The 2022 Call for Proposals for International Non-governmental Organizations (INGOs)

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland (MFA) announces a Call for Proposals for International Non-governmental Organisations (INGOs) for support in Development Cooperation. The 2022 Call for Proposals is open from 1 November until 30 November 2022. The applications need to be received by the Ministry no later than 16.15 HRS (Finnish time, UTC/GMT +2) on Wednesday 30 November.

Support for International Non-governmental Organisations (INGOs)

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland (MFA) opens a call for proposals for core and project support for International Non-governmental Organisations’ (INGOs) development cooperation interventions. Approximately EUR 13 million will be allocated during this application round for use in 2023–2025. The call for proposals targets applications in the following thematic focus areas: sexual and reproductive health and rights, promotion of tax justice and promotion of food security.

Finland’s support for INGOs contributes to Finland's development cooperation in sectors that are of strategic importance to Finland. The support is guided by the goals and principles of Finland’s development policy in accordance with the goals of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development.

The INGO support is discretionary government funding granted by the MFA and subject to annual parliamentary approval in Finland. The Act on Discretionary Government Transfers (Valtionavustuslaki 688/2001(Link to another website.) (Opens New Window), unofficial translation in English(Link to another website.) (Opens New Window)) is applied in relation to all INGO support procedures and the use of the grant.

The eligibility to apply under this Call is defined under the heading "Principles for Support and Minimum Requirements".

Thematic Focus Areas in 2022

The themes of work that will be supported in the current Call for Proposals are listed below. Applicants are requested to clearly indicate under which thematic focus area they are applying for funds. Maximum one application per organisation can be successful in this Call.

Grants to INGOs may be either core funding or funding for projects channeled to activities in developing countries. Each thematic focus area describes what type of funding is available and possible specific criteria.

The number of proposals to be funded and the maximum amount of grant available under each thematic focus area is tentative. The MFA reserves the right to fund more applications that is indicated below. The MFA may also reallocate funds between thematic focus areas depending on the quality and relevance of the applications.

  1. Promotion of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights globally, regionally and locally, especially among women and girls in vulnerable positions (e.g. persons with disabilities, persons belonging to minorities) and situations (humanitarian and fragile contexts). Particular focus will be given to organisations advancing sexual rights issues. These would include youth-friendly and disability inclusive sexual and reproductive health services, comprehensive sexuality education, access to contraceptives and safe abortion.  Successful applicants are expected to have at least 10 years of relevant experience and proven ability in both service provision in developing countries and in advocacy. It is expected that work is carried out at local, regional and international levels.
    1. Grant allocated by the Unit for Civil Society. Financing will be available for 0-3 proposals with contract duration of 3 years (2023-2025). The maximum total amount of funding available for this thematic focus area is 8 million euros.
    2. Financing will be available only for core funding and only to INGOs that meet the eligibility criteria for official development aid (ODA), set by OECD/DAC. List of ODA-eligible international organisations(Link to another website.).
  2. Promotion of tax justice, transparency and sustainable social contracts. Priority will be given to initiatives that support the capacities of civil society to hold government duty bearers accountable for increasing tax revenues and using them adequately for public services, social protection and inclusion with a view to reducing inequalities and ensuring the realization of human rights for all. Particular attention will be paid to projects that promote transparency and accountability in the use of revenues from extractive industries and/or to the geographical area of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is expected that work is carried out at local, regional and international levels.
    1. Grant allocated by the Unit for Civil Society. Financing will be available for 0-2 proposals with contract duration of 3 years (2023-2025). The maximum total amount of funding available for this thematic focus area is 3 million euros.
    2. Financing will be available for core or project support that fulfill the ODA criteria.
      1. Core funding can be granted only to INGOs that have a minimum operating annual budget of 3 million euros over the period of last two years.
      2. Project funding can be granted to INGO’s projects.
  3. Strengthening the food and nutrition security of children and youth, with an emphasis on school meals. The focus will be given to initiatives that support the development of system for Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF). HGSF constitutes a school feeding model that is designed to provide children in schools with safe, diverse and nutritious food, sourced locally from smallholders. In addition, focus can be on producing evidence for advocacy work so that school meal systems in general are prioritized in development and funding. Strengthening the capacity of local, regional and/or state authorities and practical implementers of school meals in the planning, implementation and monitoring of the different stages of the system is a priority. Successful applicants are expected to have relevant previous experience in school meals system and food and nutrition security. Experience on value chain development of smallholder farmers is an asset.
    1. Grant allocated by the Unit for Civil Society. Financing will be available for core or project funding for 0-2 proposals with contract duration of 3 years (2023-2025). The maximum total amount of funding available for this thematic focus area is 2 million euros.
    2. Financing will be available for core or project support that fulfill the ODA criteria.
      1. Core funding can be granted only to INGOs that have a minimum operating annual budget of 3 million euros over the period of last two years.
      2. Project funding can be granted to INGO’s projects.

