I will give one interesting true example here to illustrate this. One bilateral aid agency in a conflict- ridden developing country was instructed from its headquarters to stop all activities except for those related to conflict reduction / mitigation. Not one single project was dropped. The only change was in the way each project was described. A rooftop garden project concluded that 'improved access to food reduces conflict in communities' where previously it had been focused on improved nutrition. A small adjustment in the logic, and the project continued to be supported.
The proposal asks for more funding than the donor can provide
In this case, you should definitely have done your homework and known in advance. However, consider, if you are asking a small donor for the whole grant, whether you could take a different approach. With smaller donors, requesting a percentage of the grant is acceptable.
As many projects will be funded by several partners, it's also often easier to get these smaller grantmakers on board first. As your supporters increase in number, you will find other organisations willing to step in and fill the major funding gap. This isn't quite as simple as it seems, though. As mentioned earlier, different donors will have different objectives. When you are making a budget for your project, break down the project costs by outcome, so that the donors know exactly what they are supporting. For example, one outcome may commit 20% of your resources, another 30%. This way, donors can see the tangible results of their support.
The project has not been coordinated with other organisations
This does NOT mean your organisation can't 'go it alone'. Partnership can be full of difficulty, and it's sometimes the 'lone wolf' NGO that can achieve its objective better than several NGOs together, especially for small, targeted and specialized interventions. However, for maximum results and to avoid overlap, you have to coordinate your project and align your strategy with the current reality. Show how your work complements the work of others; fills a gap or meets an unaddressed need; and also identify potential overlaps and conflicts of interest. Find out as much as you can about what's going on through research, observation, talking and, most of all, listening to communities and other organisations. Demonstrate that you fully grasp how your proposed project fits in with current reality.
Other organisations can be:
• Local government bodies
• Civil Society Organisations
• Grassroots bodies community-based organisations and community groups
• Other NGOs working in the same sector or same geographical location
The donor is not assured of the organisation's capabilities
This isn't the end of the world either. We ourselves failed to win one project because we didn't have the human resources / technical skills at the time of submission. Make sure you research the availability of such resources and convince the donor you can bring on board the right people once the funding is there. If your organisation lacks the relevant experience, then consider partnering with an NGO that has. They may support you with advisors, offer to monitor progress and steer strategy, or coordinate activities. Just because you haven't done it before, doesn't mean you can't. After all, for everything that was done there was always a first time. Look at that title again: the donor hasn't been assured. Assure them.
The project is too ambitious
The donor’s concern may not just be related to human resources / skills. Perhaps the Outcomes appear too ambitious. Maybe you are taking on something far bigger than you can handle.
To make projects more manageable (and, ultimately, appear more achievable and therefore more likely to be funded) consider reducing:
• Number / Range of Outcomes – take the most important part and focus on those.
• Geographical Coverage – you may want to scale down the total area your project aims to cover, at least in its first phase. After all, if it's successful, then it can be replicated on a larger scale.
• Target Group – are you trying to cover too much of the population? Can a smaller initial target group be proposed? It can always be extended to other end-users at a later time.
Look at your Outcomes again. Are they too vague or wide-reaching – ending world hunger rather than improving the nutritional status of children aged 0-5 in XYZ province? Outcomes must be SMART (Specific-Measurable-Appropriate-Realistic- Timebound). The last thing you can do in this case is look at partnership with other organisations. Can their capacity help you to meet your objectives and thus convince your donor that it can be done?
The writer did not follow the guidelines
If you're guilty of this, there's not much I can say. Guidelines are there for a purpose, and the purpose is NOT to prevent you from telling all the great and wonderful things your project will achieve.
They exist so that:
• You can stay focused on what's important.
• Donors can cross-compare different submissions when allocating limited funds.
Guidelines are not optional. Find out what they are and follow them every time you draft your proposal. However at the planning stage, only look briefly at the guidelines. We should try to avoid fitting our ideas and the current reality into the donor’s framework for now. Just get an idea of what they want and then follow the process of project planning. ALWAYS develop your proposal based around the current reality: and fine-tune your plan / proposal according to the guidelines later. The guidelines are guidelines for submission – not guidelines to thinking.
The evaluation procedure is inadequate
There are no excuses here, either. Accountability is everything, so make sure your plan includes a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system. At each level of achievement (Outputs, Outcome and Goal) you need Indicators (often called Objectively Verifiable Indicators, or OVI) which can be measured transparently and reliably. Your Indicators will need to be specific about the amount of change, quality of change, time frame, target group and location. Explain how frequently M&E will be carried out; who will conduct it; and the methods that will be used. Also, include how you will communicate the results – to whom, how and how often.
