaries and indicators of monitoring and evaluation that address the current identified sectors. These proposals should go beyond purely descriptive research or status reports but must present actionable plans and propose innovative and feasible solutions or tools which can be implemented directly at local level.
• The running costs of the project should not exceed 8% of the total budget.
• Sitting allowances and honorarium will not be accepted.
• Projects benefiting from co-financing with other partners (NGOs, private sector, local authorities, other donors, etc.) will be favored.
• Projects will have to take into account the gender factor in all its dimensions and at all levels. Whether in terms of project beneficiaries and capacity building actions, staff of the organisation, or involvement in the implementation of actions, projects should include gender indicators and candidates should provide proof of this consideration and mastery of the concept.
• Projects will have to be implemented in 2021 and take into account the Covid19 situation. As such, large gatherings are not recommended. Innovative approaches and use of digital technologies for outreach purpose will be preferred.
• Each successful project will be supported with a grant ranging from € 5 000 to € 8 000 for a duration of 8-9 months for project implementation.
• Selected projects have to be implemented in 2021.

3. The following types of actions are ineligible

• Actions concerned only or mainly with individual sponsorship’s for participation in workshops, seminars, conferences and congresses, studies or training courses;
• Festivals, folklore and cultural events, if not related to the intangible heritage linked to a particular site;
• Actions concerned only with organisation of workshops, seminars, conferences and congresses;
• Actions in the formal education sector, except in special circumstances;
• Equipment costs beyond 8% of the total budget;
• Actions supporting political parties;
• Actions which include religious proselytism;
• Actions which discriminate against individuals or groups of people on grounds of their race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs or lack of them, or their ethnic origin;
• Actions, which are in conflict with Constitutional provisions.

4. What are the procedures and general rules to submit a proposal?
   1. Please fill out the “Sankofa Small Grant Application Form” and the “Sankofa Provisional Budget” form.
   2. Submissions must be made sent via email to FSPIsankofa@gmail.com with the full application attached. File should be named after the organization with the first page being the Grant Application Form.
   3. Please note that the deadline for receiving applications has been set to March 10th, 2021 at 4pm GMT. Proposals must be received on, or before this date and time. All applications received afterwards will not be considered.
   4. Please also note that the selected proposals shall not result in private or personal gains.
   5. Results of the selection process will be communicated through emails and/or written communications to all applicants.
   6. Each successful project will be supported with a grant of a minimum of 5,000€ and a maximum of 8,000€. Project budgets can be within the stated amount and must reflect real costs. Potential project budgets will be assessed and evaluated by our team of financial experts. Applications that do not reflect the real costs of items/services budgeted will be automatically disqualified.
   7. Selected projects will receive their funding in 2 instalments as follows: 60% upon signing of contract and the remaining 40% upon justification of use of the first
   8. Upon the official signing of grant agreement, grantee applicants will have 8-9 months to implement their projects (even if their impact is expected on a longer term).
   9. Priority will be given to projects proposed by CSOs which have NOT been provided support from Sankofa in 2020.

5. What documents must be provided?
6. Grant Application form (downloadable on the French Embassy website)
7. Budget form (downloadable on the French Embassy website) stamped and signed by the organization. For review purposes, please send a soft copy of the budget (excel format) in your electronic application
8. Annexes
   • Business Certificate
   • Document proving your CSO status (also known as NGO certificate – should be valid for 2021)
   • An official letter of confirmation of bank account details for a Ghana Cedis account
   • Relevant documents that may describe your profile (information on your organization, supporting letters, CVs of this proposal’s team members, etc.) (Maximum 3 pages)

The complete application should not exceed 8 pages in total (excluding annexes) with Calibri Font, font size 11.

Kindly note that the TOR must be adhered to, especially points (2 and 4). Failure to do so will result in your application being rejected.

Only soft copies must be submitted within the deadline.