Standard grants

Applicants seeking a standard grant from the Foundation in support of their activities must submit a written request in Arabic, English or French that meets the below-mentioned guidelines.

Preliminary considerations:

• The amount of funding requested may not exceed EUR 40,000. It usually falls between EUR 10,000 and EUR 30,000.
• The maximum duration of support is 12-18 months.
• The request is such that it cannot be supported under the same conditions by another national, regional or international organisation.
• The Foundation reserves the right to ask for any other explanation/documentation to the candidates if needed and to decide on whether it will provide full or partial support.

The guidelines governing standard interventions are as follows:

1. Introduction

• Name of the organisation/entity.
• Headquarters address and operating locations.
• Date of creation of the organisation/entity.
• Contact person, including website link of the organisation/entity and links to social media profiles of the organisation/entity.

2. The legal profile of the applicant

• A brief description of the origins and the reason(s) for the establishment of the organisation / entity. If the organisation / entity is a successor to a prior organisation or was formed by members of the board of directors or key managers of a prior organisation, please explain the reason(s) that the organisation was formed, and identify the prior organisation.
• Description of the composition and structure of the organisation, including information about the background and expertise of its leadership team. Please provide the names and a brief introduction of all members of the board of directors and indicate the frequency of its meetings. Please indicate the number and percentage of women in the organisation’s leadership. Please indicate the number and percentage of young people (aged under 35) in the organisation’s leadership.
• A short summary of past activities, if any.
• Please list the associations, groups, or umbrella organisations of which the organisation is a member, if any.
• A brief description of the security management practices (ensuring the security of employees, partners, and activities) used by the applicant.

3. The financial profile of the applicant

• Data on total income/revenues and expenditures in the previous year.
• Data on your overall annual provisional budget for the year of the request. Please attach your provisional annual budget (mandatory).
• A complete list of past and current donors.
• Have you experienced funding difficulties in the past? If yes, please explain.

4. The request for funding

• Please describe the context in which your organisation/entity is working and the issues that your proposal will aim at addressing.
• If requesting core funding/general support, please describe the organisation’s overall strategy/work that will be sustained by the requested funding. If requesting funding for a specific programme, project, or activity, please describe it.
• Objectives and expected results of the action.
• Budget for the funding request. Please attach a detailed specific budget for the funding request (mandatory).
• Duration of the requested support.
• To what extent will your proposal complement or add value to initiatives or projects already implemented by other groups or NGOs working in the same field? Please provide details on the innovative nature of the proposal.
• Brief analysis of capacity development needs that, beyond financial support, could help your organisation/entity maintain and develop its activity in the short, medium, and long term.
• To what extent is it likely that results of the action will be felt after its end? And how would this be achieved? (sustainability)
• Assessment of the financial sustainability of the organisation/entity after the end of the requested grant.
• Have you submitted a funding application to other possible foundations/donors? If so, the applicant has to provide the name of the donor, the amount requested and provide information as to the results of applicant’s efforts to secure funding – whether positive or negative and the reasons for rejection.

5. References

• List of all human rights organisations and/or institutions that you are working with or cooperating with in your country and elsewhere in the context of your activities.
• Please provide at least two independent reference persons who are familiar with your work.

⇒ The application should not exceed approx. 10 pages. The candidates can express themselves freely in their application and are free to provide further details.

All requests, including those which are denied, receive a written reply. Even when an application is denied, the Secretariat may follow-up if another organisation is in a position to support the applicant’s request.

EMHRF has a zero-tolerance policy towards several types of misconduct (including corruption, mismanagement, nepotism, discrimination, racism, violence, and harassment) as well as terrorism, terrorist financing and money laundering. It is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and professional ethics within its Board and staff, and in all areas of its activities.

 Applicants who are victims and/or witnesses of misconduct or abuse in relation with the assessment of their applications can report it through the External Complaint Reporting Mechanism.