United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in collaboration with the Global Environment Facility (GEF)'s Small Grants Programme (SGP) launched a Capacity Building Workshop for NGOs on Sunday.
UNDP Resident Representative Akiko Fujii and Maldives' Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture Zaha Waheed attended the opening ceremony for the online workshop, which is being held for successful grantees from the latest round of the Small Grants Programme, in its seventh Operational Phase.
Scheduled to take place from December 27, 2020 to January 2, 2021, a total of 52 participants from twenty-six NGOs and community-based organizations (CBOs) are expected to join the workshop.
The workshop is intended to enhance the proposal writing skills, project management skills of participants, and to support efficient management of grant funds as well as the effective management of all knowledge and results acquired within such projects.
Experts, hailing from various sectors, will instruct participants throughout the duration of the workshop.
Maldives initiated the seventh Operational Phase on October 22 by inviting Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to submit concept papers, with priority granted to national and local NGOs, CBOs or scientific communities that advocated for the rights of persons with disabilities, women, and youth.
By the deadline (November 22) a total of 46 applicants were shortlisted from the 72 concepts submitted and moved to the next component in the two-stage selection process for grant awarding.
Shortlisted candidates will be invited to submit full proposals, which shall then be evaluated to finalize successful grantees.
Although the standard maximum grant amount for selected participants is set at USD 30,000, in exceptional cases funding for up to USD 50,000 may be considered. The maximum duration of the chosen projects is capped at 24 months.
A total grant amount of USD 450,000 (MVR 6,750,000) will be disbursed to local communities via the selected grantees.
The grants are sourced from GEF core funds and the German Federal Ministry of the Environment and Nuclear Safety (BMU) to the Global Indigenous Community Conserved Areas (ICCA) Support Initiative, which is implemented by UNDP and delivered through the GEF Small Grants Programme.
Overall, the seventh Operational Phase of the Small Grants Programme aims to "promote and support community-based innovative, inclusive and impactful initiatives and foster multi-stakeholder partnerships at the local level to tackle global environmental issues in priority landscapes and seascapes".
In order to achieve the aforementioned targets, SGP will focus on the following five thematic areas.
- Community-based conservation of threatened ecosystems and species
- Sustainable agriculture and fisheries to promote food security
- Low carbon energy access co-benefits
- Local and global coalitions for chemicals and waste management
- Catalysing sustainable urban solutions
Since 1992, UNDP has implemented GEF's Small Grants Programme in over 125 countries to promote community-based innovation, capacity development and empowerment through sustainable development projects headed by local civil society organizations with special consideration for indigenous peoples, women, and youth.
Thus far, SGP has supported over 24,000 community-based projects across the fields of biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation and adaptation, prevention of land degradation, protection of international waters and reduction of the impact of chemicals.
Following the commencement of GEF's SGP in Maldives during 2010, a total of USD 2,600,000 (MVR 39,000,000) has been granted to 98 projects.
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