The proposal asks for more funding than the donor can provide
In this case, you should definitely have done your homework and known in advance. However, consider, if you are asking a small donor for the whole grant, whether you could take a different approach. With smaller donors, requesting a percentage of the grant is acceptable.
As many projects will be funded by several partners, it's also often easier to get these smaller grantmakers on board first. As your supporters increase in number, you will find other organisations willing to step in and fill the major funding gap. This isn't quite as simple as it seems, though. As mentioned earlier, different donors will have different objectives. When you are making a budget for your project, break down the project costs by outcome, so that the donors know exactly what they are supporting. For example, one outcome may commit 20% of your resources, another 30%. This way, donors can see the tangible results of their support.
The project has not been coordinated with other organisations
This does NOT mean your organisation can't 'go it alone'. Partnership can be full of difficulty, and it's sometimes the 'lone wolf' NGO that can achieve its objective better than several NGOs together, especially for small, targeted and specialized interventions. However, for maximum results and to avoid overlap, you have to coordinate your project and align your strategy with the current reality. Show how your work complements the work of others; fills a gap or meets an unaddressed need; and also identify potential overlaps and conflicts of interest. Find out as much as you can about what's going on through research, observation, talking and, most of all, listening to communities and other organisations. Demonstrate that you fully grasp how your proposed project fits in with current reality.
Other organisations can be:
• Local government bodies
• Civil Society Organisations
• Grassroots bodies community-based organisations and community groups
• Other NGOs working in the same sector or same geographical location
The donor is not assured of the organisation's capabilities
This isn't the end of the world either. We ourselves failed to win one project because we didn't have the human resources / technical skills at the time of submission. Make sure you research the availability of such resources and convince the donor you can bring on board the right people once the funding is there. If your organisation lacks the relevant experience, then consider partnering with an NGO that has. They may support you with advisors, offer to monitor progress and steer strategy, or coordinate activities. Just because you haven't done it before, doesn't mean you can't. After all, for everything that was done there was always a first time. Look at that title again: the donor hasn't been assured. Assure them.
The project is too ambitious
The donor’s concern may not just be related to human resources / skills. Perhaps the Outcomes appear too ambitious. Maybe you are taking on something far bigger than you can handle.
To make projects more manageable (and, ultimately, appear more achievable and therefore more likely to be funded) consider reducing:
• Number / Range of Outcomes – take the most important part and focus on those.
• Geographical Coverage – you may want to scale down the total area your project aims to cover, at least in its first phase. After all, if it's successful, then it can be replicated on a larger scale.
• Target Group – are you trying to cover too much of the population? Can a smaller initial target group be proposed? It can always be extended to other end-users at a later time.
Look at your Outcomes again. Are they too vague or wide-reaching – ending world hunger rather than improving the nutritional status of children aged 0-5 in XYZ province? Outcomes must be SMART (Specific-Measurable-Appropriate-Realistic- Timebound). The last thing you can do in this case is look at partnership with other organisations. Can their capacity help you to meet your objectives and thus convince your donor that it can be done?
The writer did not follow the guidelines
If you're guilty of this, there's not much I can say. Guidelines are there for a purpose, and the purpose is NOT to prevent you from telling all the great and wonderful things your project will achieve.
They exist so that:
• You can stay focused on what's important.
• Donors can cross-compare different submissions when allocating limited funds.
Guidelines are not optional. Find out what they are and follow them every time you draft your proposal. However at the planning stage, only look briefly at the guidelines. We should try to avoid fitting our ideas and the current reality into the donor’s framework for now. Just get an idea of what they want and then follow the process of project planning. ALWAYS develop your proposal based around the current reality: and fine-tune your plan / proposal according to the guidelines later. The guidelines are guidelines for submission – not guidelines to thinking.
The evaluation procedure is inadequate
There are no excuses here, either. Accountability is everything, so make sure your plan includes a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system. At each level of achievement (Outputs, Outcome and Goal) you need Indicators (often called Objectively Verifiable Indicators, or OVI) which can be measured transparently and reliably. Your Indicators will need to be specific about the amount of change, quality of change, time frame, target group and location. Explain how frequently M&E will be carried out; who will conduct it; and the methods that will be used. Also, include how you will communicate the results – to whom, how and how often.
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