Principles for support and Minimum Requirements

The MFA considers INGOs to be non-profit organisations that operate politically and administratively independently from governments. In the case of a consortium, a fund will be granted to one applicant only, not to a consortium. The applicant INGO is fully responsible for the use of the grant. It is required that the INGO receiving the grant fulfills the minimum requirements.

The discretionary government grant cannot cover the full amount of the total costs incurred from the activities of the proposal. In order to fulfill this legal obligation, applicants need to specify their funding sources (e.g. public, private etc.). The Ministry may set additional special conditions in its discretionary government grant decisions.

The successful INGO candidates will sign an agreement either for core support or project support with the MFA and agree to follow the General terms and conditions and the ethical code of conduct as well as Reporting instructions for the Government Grant.

In order to be eligible for support the INGO and its proposal have to meet the following Minimum Requirements.

The INGO has to have:

  • At least three different nationalities represented in its governing structures.
  • Operations in more than two countries.
  • Been registered and/or legally competent for at least two years.
  • Funding from at least one other source.

The proposal must:                                                                                                       

Criteria for review of applications

Only applications that fulfill the above-mentioned minimum requirements will be evaluated and assessed according to the following criteria:

  • Alignment of the proposal with one of the thematic focus areas and related objectives.
  • Results framework outlining impact, outcome, outputs and including clearly set indicators, targets and assumptions.
  • A comprehensive risk matrix of the proposal.
  • Relevant previous experience and proven results in the applied thematic focus area.
  • Experience of working in developing countries (including in Least Developed Countries and fragile states defined by OECD).
  • Reliable and high-quality monitoring, evaluation and learning as well as reporting systems.
  • Financial stability (e.g. ability to cover operational expenditures by fund-raising or other activities).
  • Solid risk management structures and procedures that address risks comprehensively, including policies on anti-corruption as well as on sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment, also in line with the Ethical Code of Conduct of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs for Development Cooperation.

How to Apply

The application form and its attachments must be sent to the Ministry by e-mail. The Ministry will not consider any other attachments than the ones listed below. The application form and its attachments must be written in English. Applications and attachments in any other language will not be considered.

Attachments to the application form:

  • Detailed multi-year budget for the applied funding. Applicants need to specify funding sources (e.g. public, private etc.).
  • Results Framework outlining impact, outcome, outputs including clearly set indicators, targets and assumptions (based on results-based management or equivalent  system).
  • Risk matrix analyzing risks and mitigation strategies.
  • Latest annual report of the INGO.
  • The INGO's audited financial statements from last financial year. In case the application is for core funding under the thematic focus areas of 2 or 3, the applicant needs to provide this information for two financial years.
  • The INGO's strategy and budget for the current year.

The MFA will request those INGOs, whose proposals best meet the criteria after the qualitative evaluation of the applications, to submit the following documentation related to the organization. These documents are considered as minimum requirements. Therefore, failure to submit the documents will result in rejection decision of the grant.

  • Copy of the registration document of the INGO.
  • Account on INGO's governing structure's composition (including nationalities of members).
  • Official rules of the INGO (including organizational governance and management structures, organizational finance and financial management, procurement, and audit procedures, organizational risk management structures and procedures, organizational monitoring and evaluation procedures).
  • Anti-corruption policy of the INGO.
  • Ethical code of conduct of the INGO.

The completed, signed application form and its attachments must be send by email and received by the Ministry no later than 16.15 HRS   (Finnish time, UTC/GMT +2) on Wednesday 30 November 2022. Applications arriving after the given deadline will not be considered.

The application form and its attachments shall be sent to the following e-mail addresses: ingo.um@formin.fi and kirjaamo.UM@formin.fi. The application has to be received in these mailboxes, other electronic delivery options (including links, files on cloud etc.) will not be considered. The subject field of the e-mail must be titled “Call for Proposal INGO, Application, Theme (number)” and include the number of the thematic area under which funding is applied for. The absolute maximum size per e-mail message is 7 MB. Applicants can send multiple emails.

The processing of applications takes approximately 3 months. All applicants will be informed about the decision.

Inquiries

Please see the MFA's answers to the questions received before the given deadline.

All questions related to the Call for Proposals should be conveyed to the Ministry in written form by e-mail to the following email address: ingo.um@formin.fi no later than 16.15 HRS (UTC/GMT +2) on Friday 11 November 2022. The subject field of the e-mail must include “Call for Proposal INGO, Questions”. The questions and the Ministry’s answers will be published by 16:15 HRS (UCT/GMT +2) on Friday 18 November 2022 on the Ministry’s website. Specific units or employees at the MFA, including those in charge of the call, are regrettably not in a position to answer questions received separately.