Background	Project Duration
Grant Size	Deadline
Own Contribution	Application Forms
Funding Priorities	Application & Procedures
Grantmaking Criteria	Languages
Guidelines	Tips

Norad provides co-financing for development projects of civil society organisations through multi-year Framework and Project Agreements. As part of these agreements, the recipient NGOs have to implement their projects in close framework with a local partner organisation in the South.

Framework Agreements offer large, experienced NGOs or umbrella organisations funds over period of three to five years to implement several large-scale development projects in framework with local partners. Project interventions can take place in several countries or regions. For each year of the agreement, the NGO has to draw up an annual work plan outlining the planned activities for the coming year.

Project Agreements are the most common form of framework between Norad and Norwegian civil society organisations. This scheme covers multi-annual development projects by smaller NGOs in framework with a local partner. Norad has funded 67 organisations with Individual Agreements in 2009.

Norad supports both projects and larger programmes, and amounts vary by type of commitment and partner's capacity and expertise. First-time applicants cannot expect to receive support above NOK 500,000.

The grant recipient must provide at least 10% of the project costs. The organisation can apply for an exemption of this rule if the project targets special thematic priority areas of Norwegian development cooperation. To cover administrative costs, the grant recipient can also apply for an additional amount equivalent to 8% of the funds provided by Norad.

The grant schemes for NGOs aim to enable civil society organisations to contribute effectively to achieving the main goals of Norway’s development assistance. All projects should strengthen local capacity and ownership and aim to build up the expertise of local NGOs in order to enhance their position within local society and in political decision-making processes. Therefore, projects must be carried out in close framework with a local partner.

The Grant schemes are also designed to reduce poverty, increase democratisation and respect for human rights through a strong independent and versatile civil society in the South. The objectives are set out in more detail in “Principles for Norad’s Support to Civil Society in the South”.

The guidelines for “Grant Schemes for Humanitarian Assistance and Development Cooperation by Norwegian and International Voluntary Actors” (2001) outline the following key thematic issues that should be addressed:

• Poverty alleviation and support for national Poverty Reduction Strategies (PRSs)
• Promotion of Human Rights and Democracy
• Preserving natural resources and the environment
• Preventing natural disasters and enhancing local capacity for crisis management
• Strengthening popular participation in local and national decision-making processes
• Improving access to social, economic and political resources for the poor
• HIV/AIDS and its consequences
• Gender equality and fostering the participation of women
• Promoting the rights of the disabled
• Promoting children’s rights
• Promoting the rights of indigenous people and minorities
• Strengthening solidarity between the people of Norway and those of developing countries

The recipient organisation must:

• Be a Norwegian NGO, trade union, organised interest group, religious and social movement, education institution or diaspora organisation
• Be an independent legal entity with its own articles of association and a responsible board. The board must normally be administratively separately from the day-to-day operations of the organisation.
• Have drafted a strategic plan/ action plan and ethical guidelines for its involvement in developing countries.
• Have an adequate economic base for the work to be carried out and the necessary technical and administrative competence to implement the projects.
• Be able to mobilise and engage its membership or supporters beyond collecting financial contributions.
• Have established cooperation with local partners

    
The local partner must be an established legal entity in the country in which the project is carried out. Public, non-governmental or voluntary organisations may be regarded as local partners. Norad must be informed whether the local partner is also receiving funds from other donors. While the local partner is usually responsible for the actual implementation of the project activities, the overall project responsibility to Norad lies with the grant recipient.

In addition to the above-mentioned eligibility criteria, all Norad’s grants will be appraised on a further set of principles: Each criteria applies in principle to all agreement types, but the requirements imposed are gradually increased for each higher agreement level, from one-year project agreements to three-year project agreements and framework agreements. Grant decisions shall be made on the basis of an overall assessment of the application.

Key factors in assessing the organisation are:

• Capacity and competence to achieve the organisation’s objectives
• The organisation’s cost-effectiveness, i.e. its capacity to achieve the organisation’s objectives on the basis of the smallest possible outlay.
• Systems for follow-up of results
• Capacity to identify and manage risk
• Financial control, including corruption prevention measures
• The organisation’s added value, i.e. its capacity to provide assistance beyond pure transfer of funds
• The organisation’s involvement in Norway in relation to development and development assistance Capacity for long-term planning
• Sustainability and exit strategies, cf. Norad’s publication: “Assessment of Sustainability Elements/Key Risk Factors” (May 2007).
• Inclusion of cross-cutting topics: Women, gender equality, the environment, HIV/AIDS, conflict sensitivity and anticorruption measures.

The various criteria will be weighted according to the size of the organisation, the country context and the orientation of cooperation. In project agreements, there is a particular emphasis on solidarity involvement. In the case of specific advocacy programmes, some of the criteria will be irrelevant.

The Norwegian government has published general guidelines for NGO framework in 2001, called “Grant Schemes for Humanitarian Assistance and Development Cooperation by Norwegian and International Voluntary Actors – Guidelines”. These guidelines apply to long-term development framework projects as well as to short-and medium-term humanitarian assistance, support for peace and reconciliation processes and human rights and democracy-building measures. These guidelines can be accessed on the website.

In 2006, Norad has also published guidelines for completing the application form for Individual Agreements, which are available in English for download from the civil society section of the Norad website.

Rules for support to civil society actors can also be found at: www.norad.no/_attachment/172274/binary/112305?download=true

Framework Agreements are concluded for periods between 3 to 5 years, in which several projects can be implemented. Project Agreements are for one year at a time.

In general, applications for Framework and Individual Agreements must be submitted by October 1st of each year.

Application forms can be found on Norad’s website.

Civil society organisations who wish to enter into Framework Agreements with Norad should fill out the relevant application form carefully and make sure the following documents are enclosed: accounts for the last two years, the statutes of the organisation, and a document outlining the organisations development framework strategy. Moreover, sub-agreements which may have been signed with Norad must be included. The application should also state the preferred duration of the Framework Agreement, which should coincide with a strategy period of the applicant.

Applicants for Individual Agreements are required to enclose the statutes of the organisation and last year’s audited accounts if they did not receive support form Norad in the previous year. In case the organisations intend to implement several projects under the Individual Agreement, part two of the application form must be completed for each project. All applications for Individual Agreements must be accompanied by a cover letter stating the project(s) and country/countries funding is being applied for.

More detailed information regarding the application procedure can be obtained from Norad’s Civil Society Section (see “Contact”).

Norwegian and English.

The Norwegian government has strict regulations regarding the selection of NGOs for Norad’s grant programmes. Therefore, all rules and guidelines should be followed scrupulously when completing the application. The local project partner should be involved in the project design as early as possible and the responsibilities of the project partner and the applicant should be clearly defined. Organisations wishing to submit applications for Framework Agreements should have completed at least one successful project framework with Norad in the past. Moreover, they must demonstrate a strong popular rooting in Norway.

Over 50 of Norway’s development NGOs are represented in the Norwegian Forum for Environment and Development (ForUM).  ForUM’s website (Norwegian and English) may interest grant seekers in search of Norwegian partners.  Embassies or Norad’s Civil Society Section can also provide helpful information regarding Norwegian NGOs which might be looking for a local framework partner.

Norad may, in exceptional cases receive applications throughout the year. This is for limited support and for very specific projects only, which are defined as one-off measures. Such support is granted only in exceptional cases - and falls outside the normal application round.

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¹ Contact information can be found in the NGO Platform Contact Information section of this Guide.

² Contact information for Norwegian Embassies can be found here: http://www.norway.info/